France reports leveling childhood obesity rates

By Michael Kahn

GENEVA (Reuters) - France is the first EU country to report a leveling off of childhood obesity rates, suggesting that healthier diet programs and a ban on vending machines in schools is paying off, researchers said on Thursday.

The findings from two separate studies of school-age children signal a shift in France after decades of increase, researchers told the 2008 European Congress on Obesity.

"The rates of children who are overweight are undergoing an overall stabilization in France among all socio-economic backgrounds," said Sandrine Lioret, an epidemiologist at the French Food Safety Agency, who led one of the studies.

Obesity is a major problem worldwide that increases the risk later in life of type 2 diabetes, cancer and heart disease. The World Health Organization classifies around 400 million people as obese, including 20 million children under age 5.

Many Western governments -- where the obesity problem is greatest -- have adopted programs in recent years to promote healthier diets and lifestyles to keep children from growing up to be overweight and obese.

The French findings are important because they show that government policies are a potential weapon in the fight against childhood obesity, said Tim Lobstein, a director of the International Obesity Task Force in London.

But he cautioned that only time would tell whether the French results are a one-off blip or part of a long-term trend.

"The tidal wave (of obesity) is continuing to surge in most European countries," he said. "We are seeing that wave roll on through to adulthood."