It is well known that childhood obesity puts kids at greater risk for high blood pressure and cholesterol, as well as diabetes and cardiovascular issues. But a large new study has found that obesity can also put children at risk for 20 other surprising health problems, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, allergies and ear infections.
"What this information does is to shift the discussion toward the immediate impact of obesity on [children's] health and well-being, and not solely on their 'well-becoming' -- the adults they will become," said study author Neal Halfon, director of the UCLA Center for Healthier Children, Families and Communities.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates, 17 percent of children and adolescents in the U.S. are now obese, a rate that has tripled in a single generation. Public health officials use body mass index, which is a measure of weight relative to height, in order to classify obesity. Children who are in the 85th percentile or higher compared to children of the same age and sex are considered overweight; those with a BMI in the 95th percentile or higher are obese.
In the new study, published in the journal Academic Pediatrics, researchers analyzed data from more than 43,000 children between the ages of 10 and 17 collected in 30-minute phone interviews as part of the 2007 National Survey of Children's Health. Researchers found ties between obesity and 19 indicators of overall health, psychological and social functioning and chronic conditions -- among them ADHD, depression, learning disabilities, asthma and headaches.
The findings, said Dr. Seema Kumar, an assistant professor of pediatrics with the Mayo clinic who researches prevention and treatment of childhood obesity, revealed what researchers call a "dose-response" effect: The more overweight the child, the greater his or her risk of health problems.
"Even when you compared the obese children to the overweight children, the obese children were more likely to have poor quality of health and comorbid conditions," she said. Overall, obese children were almost twice as likely to have multiple health issues.
But while the new research goes a long way in supporting smaller studies that have tied childhood obesity to other health problems, it does not establish causality.
"It's a chicken and egg thing," said Kumar. "Is obesity contributing to these problems, or is that these conditions are predisposing children to obesity?"
"We can presume that some of the associations probably have temporal or causal relationships," echoed Halfon, "but our data cannot make a definitive assertion in that regard."
Some of the co-existing health problems reported by parents may be directly related to obesity, such as diabetes and headache frequency and severity, which have been shown to improve when patients lose weight, the authors wrote. For other problems, like depression, causality could run both ways: Depression might influence eating patterns, but weight gain might also lead to depression.
One final possibility suggested by the study's authors is that obesity and other co-occurring health problems share a common preceding factor. Evidence suggests that ADHD and obesity may both be due to "toxic stress" in a child's early years, which affects both impulse control and insensitivity to leptin, a hormone that helps control appetite.
Notably, the link between obesity and ADHD was only strong in children who were not taking stimulant medications, but not among those taking the drugs. That could mean that children whose ADHD is untreated have other risk factors for obesity, the study's authors wrote, or that stimulants decrease appetite and improve children's impulse control.
With so many questions remaining, Kumar said the message for parents and doctors is to simply be aware that obese children have a greater risk of many health issues, so they can be treated and diagnosed as necessary.
"The bottom line is that this is not just a cosmetic disorder," she said. "It affects every organ in the body. There are physical consequences, and emotional."
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
It's Another Trump-Biden Showdown — And We Need Your Help
The Future Of Democracy Is At Stake
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Your Loyalty Means The World To Us
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
The 2024 election is heating up, and women's rights, health care, voting rights, and the very future of democracy are all at stake. Donald Trump will face Joe Biden in the most consequential vote of our time. And HuffPost will be there, covering every twist and turn. America's future hangs in the balance. Would you consider contributing to support our journalism and keep it free for all during this critical season?
HuffPost believes news should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay for it. We rely on readers like you to help fund our work. Any contribution you can make — even as little as $2 — goes directly toward supporting the impactful journalism that we will continue to produce this year. Thank you for being part of our story.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
It's official: Donald Trump will face Joe Biden this fall in the presidential election. As we face the most consequential presidential election of our time, HuffPost is committed to bringing you up-to-date, accurate news about the 2024 race. While other outlets have retreated behind paywalls, you can trust our news will stay free.
But we can't do it without your help. Reader funding is one of the key ways we support our newsroom. Would you consider making a donation to help fund our news during this critical time? Your contributions are vital to supporting a free press.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our journalism free and accessible to all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you'll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.
Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.