Is Childhood Obesity Associated with High‐Fat Foods and Low Physical Activity?
Journal of School HealthPublished 1 January 1992
Lee Muecke, Bruce G. Simons‐Morton, Iris Wei Huang, Guy S. Parcel
Citations38
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TL;DR
The sample population of Texas school children revealed a 100% greater prevalence of childhood obesity relative to national normative standards established from 1976-1980, and high-fat food intake and reported level of physical activity were independent risk factors.
Abstract
Childhood obesity is a major health problem with serious long-term health implications. Efforts to determine risk factors beyond genetic predisposition have been equivocal. Common notions of overeating and under-exercising as causes have not been supported by prior research. This combined prevalence and case-control study analyzed a population of children ages 8-10 to ascertain the association between exposure to high-fat foods and low levels of exercise, and obesity. The sample population of Texas school children revealed a 100% greater prevalence of childhood obesity relative to national normative standards established from 1976-1980. Neither high-fat food intake nor reported level of physical activity were independent risk factors for this condition. However, they may exert a synergistic effect when both are present in the same child. Development of more sophisticated population-based instruments will enable larger studies to investigate risk factors for childhood obesity.
Keywords
Medicine
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