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Prevalence of severe childhood obesity in Wales UK

Claire Beynon1, Linda Bailey1

  • 1Health Intelligence Division, Public Health Wales, Cardiff CF10 4BZ, UK.

Journal of Public Health (Oxford, England)
|December 7, 2019
PubMed

Insights

Severe childhood obesity affects 3.1% of children in Wales, with higher rates in deprived areas and among boys. While prevalence increased slightly, the trend was not statistically significant, highlighting a need for targeted interventions.

Area of Science:

  • Public Health
  • Pediatrics
  • Epidemiology

Background:

  • Childhood obesity is a significant public health concern in Wales, with approximately 12.5% of young children (4-5 years) affected.
  • Severe childhood obesity, defined as a body mass index (BMI) above the 99.6th centile, requires specific attention due to its health implications.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine trends in severe childhood obesity prevalence in Wales from 2013/14 to 2017/18.
  • To investigate the relationship between severe childhood obesity and socioeconomic deprivation.
  • To analyze differences in severe obesity prevalence by sex.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized data from the Wales Childhood Measurement Programme (2013/14-2017/18) for children aged 4-5 years.
  • Calculated the prevalence of severe obesity (BMI > 99.6th centile) over time, by sex, and by socioeconomic deprivation level.

Main Results:

  • Overall severe obesity prevalence was 3.1% (95% CI 3.0-3.2%), with higher rates in the most deprived areas (3.9%) compared to the least deprived (1.9%).
  • Boys exhibited a higher prevalence of severe obesity (3.6%) than girls (3.0%) in 2017/18.
  • Severe obesity prevalence showed an increasing trend over the study period, though this was not statistically significant.

Conclusions:

  • Socioeconomic deprivation is significantly associated with higher levels of severe childhood obesity in Wales.
  • Boys are significantly more likely to experience severe obesity than girls.
  • Findings underscore the need for targeted public health strategies to address severe childhood obesity, particularly in disadvantaged communities and among boys.
Abstract

Keywords:
ChildEpidemiologyObesity

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