A third of children leaving primary school in some areas of the country are overweight, official figures have revealed. A "snapshot" of the health of the nation's children showed that the young are getting fatter despite Government pledges to act. The latest figures are part of a nationwide survey of children's weight commissioned by the Department of Health. Although the full results will not be known until next Spring, ten primary care trusts have released their results under the Freedom of Information Act. These show that on average a quarter of children are already obese or overweight when they start school at the age of five. And in some areas the figure rises to a third by the time pupils enter secondary school at 11. Worryingly, although both figures are up on previous years, experts have warned they could still be underestimating the problem - as the parents of heavier children are less likely to agree to have them weighed.
The findings suggest the Government cannot achieve its target of halting the rise in childhood obesity among under-11s by 2010. Colin Waine, said: "These figures make disturbing reading when you think about the implications for the future health of these children and the demands they will make on the NHS. What particularly worries the NOF is that these children are in grave danger of developing type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and certain cancers."
The latest statistics showed the Isle of Wight has the biggest problem. Almost 30 per cent of children starting primary school there are overweight or obese, and the figure climbs to 34 per cent by the time they leave. At the other end of the scale is Exeter, where 20 per cent of children are overweight when they start primary school, compared with 27 per cent at the age of 11. In Suffolk, 23 per cent of reception year pupils were overweight, rising to 33 per cent by the final year. In Bath and North-East Somerset the figures were 23 per cent and 28 per cent. The latest figures come after the Department of Health commissioned Health Trusts around England to weigh and measure primary school children in an attempt to monitor the increasing rate of childhood obesity.
For the past two years, all youngsters have undergone the checks at five and 11 years old. But the first round last year was regarded by some as a costly flop because thousands of parents refused to give consent for their children to take part. Ministers wanted all pupils to be tested, but fewer than half the target of one million children submitted to the checks. Parents of heavier children were more likely refuse to take part, with many citing a fear of playground bullying as the reason. This year trusts were given a target of 80 per cent involvement. Last year's survey found 22.8 per cent of five year-olds and 31.1 per cent of 11-year-olds were overweight or obese, with boys fatter than girls at both ages. The number of fat older children has doubled in ten years with one in four of those aged between 11 and 15 now classified as obese - so fat it threatens their health. Almost half of girls in this group are obese or overweight. Information about a child's weight is currently available to parents only by request. But the Government is considering making it routine for parents to be told if their child is overweight or obese.
Obesity has trebled since the 1980s and costs the UK £2.3billion a year in health and other costs - a figure expected to rise to £2.6billion by 2010. A spokesman for the Department of Health said: "Tackling childhood obesity is a top priority - through better health education at school and at home, in the wider promotion of healthier living, investing in the best ever sports and PE provision inside and outside school and the Olympics. "We absolutely recognise that we must go further and faster."
