Canada

Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

31.5% of our kids overweight or obese

By: Staff Writer

Posted: 09/21/2012 1:00 AM | Comments: 0

TORONTO -- Almost a third of Canadian children are either overweight or obese, says a report from Statistics Canada that bases its figures on the World Health Organization's method of determining ideal weights for youth around the globe.

Using data from the 2009-2011 Canadian Health Measures Survey, Thursday's report suggested 31.5 per cent of those aged five to 17 -- an estimated 1.6 million young Canadians -- are overweight or obese.

The proportion was slightly higher among younger youth. Almost 33 per cent of five- to 11-year-olds were overweight or obese, compared to 30 per cent of those 12 to 17.

The percentage of kids who were overweight -- but not obese -- was similar across age groups.

But when it came to those deemed obese, more boys than girls fit the WHO definition, with 15.1 per cent of boys being obese compared to eight per cent of girls.

The gender gap appears to be particularly noticeable in the five-to-11 age group, with three times more boys considered obese (19.5 per cent) than girls (6.3 per cent). The difference appeared less pronounced among those aged 12 to 17, with 10.7 per cent of boys and 9.6 per cent of girls considered obese.

It's not clear why more boys than girls in the younger age group would be obese. Even the report's authors footnoted the finding "use with caution."

"It's a new observation from our perspective, as well," said Kim Elmslie, director general of the Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention and Control at the Public Health Agency of Canada.

"Hence the footnote around that and the need for us really to drill down on what that means, because we don't know at this point what that means," she said Thursday from Ottawa.

"So what we really need to do next, and what we will be doing next, is further analysis to understand why are we seeing this difference in the five-to-11-year age group between boys and girls?"

-- The Canadian Press

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition September 21, 2012 A16

Factual inaccuracy? Something missing? Help improve our journalism.

Know about news? Share your story suggestions, photos and video.

Spelling error? Punctuation problem? Send us an email if you’ve found a typo.

More Canada

Undock

You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.

Have Your Say

New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.

The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.