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Childhood obesity rate increases in Delaware

Delaware Public Media

The latest data shows Delaware’s childhood obesity rate is growing.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s annual State of Childhood Obesity report shows 16 percent of Delaware children ages 10 to 17 are obese.

That’s an increase of almost one percent since last year. 

The national average childhood obesity rate is currently 15.5 percent. That also went up slightly from last year.

Megan Lott is Deputy Director of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Healthy Eating Research program. She says the upward trend of childhood obesity is particularly concerning during a pandemic.

“Obesity increases the risk for severe symptoms from COVID-19 among people of any age, kids included,” said Lott. “A lot of people think kids don’t have severe experiences with COVID, but especially with kids who have obesity, we’re seeing that might not be the case.”    

And Lott says the pandemic is likely perpetuating the obesity rate.

“As schools and childcare centers remain closed, children are not only losing access to educational opportunities, but in many cases to a regular source of healthy meals and opportunities to be active,” she said. “So it might be too soon to say that we’re already seeing increases in obesity rates just yet from COVID, but I think a couple years look back we are going to see this reflected in the obesity data.”    

The study found three out of four kids nationally do not meet the recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity.

It also notes disparities in childhood obesity between racial groups and by income level. It found Black, Hispanic and Native American children have higher obesity rates than white or Asian children, and children in households making less than the federal poverty level are more than twice as likely to have obesity than those at the top of the income ladder.

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