Call to fight teen obesity
Recent research conducted by the Hong Kong Baptist University has revealed that our increasingly prosperous society is the reason why many of the city's children are becoming obese.
In collaboration with the department of social work, associate professor of the physical education department Patrick Lau studied the frequency of and reasons for obesity among students.
According to the study, 18.4 per cent of primary and secondary students in the year 2005/06 were overweight.
This is a 3.4 per cent increase from a decade ago.
'Although the problem of teenage obesity in Hong Kong is a lot less severe than in western countries, the fact that more and more children are developing bulging waistlines is a cause for concern,' said Dr Lau.
Among the many factors contributing to the problem, poor lifestyle habits among teenagers are cited as the main cause.
'Children lead an inactive lifestyle and don't do enough exercise. Excessive consumption of fatty food aggravates the problem,' said Dr Lau.
Dr Lau also appealed to the government to follow South Korea's example and design a mandatory exercise regime for children. 'Obese children in South Korea are required to exercise for a certain number of hours every week. Parents should also serve as role models and exercise with their children,' he said.
