Exercise alone will not prevent obesity in young

New York - Exercise alone is unlikely to prevent obesity in preschoolers but it does improve their motor skills, may boost their confidence and can establish a healthy life-long habit, researchers said on Friday.

But more needs to be done to curb the rising number of overweight and obese children in many parts of the world.

"Changes in other behaviors, including diet, may also be necessary," said Professor John Reilly of the University of Glasgow in Scotland.

Childhood obesity is a growing public health problem. Medical experts have warned that the young expanding waistlines will lead to an increase in children suffering from diabetes and high blood pressure.

Reilly and his team analyzed the impact of increasing exercise in four-year-old children in Scotland to see if it would have an impact on their body mass index (BMI), which is used to determine if someone is overweight or obese, their distribution of body fat and blood pressure.

BMI is calculated by dividing weight in kilograms by height in meters squared.

Half of the 545 children from 36 nurseries took part in three 30-minute sessions of active play each week in addition to their usual activity. Parents were also encouraged to increase their children's physical activity at home.

The researchers compared the BMI readings of the children at six months in the program and after a year. They also assessed the youngsters' motor skills and confidence levels.

"Physical activity can significantly improve motor skills but did not reduce body mass index in young children in this trial," said Reilly, whose results are reported online by the British Medical Journal.

"It may take a bigger dose of exercise administered over a longer period of time to see effects," he added in an interview.

A lack of exercise, too many hours spent in front of computer and television screens and an unhealthy diet have been blamed for the rise in childhood obesity.

Research has shown that overweight and obese children tend to carry their excess weight into adulthood, so health experts believe intervening early is vital to tackle the problem.

"Exercise and physical activity have lots of benefits in childhood," said Reilly, adding that combinations of exercise and diet sustained over long periods of time will have more of an impact on reducing childhood obesity. -- Reuters Limited

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