Obese kids, blame it on overweight moms

As India grapples with the rising epidemic of child obesity, an extensive three-year survey among 1,800 schoolchildren in four cities has suggested that mother’s feeding and eating habits might be the key to resolving this problem.

Researchers from New Delhi’s Diabetes Foundation of India and National Diabetes, Obesity and Cholesterol Foundation led the study that found that 19.2% male and 18.1% female children were overweight and a whopping 64.8% of mothers were in a similar condition.

The findings of the survey conducted in 24 schools across Pune, New Delhi, Agra and Bangalore have been published in an international peer-reviewed journal ‘Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism’.

Dr Seema Gulati, one of the key researchers, said that in the study, patterns of food choice of mothers and their children showed high levels of overlap.

“The mother is the food procurer and preparer and shapes the types and amounts of food children consume. In our study, most mothers (64.8%) were overweight or obese suggesting poor awareness about nutrition. 79.2% mothers used ghee and 46.5% used butter daily or 4–5 times per week. Most mothers were unaware of obesity and its link with diseases. As mothers are generally responsible for food choices and prevention of metabolic disorders in the family, it is important to train them,” she said.

Another shocking aspect that came to the fore were misconceptions amongst mothers. Most of them surveyed felt chubby cheeks were healthy and ‘baby fat’ would go away with time.

An important aspect studied was the association of family income vis-a-vis childhood obesity. The richer the family, the more likely it is that both the kids and mothers are overweight as levels of physical activity comes down. Kids in government schools were more active, less obese than kids in private schools who are less active, have more means to eat what they want,” said Pune’s KEM Hospital nutrition department head Dr Vaishali Madkaikar, who was also a part of the study.