New studies into childhood obesity cited yesterday showed a whopping 40 per cent of all Maltese school aged children are obese.
The figure was cited yesterday as the Department for Health Regulation
Health Promotion and Disease Prevention launched new dietary guidelines as part of its Healthy Children Campaign, kids4health.
A study carried out across all State, Church and independent schools across the country, found that 40 per cent of school children between three years old and 16 years old were overweight for their age.
The peak age for overweight students was five to eight years old, the study found.
The guidelines focus on recipes and on portion control, and encourage students to be active for at least 60 minutes a day.
Children's sedentary time watching television or playing with mobile phones and tablets should be reduced to less than two hours a day, according to the guidelines, which are based on factors such as age, gender weight and height as well as the child’s activity levels.
The guidelines recommend that:
- Children should have three to five servings of vegetables per day;
- They should have two to three servings of milk and milk products every day;
- Children should be encouraged to read food labels and then choose food products that are low in fats, sugars and salts;
- Portion sizes should increase as children grow older;
- Family dinners should be planned a week ahead.