British obesity epidemic leads to heart disease in children as young as 5.

A recent study carried out by Oxford academics on nearly 50000 5-15 year olds in Great Britain came to some very shocking and indeed worrying findings regarding the health of our children.

The study concluded that children as young as 5 are suffering from heart damage as a result of obesity, a problem more commonly thought to be associated with much older generations. The obese children that were assessed were found to have significantly enlarged hearts, have a 40% higher blood pressure, and have cholesterol levels 9X higher than their healthy peers. This means that obese children are much more likely to develop severe health problems early on in life as a result of their weight, and it is predicted that, unless a change in lifestyle is implemented immediately, obese children have a 40% increased likelihood of dying from a heart attack or stroke as adults.

Currently in Great Britain, just under 1 in 10 5 year olds and 1/5^th of all 11 year olds are classified as obese, according to NHS records. These shocking statistics have been commented upon by researcher of the study, Dr. Matthew Thompson, stating ‘It’s almost like a ticking time bomb of damage going on in their hearts and blood vessels… Most of the damage that happens in kids will still be there in adults. But it can be reversed-it’s just difficult because you’re talking about changing lifestyles.’ From this data, and with Britain currently having the highest rate of obesity in Europe, it is clear that change is needed IMMEDIATELY to reverse this childhood obesity epidemic, and prevent these fears for our children’s future health becoming a reality.

Save the Children find shocking numbers of children in the UK are living in poverty

A survey carried out by children’s charity, Save the Children, has found shocking numbers of children in the UK are living in poverty, urging the government to take drastic action to reverse the statistics.

The Survey was carried out on more than 1500 children aged 8-16 in the UK, and over 5000 parents that fall into the lowest income group, and the results have made it very clear that children too are shockingly being affected by the strain of the recession. 61% of the parents assessed admitted that, due to the recession, they have had to cut back dramatically on family food provisions, with 19% of parents noting that their children have at times had to go without basic requirements, such as new shoes, due to their financial strain. 58% of the children assessed were aware of their parent’s financial struggle, and 43% strongly agreed that their parents had recently cut back on food.

The results of Save the Children’s survey support the figures given by the Institute of Fiscal studies, claiming that 3.5 million children in the UK are currently living in poverty, and this figure is set to steeply increase. It is clear from these shocking figures that drastic action is required immediately to ensure that our children have the best possible start to life.

                                   

Save the children are urging the government to intervene in the issue, indicating that the UK minimum wage for adults is nowhere near enough to support a family, and are calling for employers to pay a ‘living wage’ to ensure that every family has enough to provide at least the basic things, such as food, required to reasonably live off. In addition, it is being suggested that the government should aim to truly help in eradicating this problem in the UK by funding 80% of childcare costs for the lowest income group to ensure that the strains of childcare do not complicate work and income.

As well as strongly urging government intervention, Save the Children have started their own fight against UK child poverty. The charity aims to raise £500 000 to help boost education opportunities for children of the lowest income groups, and provide basic essentials, such as furniture, ovens, and toys to their families to ease financial strain and eradicate these shocking figures of childhood poverty.