Britain Helps U.S.
Investigate Childhood Obesity

LONDON (Reuters Health) - British scientists have been awarded 1.9 million dollars by the U.S. National Institutes of Health to investigate the role of physical activity in the development of childhood obesity.

The Bristol University team said thousands of children would wear a tiny monitor capable of recording every move they make for one week at the ages of 11 and 13, in an effort to find out how their activity levels change during adolescence.

The children are all members of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children -- also known as the "Children of the 90s" study. Around 8,000 have been followed since birth in 1991 and 1992, in the largest ongoing population study of its kind.

The scientists want to pinpoint why some children end up overweight teenagers, and potentially overweight adults, while others grow up without any weight problems.

Bristol investigator Professor Ken Fox said in a statement that the Children of the 90s study "offers a unique data set of world significance, hence the interest of the Americans who lead the world in prevalence of obesity.

"Early adolescence is a critical period and this type of evidence will allow us to unravel the contribution of physical activity to obesity development and also examine interactions with diet and genetic predisposition."

Childhood obesity is seen as one of the biggest challenges in world health. According to one recent report, obesity costs the U.S. $92.6 billion a year in medical expenses.

Reference Source 89

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