A land of child couch potatoes

By AINSLEY THOMSON

Over-eating is not the main cause of child obesity, says an Auckland specialist.

Dr Wayne Cutfield, Auckland University associate professor of paediatrics, said research in Japan involving tens of thousands of children showed they had got fatter, although their calorie intake had fallen slightly over the past 20 years.

The content of fat in their food increased, but this was not the main reason the children's weight increased, Dr Cutfield said.

The reason, he says, is the change in physical activity.

"There has been this shift in the past 20 years from physical activities for children to sedentary activities."

The Japanese data showed that children's weight was directly related to how much television they watched.

Now it is not just television, but also PlayStation, computer games and the internet.

"We are moving into a much more technologically sophisticated era that involves a lot more computer and sedentary activity," he said.

"So this limited activity is going to be a big problem for the future."

Dr Cutfield, who is also director of endocrinology at Starship children's hospital, said Japan was a good example of a developed country like New Zealand.

"It is a misconception that children are eating more than in the past.

They are eating less, but the food has a higher fat content. More strikingly, the activity levels are lower."

Dr Cutfield's colleague, Dr Paul Hofman, agreed that children were not as active as they should be.

The recommendation of 20 minutes of exercise a day was not enough, he said.

"That's a recommendation for someone who is middle-aged or older and may have health problems.

If you are looking at children or young adults I believe they should be doing way more than that."

Dr Hofman said he recommends his children get outside and run around for at least an hour a day.

"I'm talking about exercise where you get a bit of a sweat up."