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The latest official stats show that almost a third of Jersey's children aged 10 to 11 needs to lose weight - and the problem isn't getting any better.
The figures come from Jersey Child Measurement Programme (JCMP), and reveal that 32% of children in that age group, measured in 2016/2017, were overweight or obese.
They go on to show only 10% of children living in rural parishes are affected by obesity, but for those living in urban or semi-urban areas the number rises to 21% and 20% respectively.
The figures show that the proportion of children classified as overweight and obese in both age groups wasn't getting any better, but was broadly similar to the position in England.
It was identified that the proportion of obese children in the 10/11 age group measured in 2010/2011 and the ones measured in 2016/2017 had doubled, going from 9% to 17%.
The figures are part of the Jersey Child Measurement Programme (JCMP) which measures around 2,000 children annually. Height and weight measurements of children are collected by the school nurses of Family Nursing and Home Care (FNHC). They are then used by the States of Jersey Statistics Unit to calculate a Body Mass Index (BMI). BMI is calculated by a person’s weight in kilograms divided by the square of their height in meters and classified as either underweight, healthy weight, overweight or obese.
Younger children aged four and five appear to be healthier than 10 and 11-year-olds, as 80% had a "healthy weight" compared to 67% of their older counterparts. In addition, the prevalence of obesity and excess weight was lower among small children.
A significantly higher proportion of children aged 10 or 11 were obese, 17%, compared 9% among the youngest. This difference was due to a particularly high prevalence of obesity in older boys with 21%. As a comparison, only 8% of four and five-year-old children were obese and only 14% of girls aged 10 or 11.
Pictured: Prevalence of underweight, overweight and obesity by age group and sex.
Earlier this year, the Health Department released its Food strategy which detailed plans of action across the hospitality, education and commercial sectors in order to tackle "poor diet, obesity and rising levels of diet-related disease in the island."
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