EXPERTS at a leading university have devised a new approach to tackling the problem of childhood obesity.
Research from Glasgow University shows that their method is more effective at combating the growing problem than current practices.
Almost 20 per cent of Scottish children are obese when they leave primary school. It is one of the most common pa
ediatric health concerns.
The team, led by Professor John Reilly, focused on lifestyle changes rather than weight loss and encouraged children to take control of their treatment and to take more physical activity.
The programme used a family-centred approach where the children and their relatives set the changes, nominated their own goals and monitored their own behaviour in order to achieve weight maintenance.
Professor Reilly said: "Children were encouraged to alter their diet, to increase their physical activity and to restrict their sedentary behaviour, like TV viewing and playing computer games, to no more than two hours per day. Several behavioural techniques were used to motivate families and help them make lifestyle changes."
The results showed changes in behaviour in many cases, with the new treatment group doing up to 30 minutes more exercise each day than before.
The full article contains 205 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
