Middle-class children 'are more likely to be overweight'

By OLINKA KOSTER

Last updated at 10:46 23 July 2007

The children of wealthier parents are more likely to be overweight than those from poor 世帯s, a 調査する has 明らかにする／漏らすd.

The 推論する／理由, によれば研究員s, is the 速く増加するing number of working mothers in the middle class.

They are 軍隊d to leave their offspring with nannies or nurseries where not enough attention is paid to diet or physical 演習.

High 消費 of 軽食 foods and sweetened drinks, long hours spent watching TV and low 率s of breastfeeding are also major factors.

The 熟考する／考慮する - published in the International 定期刊行物 of Obesity - 明らかにする／漏らすd that children from families with an 年次の income between ￡22,000 and ￡33,000 were 10 per cent more likely to be overweight or obese than those from families with an income of いっそう少なく than ￡11,000.

Where the family income was ￡33,000 or more, children were 15 per cent more likely to be overweight than the poorest children.

Health 専門家s said that the results were a 警告 to middle-class parents who often assume their children are living healthy lives.

Dr Susan Jebb, 長，率いる of 栄養 and health at the 医療の研究会議, said: 'Obesity is something that 影響する／感情s middle class families 同様に, and that's important because many people take it to be an 問題／発行する which only 影響する／感情s low income groups and it is 絶対 not the 事例／患者.

'This is a wake-up call for middleclass families.'

The 熟考する／考慮する, by the 学校／設ける of Child Health at University College London and 広大な／多数の／重要な Ormond Street Hospital, followed the lives of more than 13,000 children born in the UK between 2000 and 2002.

By the age of three, 23 per cent were overweight.

They were more likely to have 負わせる problems if their mother had started work に引き続いて their birth and the problems 増加するd in 割合 to the 量 of time she worked.

'Long hours of mater nal 雇用, rather than 欠如（する） of money, may 妨げる young children's 接近 to healthy foods and physical activity,' the 研究員s said.

'For example, parental time 強制s could 増加する a child's 消費 of 軽食 foods and/or 増加する television use. We 設立する that children were more likely to be overweight if the mother 報告（する）／憶測d that she did not spend enough time with her child because of work.

'We can 推測する that these children may have had greater 接近 to convenience foods and/or より小数の適切な時期s for physical activity.'

There are now 13.3million working women - a total which is 速く catching up with the number of working men.

In the last 25 years the number of stay-at-home mothers has fallen from nearly 55 per cent to just over 21 per cent.

In 1984, 27 per cent of women in Britain with children under five were 雇うd while, by 2004, 59 per cent of married or cohabiting women and 34 per cent of 孤独な parents were 雇うd.

Of the 13,113 families in the 熟考する／考慮する, 7,629 mothers worked an 普通の／平均（する） of 22 hours a week and had worked for an 普通の／平均（する） of 27 months since the birth of their child.

Children in childcare were more likely to be overweight than those cared for by their mother or her partner.

In school-age children, those whose mothers worked were いっそう少なく likely to eat healthily than those whose mothers were 十分な-time homemakers.

The 研究員s said that while breastfeeding had been 設立する to 保護する children from becoming overweight, returning to work 早期に put many women off starting or continuing to breastfeed.

No link was 設立する between the number of hours worked by the children's father, or the mother's partner, and 負わせる problems.

Dr Colin Waine, chairman of the 国家の Obesity 会議, said: 'I do not want to 非難する these women but I do think the 優先 has to be the health of the child and its continued health into adulthood.

'We are in danger of raising a 世代 of young people with a much shorter life 見込み than previous 世代s.'

'If women are working, there will be いっそう少なく time for food 準備 and more 訴える手段／行楽地ing to convenience food.

'The types of food children are 軽食ing on are going to be energy-dense and there will be more sedentary hours than activity hours.'

Dr Michele Elliott, of the child 保護 charity Kidscape, said she believed the main factor was 'poor parenting' 関わりなく whether the parents were working or not.