Early treatment may help curb childhood obesity

Early treatment of obesity in childhood is effective in both long and short term, according to the study.

The study, published in The International Journal of Obesity, has been conducted on 170 children of age between four and six years along with their parents.

Childrens and parents were randomly assigned to three treatment conditions: standard treatment, parental support group, or parental support group with follow-up telephone support. Participants in the standard treatment group had meetings focusing on diet and exercise with a doctor or dietician. While, the other two parental support groups did not involve the children and focused on how the parents could promote healthy lifestyles in the family in a positive way.

“Such conversations can centre on how to set boundaries, how to teach children new behaviours and how to communicate with preschools, grandmothers, neighbours and other adults in the children’s world,” said principal investigator Paulina Nowicka, Associate Professor in Pediatric Science at the Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, Karolinska Institutet in Sweden.

The findings showed that the children in all three groups improved their weight status and saw a reduction in their degree of obesity but the children whose parents received parental support had the best results, especially those who also received follow-up phone calls.