Extreme Obesity Found in 6.4% of Children, Kaiser Study Finds

[FarCenter]

By Tom Randall

March 18 (Bloomberg) -- Extreme obesity affects about 6.4 percent of children, according to a Kaiser Permanente study that suggests overweight kids are getting even heavier.

More children are graduating from “obese” to “extremely obese,” according to the study, the first to evaluate kids using U.S. guidelines published last year that distinguish among degrees of obesity. The report drew from the electronic medical records of 710,949 patients ages 2 to 19 years old enrolled in 2007-2008 in Kaiser health programs in Southern California.

<snip>

The Atlanta-based CDC last year defined extreme obesity as those whose body mass is 120 percent of the 95th percentile. For a 10-year-old girl who is 4 feet 6 inches tall, extreme obesity starts at 129 pounds, according to Kaiser. For an 18- year-old boy who is about 5 feet 10 inches, 272 pounds is classified as extremely obese.

<SNIP>

Children who are extremely obese have higher risk of heart illness than obese patients, as indicated by increased rates of hypertension, high cholesterol and elevated liver enzymes, Koebnick said. The best way for parents to help obese children is to involve the entire family in eating healthier meals and exercising, she said. “Without major lifestyle changes, these kids face a 10-to- 20-years shorter life span and will develop health problems in their 20s that we typically see in 40-60 year olds,” Koebnick said in a statement from Kaiser.

<SNIP>http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601124&sid=a2SqeQmVnpUs

[kestrel91316]

1. I see way too many Hispanic familes here in Los Angeles where EVERYONE

(Mom, Dad, and all the kids) is morbidly obese. It's a disaster in the making.