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In the UK an estimated one in four 11 to 15-year-olds are overweight or obese.
More Info
Obesity
Over 30,000 deaths a year are caused by obesity in England alone. A study by the National Audit Office in 2002 estimated the condition costs the NHS £500 million a year. The overall cost to the country is estimated at up to £7.4 billion a year.

People are classed as obese if they have a body mass index over 30. They are overweight if it is 25-30

Adult obesity rates have almost quadrupled in the last 25 years. Now 22% of Britons are obese and three-quarters are overweight.

The number of obese children has tripled in 20 years. 10% of six-year-olds are obese, rising to 17% of 15-year-olds.

Obesity can lead to health problems, including arthritis, heart disease and diabetes
Should we worry about our children being fat?
YES
NO
Obese children are often depressed
Obese children display few health problems
Obese children may be storing up health problems for later in life
Many children lose any excess weight by the time they are adults
Childhood eating habits can determine adult food tastes and the body's metabolic rate
Obsessing over a child's eating habits or size may make them more unhappy
Fat adults who were fat children find it more difficult to lose weight than those who were thin in their youth
Fat is necessary and performs many functions in the body. Thinking of this as 'evil' is a misconception
Should you change your lifestyle to lose weight?
YES
NO
Greater physical activity burns more calories and has additional health benefits
New drugs are being developed that can control appetite or alter metabolic rate
Reducing the amount of calories from fat and sugars, and eating more fruit and vegetables, improves health
High calorie fat and sugars can be replaced with low calorie alternatives. These are becoming increasingly sophisticated
Yo-yo dieting leads nowhere and may be damaging. Long-term change needs long-term attention
Screening for genes that play a part in obesity will identify children at risk so preventative measures can be taken
Improving someone's body image builds confidence and increases results. Unrealistic expectations are counter-productive
Surgery can reduce the amount of food a patient is able to eat, resulting in there appearance changing dramatically
Obesity epidemic?
Being very fat, or obese, is linked to many health problems including heart disease, strokes, diabetes and arthritis. And the world's population is becoming fatter, leading some to believe that we are in the grip of an obesity epidemic.
What is Fat?
Your 'body mass index' or BMI is a measure of body fat based on height and weight. A BMI of:

  • under 20 = underweight

  • 20-25 = normal

  • 25-30 = overweight

  • 30+ = obese
    		•
    Getting Fat
    Fat functions as an energy reservoir. It is laid down when food is plentiful and then converted back to energy when needed. Normal levels of fat are not a problem for the body. In fact, they're necessary for it to function smoothly.

    On a basic level, people become obese when their calorie intake is higher than their calorie expenditure. However, a host of factors complicate this picture. An individual's genetics, metabolism, culture and lifestyle all have a role to play.
    Where is fat stored in the body?
    Most fat is stored under the skin. But there is also some on top of your kidneys and inside your liver and muscles. Other body parts that gather fat depend on your gender:

  • adult men: chest, waist and buttocks

  • adult women: breasts, waist, hips and buttocks


    • Fat tissue is made up of fat cells. These are like tiny plastic bags that hold droplets of fat. Fat cells are only formed in our childhood. They start growing while we are in the womb. The next stage of generation is during puberty, when the sex hormones, oestrogen and testosterone are triggered. These define the areas in which the fat cells grow.

    After puberty, we do not grow any more fat cells. Our cells just expand or shrink to accommodate the fat inside our bodies.
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