It is summer time - that long break from school that most adults dread and most children love. It is also that time of the year, researchers suggest, when children gain more weight than they during any other period.
A recent study that is published in the American Journal of Public Health finds that BMI or Body Mass Index weight gains were higher during summer vacation among a sample section of 5,380 children from 310 schools across the US. It has long been held that schools in America, especially those with an inclination for a high-calorie, high-fat diet and less-structured exercise regimens are to be held at fault for an increasing number of obese children in the country. Now, this latest study seems to suggest that the school may not be the chief culprit, after all. BMI gains during summer vacations was especially high for children who are already considered to be in a high risk group - blacks, Hispanics, and those children who were already overweight.
In conclusion, the study warns that schools that feed children on a high-fat diet may not be the only cause for a child’s obesity.
Do schools contribute to childhood obesity? They may, to some degree, but it appears that other factors are more to blame.
The solution, they suggest, is to ensure that schools teach kids to pick up healthier eating habits and exercise regimens not just during school hours but also off the school campus. Seems simple to me but in an era where more kids are turning out to be couch junkies, it may be harder to achieve.
Via: Medical News
