The latest study presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) 2022 explains a truly dramatic adolescent reality to which more and more parents do not give the right attention.
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If the WHO has repeatedly explained that it is necessary to take no more than 5 g of salt per day, now the counterpart relative to the sweet ingredient par excellence arrives, that is the sugar that has been analyzed recently studio “Action Teens” presented a few days ago at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) 2022
The study in question analyzed habits, perceptions and habitual behaviors of families with respect to the care ofobesity in young people. It seems that 1 in 4 teenagers do not realize they are obese and 1 in 3 parents do not recognize their child’s obesity.
Underestimating this disease in children and adolescents, experts present at the conference say, can lead to the early development of chronic diseases such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, tumors and skeletal and joint problems without forgetting depression and panic attacks.
Children and adolescents consume much more sugar than the recommended threshold, that is more than 6 teaspoons of free sugar per day in snacks, sweets, snacks and savory products such as pizzas and chips.
Obesity in children and adolescents: 1 in 3 parents deny the evidence
It is not science fiction but what emerges from the new data of the international study “ACTION TEENS” conducted in ten countries on various continents, including Italyand presented last May 6 by Novo Nordisk at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) 2022.
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In this updated study they were over 13,000 people involved, of which over 5,000 children and adolescents with advanced obesity, 5,400 parents and caregivers, and more than 2,000 health workers. Present at the appeal were Australia, Colombia, Italy, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Spain, Taiwan, Turkey and the United Kingdom.
The goal was to identify the perceptions, attitudes, behaviors and obstacles for the treatment of obesity and to understand how these factors influence its management.
The worst is that the threefold risk of premature death in children with obesity compared to children who have a normal body mass index (BMI).
Parents of children with obesity (among those questioned) struggle to recognize it and often underestimate the severity of the disease, convinced that it will resolve itself with growth. This aspect, however, in most cases does not disappear at all but worsens.
Italy is also not doing well. He revealed it all the same Claudio MaffeisPast President of the Italian Society of Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetology present at the presentation event.
In Italy, the most recent data from the ‘Okkio alla Salute’ survey tell us that unfortunately we are among the European countries with the highest values of overweight and obesity in the school age population. In fact, it appears that the percentage of overweight children is 20.4% and of children with obesity is 9.4%, including the seriously obese who represent 2.4%.
So what to do to reduce this dramatic health condition that weighs more and more on the national health service year after year, still unable to control this sudden change of course?
He explained it Jason HalfordDirector of the School of Psychology at the University of Leeds and President of the European Association for the Study of Obesity (EASO), as well as one of the main architects of the study.
“The impact of obesity on society and our health systems should not be underestimated. There is an urgent need for i governments and society recognize and treat obesity as a chronic diseasein order to offer the right support to everyone“.
Without forgetting the training at school and a greater attention on the part of general practitioners and pediatricians in advising families.
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