Shrinking schoolyards, worse eating habits and parents who drive their children. The Public Health Authority sees several reasons for the increasing obesity and overweight among children.
– It is increasing at a rate that it has not done before, says investigator Kenisha Russell Jonsson.
Since 2018, overweight and obesity among children has increased by 2.3 percentage points and now just over one in four 6-9-year-olds is overweight or obese. This is shown by new figures from the Public Health Authority which compare the development with the covid-19 pandemic.
– The pandemic happened quickly and had major consequences. The development of overweight and obesity is a slowly growing problem but also very serious, says Kenisha Russell Jonsson.
How are we going to change that? That’s the question everyone is asking.
Children are shuttled around
The discussion about obesity is too much about individual people’s lifestyles. People know too little about the structural factors that lead to obesity, says Russell Jonsson. Among other things, it is becoming increasingly common for parents to drive children to school and leisure activities by car. A transport route where children used to get rid of energy by cycling or walking.
Other explanations for children’s increasing weight can be changed food standards, more sedentary time in front of screens and that the children’s physical space to play has decreased.
The school grounds have shrunk, so the children do not have as good opportunities to move around during the day compared to before.
Harder at school
Obesity is a major reason for an increase in several diseases: such as type 2 diabetes, several cancers and cardiovascular diseases. Being overweight is also stigmatized, it affects children’s mental health negatively and also the chances of getting a passing grade, says Kenisha Russell Jonsson.
– Studies show that childhood obesity can negatively affect schooling.
At the same time, there is much that society can do to address the problem, she says.
– More movement during the day, more active transport and earlier efforts to help children understand what healthy eating habits are.