Childhood obesity

Childhood obesity is still an issue of concern in Bulgaria, with the country keeping its fifth spot among European states according to that criteria.

The announcement was made by Svetoslav Handzhiev, who heads the Bulgarian Association for the Study of Obesity and Related Diseases (BASORD), on the occasion of World Obesity Day, according to the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA).

Britain will impose a tax on excessive sugar levels in soft drinks, starting in two years' time, to cut down on spiralling childhood obesity levels, finance minister George Osborne said on March 16.

Efthymos Kapantais, president of the Hellenic Medical Association for Obesity (HMAO), told daily newspaper Kathimerini this week that many Greek people are being “forced to eat low-cost foods, which are often foods of low nutritional value”. This has led to extremely high rates of obesity, particularly among children.

 Survey indicates reversal of positive trend, shows eating habits worsened

A new study points to an increase in child obesity during the years of Greece’s economic crisis, reversing an apparent stabilization of the phenomenon in the years prior to that.

Childhood obesity in Bulgaria has increased from 12.3% in 2008 to 13.9% in 2014, a new study among 3,353 children at the age of 7 has showed.

The research was carried out by the National Public Health and Analyses Center and the Regional Health Inspectorates in the country, Bulgarian Telegraph Agency informed.

Overweight parents and children in the UAE stand a chance to win gold by losing weight this summer with Dubai's slimming campaign focusing on reducing childhood obesity.

After giving away almost 17kg of gold last year, the Dubai Municipality has invited overweight people to participate in the second edition of its Your Weight in Gold initiative.

One in three Greek children is overweight or obese, according to a new report published by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which found that Greece, Italy, Slovenia and the US have the highest levels of child obesity among the OECD’s 34 member countries.

Bulgaria ranks 6th in the European Union for childhood obesity.

"Every third first grade child is overweight", Svetoslav Handzhiev, head of the Bulgarian Association for Obesity Research told Darik radio.

Childhood obesity rates are on the rise due to unhealthy diet and lack of enough movement, according to a survey of dietary and nutritional status of students in Bulgaria.