For the first time there are more children and young people with obesity worldwide than with underweight. This is what UN children’s rights organization UNICEF writes in the report published on Wednesday ‘Feeding Profit: How Food Environments Are Failing Children. ‘
Obesity among school -going children between 5 and 19 years old has risen from 3 percent worldwide in 2000 to the last figures available 9.4 percent. The percentage of underweight fell from almost 13 percent to 9.2 percent in the same period.
“Obesity is a growing care that influences the health and development of children around the world,” says Suzanne Laszlo director of UNICEF Nederland. “Ultra-processed nutrition is increasingly displacing vegetables, fruit and protein-rich foods, while good food is crucial for growth, cognitive development and mental health.”
In all regions of the world, obesity is now more common than underweight, with the exception of African countries south of Sahara and South Asia. Especially in countries in the Pacific Ocean (37 percent on the Cook Islands), Chile (27 percent), the United States (21 percent) and the United Arab Emirates (21 percent) there are many children with obesity.
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The UNICEF report does not include specific figures about the Netherlands, but from The last available figures The Ministry of Health appears to be 3.6 percent of Dutch children and young people between the ages of 4 and 17 are struggling with obesity.
Serious health risks
Obesity increases the risk of insulin resistance and high blood pressure and at a later age in life-threatening diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and certain forms of cancer.
UNICEF calls on governments, social organizations and partners to take action to better protect children against unhealthy food, such as compulsory clear labeling, restrictions on marketing and tax on unhealthy products. The children’s rights organization also argues for better information and a ban on junk food and ultra-processed food in schools.