The first five years of a child’s life are crucial when it comes to preventing obesity in the future, according to researchers.
Experts in the Netherlands found body mass index (BMI) at age six is a better predictor of obesity in later life than at other points of childhood.
They suggest the first years of life are a “fantastic opportunity to intervene” and give youngsters a “chance at a happy, healthy” future.
Researchers used data from an ongoing study known as Generation R to track the BMI of thousands of children in the Netherlands at age two, six, 10, 14 and 18.
Of the 3,528 youngsters, some 32.3% were considered overweight or obese at age two, with 22.3% at age six, 24.7% at age 10, and 20.6% at age 14.
Many of these children were still classed as overweight or obese at age 18.
Researchers found every one unit increase in BMI at age six more than doubled a child’s odds of being overweight or obese at 18.
They also suggest if a child with a higher BMI reached a healthy weight by the age of six, they were no longer at risk.
Presenting the findings at the European Congress on Obesity in Malaga, Jasmin de Groot, of Erasmus MC, University Medical Centre Rotterdam, said: “We need to understand how children grow and develop if we are to help future generations grow up healthier and give every child a chance at a happy, healthy life.
“Our research assists with this by showing that a child with overweight or obesity isn’t destined to live with overweight or obesity as a young adult – and that the first five years of a child’s life provide a fantastic opportunity to intervene and prevent them experiencing overweight and obesity in the years to come.”
