Children add on the pounds

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http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2001-03-13-child-obesity.htm

03/13/2001 - Updated 12:57 PM ET

Children add on the pounds

By Nanci Hellmich, USA TODAY

More children in this country are overweight than ever before, about double

the number who were heavy in the late 1970s, according to government

findings just out.

The latest statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

show:

.. 13% percent of children ages 6 to 11 were overweight in 1999, up from 11%

in 1988-1994 and 7% in the late '70s.

.. 14% of children ages 12 to 19 were overweight in 1999, up from 11% in

1988-1994 and 5% in the late '70s.

Even more children are headed toward becoming overweight. About 20% to 25%

of kids are either overweight or at risk of becoming overweight, the

government says.

Doctors have official height and weight charts to determine whether a child

is overweight. For example, a 7-year-old boy who is 4 feet tall would be

considered overweight if he weighs 63 pounds or more; a girl of the same age

and height would be considered overweight if she weighs 65 pounds or more.

" Overweight children are at risk for cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and

other serious health problems, " says Koplan, director of the CDC.

Nutritionist Kuczmarski with the CDC's National Center for Health

Statistics says: " Parents need to set a good example by selecting from a

wide variety of healthy foods, consuming them in moderation and getting

plenty of leisure-time physical activity. "