HYDERABAD: Does a mother’s love stop her from noticing that her child is becoming overweight or obese? According to an intercontinental study conducted across 16 cities in 10 countries, it does happen. What more? It’s ‘dangerously common’ in India.
The study, ‘Does love really make mothers blind? A large transcontinental study on mothers’ awareness about their children’s weight’, published in the journal Obesity, examined 2,720 children between 3 and 11 years. It found 774 children studied were overweight or obese.
In India, 1,680 children were studied and 377 of them were found to be overweight or obese as per their BMI scores. But, mothers of over half of these kids — a whopping 65 per cent of them — thought their child was in ‘healthy weight’ category. That is, mothers of 245 of the 377 children identified as overweight or obese did not realise the problem. Interestingly, within India, the study was conducted across seven cities and the perception seems to be highest among mothers in Kolkata, Mumbai and Hyderabad.
Experts warn that childhood obesity is on a rise in developing countries like India and can lead to several problems. “Once children start putting on weight, it keeps continuing and can lead to psychological problems,” says paediatrician Dr Ramesh Dampuri.