Childhood obesity and body mass index of children

It is much easier to prevent than treat, -beautiful in its simplicity the truth. It was she who was guided by the National Health Service of England, testing children for excess weight. Studies have shown that there is enough little intervention from parents to make the child's lifestyle healthier. This is a great investment in his future health, - the National Service is confident.Photo: GettyImages The interests of children come first.Therefore, if, according to the test results, a student suddenly showed excess weight or preconditions for the appearance of such, the school nurses contacted the parents and gave recommendations on what to do to avoid problems. works, changes the lives of children for the better, - said health officials. Tested children for excess weight, calculating body mass index: squared height in centimeters and divided by weight in kilograms. The formula is simple and therefore does not always justify itself: it does not take into account the level of muscle mass or the body type of a person. But the British decided that this was enough. As a result, parents from schools began to receive letters of very unpleasant content: "Your child weighs too much for his age, height and gender," said the message that the parents of four-year-old Roxanne Tall received. "This will lead to the fact that the child will have health problems: early diabetes, high blood pressure." In addition, doctors predicted a low level of self-esteem for the child. - We were shocked. It seems as if we are only doing what we are feeding the child with sweets. But this is not the case! Roxana is very active, she is not overweight, - the girl's parents were outraged. - How can you even instill in children at such an early age complexes about their weight? Roxanne, by the way, with a height of 110.4 centimeters, weighed 23.6 kilograms. According to the classic child development charts, this is a bit too much for a four-year-old. But Roxana's height is also not classic - much higher than average.1 / 2Roxanne with her mother Photo: facebook.com The Tall family Photo: facebook.com The same letter was received by the parents of five-year-old Jake. Height - 112.5 centimeters, weight - 22.5 kilograms. Jake does have health problems: he has a cognitive impairment. He had brain surgery a year ago. “Jake is a big guy, he doesn't grow up for his age. He now has the size of a seven-year-old. He has special needs and a number of problems that could affect his weight. But he's not obese, '' Jake's mom told The Sun. Angry parents went to school to talk to teachers about the outrageous letters. But the teachers were shocked no less than the mothers and fathers themselves. They knew nothing about the letters, because it was an initiative to unite school doctors. Yes, it looks like the initiative has failed. The issue of child development can hardly be approached so simply - calculate the body mass index, and that's all. However, there is another side to the question. “And he’s not fat, everything in our family is so dense,” the lady shouted, leaving the endocrinologist's office, dragging her little son with her. “Overweight, what nonsense!” The door slammed, the lady caught her breath, released the child's hand and reached into her purse. She took out two sneakers. One for himself, the other for his son. Unfolded, gnawed their teeth - apparently, the stress for the sweet tooth is seized. But both of them were not that dense. They were just square, and looking at them I think that the initiative is not bad. Just a little unfinished. What do you think? Should parents be encouraged to lead healthier lives?