The CDC has published updated data on the prevalence of obesity in the United States. The latest data is from 2011-2012. The most encouraging fact, which is all over the news, is that the obesity rate has fallen in preschoolers by 43 percent. That is indeed exciting. I have found in my overweight and obese older patients, if I trace their weight back through time, that the problem often started in the preschool years. I also see it starting in many of my patients at this age. A recent study on the incidence of obesity showed that the problem often begins in the preschool years and when it does, it usually persists through childhood and into adulthood.
What this hopefully means is that the message is getting across, that preschoolers are drinking and eating healthier, and getting more exercise, and that in the future obesity rates will fall in older children and adults as these preschoolers get older.
All the news is not good, however. The obesity rate in older children and adults has remained the same, except in women over 60 which rose significantly. And even among preschoolers, a rate of 8 percent is still far too high. Among all children, a third are overweight or obese, which has not changed and is a national epidemic. We are seeing a large increase in the number of children with high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, and liver disease due to obesity. I remain hopeful that this data represents a new trend and a new day for the health of our children, and our entire population as they grow older.
Article in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA)
