Parents lead by example

Are your children larger than they should be? According to research being conducted by the Universtiy of Western Australia, Childhood obesity has risen by an alarming 60-70%, the gains being attributed to children living a far more sedentary lifestyle. However, before you rush out and buy bikes for the kids for Christmas, it appears inactivity is not the only factor we need to be concerned with.

Researchers from the University of Western Australia (UWA), Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) and the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research are looking into the Biopsychosocial factors and childhood obesity. The study looks at the role parent’s play in determining the size and weight of their offspring, and we are not just talking genetics. The study involves three groups of children (a community sample of overweight/obese children, a community sample of healthy weight children, and a treatment-seeking sample of obese children) and their parents.
It has been noted that a staggering 80% of the children accepted in to the research groups had at least one overweight parent, usually the mother. Children are susceptible, they see parents doing something and they quite naturally assume that it is OK for them to do the same.