A new study has found that single mothers have a higher chance of having obese children. Researchers say fathers are 'instrumental in involving children in boisterous physical play', which helps to keep them more fit, according to a news portal.
As the rate of childhood obesity is rising around the world, so is the number of cases of heart diseases due to the excess amount of weight. An official data released in October 2018 revealed children in the UK are getting fatter and 10-to-11-year-olds are being classified as severely obese.
To understand the cause of childhood obesity a team from the University of California set out to investigate. Closed to 1,000 youngsters in Chile were measured for BMI for over a period of years. They were measured at the ages of five, 10 and 21. Currently, the country with the biggest obesity issue in South America is Chile.
The children's mothers also had to rate how safe the home and family environments are for the child. "It is rare to have a study with longitudinal data at multiple times through childhood into the adult years, with a large sample [and] multiple factors possibly influencing obesity,' Dr Tom Baranowski, editor of Childhood Obesity, told a news portal.
The results showed children were more like to be obese when they turned 21 if their fathers weren't around. Researchers believe youngsters are more active when their father is present in their lives. "Because fathers are uniquely instrumental in involving children in boisterous, stimulating physical play, fathers lay the foundation for future physical activity and motor development," researchers stated.
The study also found obesity risk is also high for children whose mothers are suffering from depression.
