PARENTS HAVE a major role to play in reducing the levels of obesity among Irish children, a leading nutritionist said yesterday.
Dr Catherine Logan of the National Dairy Council said "evidence indicates that many Irish children are gaining weight because of poor dietary and lifestyle habits, which can damage their health, both in the short term and later in adult life".
She added that while concerns about the increasing number of Irish children who are overweight or obese are well-publicised, parents should be encouraged to make a small number of basic changes to improve their children's health in the short and long term.
These steps included encouraging a greater amount of physical activity and eating healthier snacks.
Dr Logan said that it was vital for parents to identify and treat obesity to ensure immediate and short-term problems such as type 2 diabetes and asthma were prevented, adding that prevention is better than cure.
Reacting to Ms Logan's statements, Áine Lynch, chief executive officer of the National Parents' Council (primary) said "to put the blame on to parents and to say it is the responsibility of parents to reduce and prevent obesity among children is oversimplifying the issue".
Ms Lynch attributed the labelling of food as one of the main factors influencing the levels of obesity among children: "Labels may say 'low fat', but could be high in sugar, so it is often difficult for parents to choose healthy foods for their children."
Products often did not give enough information about the ingredients, promoting the positive sides only, and not mentioning the levels of sugar and fat.
Dr Logan said that the increase in the prevalence of obesity can be partly attributed to the total energy we consume through our foods combined with levels of physical activity which are simply too low.
"In simple terms, research is now confirming that the problems are caused by what and how much we feed our children, as well as what they physically do."