Growing body of evidence indicating that childhood obesity is linked to a lack of exercise

Jul 15 2005

A study published by the medical journal The Lancet dealt another blow to the "food police" and the trial lawyers seeking to blame food for the nation's expanding waistline.

The new report adds to the growing body of evidence indicating that childhood obesity is linked to a lack of exercise, and not to caloric consumption. Echoing recent studies published in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, and the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the new report shows that regardless of food intake, exercise is the central determinant of whether kids are overweight.

"The clear evidence showing physical activity levels to be the prime determinant of childhood obesity has not prevented groups like the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) from trying to impose its puritanical diet on the rest of us," said Dan Mindus, senior analyst at the Center for Consumer Freedom. "Just yesterday the group launched a campaign to have warning labels placed on soda cans."

Among the findings of the new Lancet report:

• "These results suggest that habitual activity plays an important role in weight gain, with no parallel evidence that energy intake had a similar role."
• "The composite findings from NGHS so far indicate that the drastic decline in habitual activity during adolescence might be a major factor in the doubling of the rate of obesity development in the USA in the past two decades, since no concomitant increase in energy intake was apparent."
• "Our results provide evidence that physical activity plays a substantial and independent part in the rate of gain in BMI during adolescence."

Mindus continued, "This study is one more brick in the wall of evidence showing that physical activity -- not caloric intake -- determines obesity levels in children. It should give pause to the groups that use the so-called 'obesity epidemic' as an excuse to tax, regulate, and litigate away our food and beverage choices."

The Center for Consumer Freedom is a nonprofit coalition supported by restaurants, food companies, and consumers, working together to promote personal responsibility and protect consumer choices.