LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - OCTOBER 26: Food lunch packs for those who are in need of free children’s meals over the half term holiday are seen at the "Planet Youth" holiday and after-school camp in Muswell Hill on October 26, 2020 in north London, United Kingdom. Offering either pre-made parcels or a bag of ingredients to families in need of assistance during the half-term holiday, the company also offers a free day pass to any recipient of the food packs and is appealing for food donations after providing the initial packs from it's own funds. In a House of Commons vote last week, Conservative MPs voted down a bill that would have provided food for children already on the Free School Meals scheme in schools. Hundreds of businesses across the country have offered children in need meals after pleas from the England and Manchester United Footballer Marcus Rashford. (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images) (LEON NEAL, 2020 Getty Images)
For the first time in 15 years, the American Academy of Pediatrics on Monday released new guidelines for treating childhood obesity, emphasizing a need for early and intensive treatment.
The guidance comes as childhood obesity rates have continued to rise over the past decade and a half, increasing from 17% to 20%, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Since the 1980s, obesity rates have tripled in children and quadrupled in adolescents.
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The pandemic made matters worse, said Dr. Joan Han, a professor and chief of the Division of Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes at Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital, who was not involved in the new report. One CDC report found that the rate of weight gain nearly doubled in 2020, compared with prepandemic years.
