Childhood Overweight
Nutrition for Children
Missouri's children are a valuable resource! Each one is special!
It is important to nourish these children so that they will be
in peak form to learn and attain the highest quality of life possible.
Along these lines, the state has recognized the epidemic proportion
of overweight among both children and adults, and the need to intervene
with programs that deal with the issue of overweight in an effective
yet sensitive manner.
Missouri Data
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services collects height, weight
and body mass index-for-age data on school-age children as an activity of
the Pediatric Nutrition Surveillance project. Approximately 17,000 of a total
of 1,057,794 students in participating Missouri schools are weighed and measured
to calculate an age and gender specific BMI and percentile. This sample is
about 1½ percent of the total student population. Information about
what children eat is also collected when students complete a Food Frequency
Questionnaire developed by Harvard University School of Public Health.
Health risk behaviors of Missouri youth, including information
on fruit, vegetable and milk intake, and overweight, are monitored
through the Youth
Risk Behavior Surveillance System. These surveys are conducted
every two years with 9th through 12th graders in local public and
non-public schools.
From the Department of Health and Senior Services data collected,
it is known that Missouri children and adolescents are above the
national norm in prevalence of overweight. In Missouri, 18.6 percent
of adolescents screened were overweight, compared to the national
average of 14 percent overweight adolescents aged 12-19 in 1999.
Additional findings relating to the majority of the students participating
in the study include:
- The percent of overweight appears to be increasing among
students aged 5-11, a finding that is consistent with national
trends. In the 1999-2000 school year, 19.4 percent of Missouri
students in the population screened were overweight. In
the 2000-2001 school year, the percentage increased to
21.5 percent.
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- The percent of "at risk for overweight" also appears
to be increasing among students aged 5-11. In the
1999-2000 school year, 17.4 percent of Missouri students
in the population screened were at risk for overweight.
In the 2000-2001 school year, the percentage increased
to 17.9 percent.
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- In the 1999-2000 school year, 36.6 percent of
Missouri students who participated in a nutritional
screening were either at risk for overweight or
actually overweight. In the 2000-2001 school year,
that percentage had risen to 39.4 percent.
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- Black and Hispanic populations appear to be at
a higher risk for being overweight or at risk for
being overweight.
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- Most of the students are not meeting the recommended
number of servings from the meat, bread and cereal,
and vegetable Food
Guide Pyramid groups.
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- Less than 50 percent of the students are meeting
the recommended daily allowances of calcium, iron,
zinc and folate.
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- Milk is the most significant source of most of
the students' fat, carbohydrate, protein, and calcium
intakes.
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- French fries are the second largest contributor
to most of the students' total fat and caloric
intake.
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- Soft drinks are the second largest contributor
to most of the students' total carbohydrate intake.
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This information, plus much more, is available by viewing the
full summary
report.
Modifiable Risk Factors: Diet and Exercise
Two modifiable risk factors for overweight are diet and exercise. "Diet" when
used in this context refers to usual daily food and drink. Children should
never be placed on a restrictive diet unless they are under the care of a physician.
Both diet and exercise are greatly influenced by the environment in which children
live.
For assistance in developing policies that will improve the school
nutrition environment, order a USDA Changing
the Scene tool kit for your school, or become involved in
the School Health Advisory Council or other parent and community
groups that work for positive change.
More information for schools and parents on childhood overweight
is available at the Missouri Overweight
& Obesity Related Links.
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