Even ten years ago, obesity in children was considered a problem of the Western world. Ukrainian parents with a light heart repeated the mantra: “chubby is better than thin”, and the state health care system did not see this as a threat. Today, statistics show the opposite: the number of overweight children in Ukraine is growing faster than we have time to realize it. The reasons are clear – cheap fast food and dangerous food, the cult of sweets, a sedentary lifestyle, and most importantly – the lack of attention to the problem at all levels. But if obesity is being fought in the West as a threat to national security, here it is still only a vague topic for conversation.
Disappointing statistics of excess weight growth among Ukrainian schoolchildren
On February 4, Kyiv hosted the presentation of the results of the first study in Ukraine, conducted within the framework of the WHO European Initiative (COSI), which revealed disappointing statistics on the increase in overweight among Ukrainian schoolchildren. Yes, by these data, among children aged 6 to 8 years, the following is observed:
- excess mass – 22.96%;
- obesity – 9.13%;
- severe obesity – 2.63%.
That is, almost every fifth child is overweight. At the same time, boys (25.24%) were more prone to weight problems than girls (20.72%).
In addition, in the new research, published in the journal The Lancet, shows how body mass index has changed worldwide between 1990 and 2022 in more than 190 countries. It found that obesity rates have quadrupled among children and doubled among adults. As the study’s senior author, Professor Majid Ezzati, noted, the obesity epidemic that was evident among adults in most countries around the world in 1990 is now reflected among school-aged children and adolescents. For some reason, we began to think about this only now, although we came to this result voluntarily.
Causes of obesity in children
Specialists claim that the main factors in the development of obesity are inactivity and unhealthy food. Now look around. Not so long ago, playgrounds were full of noisy children running around like crazy. Now they’re empty, the kids have changed the sandbox to tablets, and the bikes to gaming chairs. The study also found that a third of children either do no physical activity at all or spend less than an hour a week on high-intensity exercise. On weekdays, 54.4% of schoolchildren spend more than two hours using electronic devices, and on weekends this indicator increases to 83.4%.
Once upon a time, physical education class was a real test: pull-ups on the horizontal bar, running 100 meters, long jumps. But let’s be honest, now physical education lessons at school are more like a break with a ball than a real training session. The norms of physical activity of schoolchildren are increasingly turning into formal entries in journals for the satisfaction of the administration. Motor activity is almost zero.
At least, so that no one gets tired. And the main thing is that, God forbid, no one falls, pulls a muscle or gets stressed. And here you can understand teachers who are simply afraid of overloading modern children due to repeated accidents during classes. Trauma in class is a pile of papers, explanations and possible problems. It is better to do a light warm-up than to take risks. And the children themselves are simply not ready for physical exertion. How can you make a child run cross-country if he is out of breath after climbing to the third floor? Today’s children spend more time sitting than any previous generation. Muscles are weak, endurance is almost zero. Even if you load children to the full three times a week, it will not make them stronger. On the contrary, overloading without the habit of regular activity leads to fatigue, not progress.
But the problem is not that children do not want to run. The problem is that we have created an environment where movement is an option rather than the norm. Once after classes, school gymnasiums and courtyards rang with the noise of children. Football, basketball, wrestling, gymnastics, swimming – there were many sections, and everyone could find something to their liking. The boys chased the ball until dusk, the girls honed their splits and somersaults, and there was no shortage of people willing to learn judo techniques on the tatami. Parents were not worried that the child would “hang” on the smartphone, but rather worried about whether he would have time to do the lessons between training sessions.
Now the era has come when sports halls are mostly used for ceremonial lines, and children are increasingly “competing” only in the speed of scrolling the tape in TikTok. There is neither mass sport nor movement culture. The child does not know where to go after school, so he spends hours in front of the screen. As a result, we have not only excess weight in our children, but also scoliosis, chronic fatigue and reluctance to move at all.
It is necessary to move children not only in class, but also in life. And not out of compulsion, but out of interest. Because physical education should not be a fear of getting injured or not passing the standard, but an opportunity to feel that movement is cool, and sports are a part of life, and not just a discipline in the schedule.
Returning to the above-mentioned study, we have more disappointing results – less than half of Ukrainian children eat in accordance with the recommended norm of the Ministry of Health, regarding the daily consumption of vegetables and fruits. Only 55.3% of children eat fresh fruit every day, and 41.4% eat vegetables. At the same time, 20.3% of children consume sugary drinks, and 17.8% of all kinds of sweets. Sweets were once a reward, but now they are a habit. Manufacturers add sugar to almost everything: from sauces to “healthy” yogurts. Chips, sodas, semi-finished products are cheap, available and aggressively advertised.
At the same time, it is impossible not to mention the revolution in school canteens, which began so loudly and ambitiously. The new menu from Yevhen Klopotenko should change gray dinners into something bright, useful and, most importantly, tasty. But something went wrong. Children look at these “culinary masterpieces” with the same enthusiasm as at their math homework. And instead of enthusiastically crunching couscous or drinking beetroot soup, they hide sausage sandwiches in their backpacks or run to the nearest kiosk for chips and soda.
Again, on paper, everything looks perfect: the balance of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, creative dishes without the “Soviet heritage”. But in practice, everything was not so simple. Just try to get your child to like fennel salad or bulgur if they don’t even know what they are. Specialists forgot the main thing that useful does not always mean tasty. And it is important for children that the food is tasty. Healthy eating doesn’t have to be boring. But often new foods are something like a “healthy version” of what children love, only without the taste. Either too creative or just fresh. If a dish looks like it was made from leftovers from a chemistry experiment, kids won’t eat it. How can you compete with crisps when they’re bright, crunchy and salty? Children have a choice, and they choose what gives them an instant “tasty feeling”, even if it is harmful to their health.
The problem is not that Klopotenko’s recipes are bad. The problem is that they are trying to squeeze them into a system that is not ready for change. Food should not just be useful, but tasty, understandable and affordable. Sometimes it’s not a question of ingredients, but a question of approach. The dining room should become a place where you want to eat deliciously, not survive. At the same time, instead of homemade soup or porridge with meat, many people have pizza with delivery on their table. In addition, products in Ukrainian stores have turned into a chemical cocktail of preservatives, emulsifiers and flavor enhancers that make food attractive, but unsuitable for healthy eating. Children’s bodies do not have time to fight GMOs, trans fats and sugar traps, so while manufacturers count profits, the obesity rate among children continues to rise.
Obesity in children abroad
If you think that the problem of childhood obesity is purely our problem, then you are very wrong. This is a global epidemic. From New York to Tokyo, from London to Sydney, the situation is similar everywhere, because children are getting fatter. And they get fat faster than statistics can record it. The reasons are the same: fast food, gadgets, sedentary lifestyle. But approaches to struggle are very different.
The USA confidently holds the sad leadership in the world ranking of childhood obesity. Every third child here is overweight. And it is not surprising, because fast food has become part of the culture for Americans. You will be surprised when you see what huge portions are served in local cafes, and sodas are cheaper there than water.
They decided to fight overweight by introducing reforms in schools. After Michelle Obama’s campaign “Let’s Move!” in schools, the amount of unhealthy food in canteens was reduced, mandatory lessons on healthy nutrition were introduced. Some states have even introduced taxes on junk food and sugary drinks to make them less affordable. There is a ban on fast food advertising aimed at children in the country. But, to be honest, it is quite difficult to fight this problem in a country where “super size” is a lifestyle. So the visa is still there.
In Japan, the rate of childhood obesity is much lower than in the United States, because a healthy lifestyle is part of the culture here. Their school lunches are real works of art: a balanced menu with vegetables, fish, and rice. The “Law on Metabolic Health” is in force in the country. This law regulates waist sizes in adults, and regular medical examinations in schools have been introduced for children. In Japan, the emphasis is on physical activity. Children are encouraged to be physically active. At the beginning of classes, exercises are mandatory in schools, and physical education lessons themselves are not a formality, but a daily practice. However, the problem is starting to grow in Japan due to Western influence, because fast food is gaining popularity among young people there as well.
In Europe, the approach depends on the country, but in general the fight is on all fronts. For example, Great Britain introduced a tax on sugar, introduced restrictions on junk food advertising to children and set strict standards for school meals.
In the Scandinavian countries, much attention is paid to physical activity. Children spend time outdoors every day, regardless of the weather. For the French, food culture is almost a religion. Children are taught to appreciate food, to eat slowly, to understand tastes, and not just to eat. The school menu is balanced and contains all the vitamins necessary for children’s development.
It is clear that there is no universal recipe for fighting obesity. But it is worth realizing the simple truth that obesity is not just a weight problem, but a lifestyle and culture problem. Where the state, parents and society work together, the results will bear better fruit. As you can see, the whole world is still looking for a solution, but the main tool is not prohibition or taxes. It is the realization that the responsibility for children’s health does not lie only with schools or doctors.
It begins at home, with the daily decisions of parents, what to put on the plate, where to go for a walk, how much time to spend with the child without screens. Because no government program will save a child from being overweight if they are greeted at home with pizza for dinner and a new season of a TV show instead of a walk. Manufacturers of the food industry should also not stay aloof, but honestly inform about the composition of products and not make a “healthy appearance” where it is not.
Children’s health should be one of the state’s priorities, because it is a question of the country’s future. Sick, obese children are future adults with diabetes, cardiovascular disease and the inability to work effectively, which means catastrophic costs for medicine, social support and the loss of a healthy, competitive nation.
