A child's weight at just six years old is crucial in predicting whether they are likely to be obese as an adult, worrying research suggests.
Dutch scientists said the first five years of a child's life are the most important in giving them a "chance for a happy and healthy life."
Analyzing the health records of more than 3,500 children, they found that every one-unit increase in BMI at age six more than doubled the chances of a child being overweight or obese at age 18.
Being overweight or obese is linked to the risk of many diseases, from diabetes to some types of cancer.
Today's experts, who described the study as important, said it showed that access to healthy food in nurseries and kindergartens, as well as early intervention, are vital.
Professor Jasmin de Groot, an expert in behavioral sciences at the University Medical Center Rotterdam and author of the study, said:
"We need to understand how children grow and develop if we want to help future generations grow up healthier. Our research helps with this by showing that an obese child is not destined to be overweight or obese as an adult – and that the first five years of a child's life offer an excellent opportunity to intervene."
In the study, scientists used data from 3,528 Dutch children and tracked body mass index (BMI) at ages 2, 6, 10, 14 and 18.
Presenting their findings at the European Congress on Obesity in Malaga, Spain, they also said that if a child with a high BMI reached a healthy weight by the age of six, they were no longer at risk.
Current data shows that around 21 percent of five-year-olds in England are obese.
Meanwhile, other research presented at the congress found that the number of overweight teenagers has increased by 50 percent over the last 15 years.
British experts, who led the study, blamed the rise in obesity among young people on ultra-processed foods (UPF) and poor lifestyles such as excessive screen use and lack of physical activity.
The study, by researchers at the University of Bristol, followed young people aged 12 to 17 and found that the proportion of those who were overweight or obese increased from 22 percent in 2008–2010 to 33 percent in 2021–2023.
Foods packed with additives, such as chips and candy, have long been criticized for their potential dangers, with studies linking them to heart disease and cancer.
But experts are now calling for these foods – usually anything that has more artificial ingredients than natural ones – to be significantly reduced in diets.
Last year, the Government announced a ban on advertising for harmful foods before 21:00 PM on television, as an effort to combat obesity in children.
This ban is expected to come into effect in October 2025.
However, the government has been urged to take even tougher policies, such as banning shops selling unhealthy food near schools.
Obesity itself increases a person's chances of developing serious diseases that damage the heart, such as high blood pressure, as well as some types of cancer.
Around two in three adults in the UK are overweight or obese, ranking the country among the most affected in Europe.
A worrying report published last year also suggested that rising obesity levels in Britain have led to a shocking 39 per cent rise in type 2 diabetes in people under 40, with 168,000 Britons now living with the disease.
Weight gain has also been linked to at least 13 types of cancer and is considered the second biggest cause of this disease in the UK, according to Cancer Research UK.. /GazetaExpress/
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