However, medical experts are now warning that fat is bad and that Chinese children are becoming fatter due to unhealthy dietary habits, insufficient exercise and other factors.

A recent survey on 4,542 local school children aged from 7 to 15 years showed that about 12.3 per cent of them were overweight.

"The obesity rate among boys is obviously much higher than for girls at all ages. About 17.1 per cent boys were obese but the figure for girls was only 7 per cent," said professor Cai Meiqing of the Shanghai Second Medical University, who conducted the survey.

The obesity rate for children was found to rise with age, reaching a peak at 10 years old and then declining. Professor Cai's survey showed that about 24.3 per cent of boys and 17 per cent of girls were overweight at age 10, the largest age group for obesity in all children.

Causes of obesity

Genetic factors are the most obvious indicators for obesity and quite a lot of overweight children have parents with the same problem.

"If one of the parents is fat, the children are usually overweight because of the inherited factor and the dietary habits of the family," said Cai.

Among obese children, about 46.1 per cent of their fathers were found to be too fat. The fathers'BMI (body mass index) was above the standard level. And 31.6 per cent of the mothers of fat children were found to be overweight.

Besides inherited factors, an unhealthy diet was the next main factor blamed for obesity. Most of the children surveyed consumed excessive fat and insufficient grains, especially at night.

Only a couple of years ago, the Chinese didn't eat so much at supper: a bowl of porridge or some dumplings. But with economic development and changes to working schedules, supper has become the biggest meal of the day and meat, fat and protein have taken the place of porridge on the table.

As Chinese dietary habits come to more closely resemble those of the West, the formerly slim Chinese silhouette has become fatter and the obesity rate has been steadily rising in the past few decades.

Health experts predict that about 200 million Chinese will suffer from obesity in 10 years time.

Health dangers

Obesity as a health problem has a close connection with cardio-vascular diseases, high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels in blood and diabetes. "Obesity is more harmful to children than to adults because it has a lifelong influence on their lives," said Cai.

During the survey, Cai found some fat children were even suffering from high blood pressure and other obesity-related health problems.

Another related problem of obesity is its negative psychological effect on children and is a direct cause of preventing them from taking part in social activities and exercise.

(Shanghai Star January 7, 2003)