Earlier this month, we told you how the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends some children as young as age eight take cholesterol-fighting drugs to prevent having heart problems when they get older.

Now, the New York Times reports hundreds of thousands of American children are taking drugs for a wide range of chronic conditions related to childhood obesity – Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and acid reflux – all problems linked to obesity that were practically unheard-of in children 20 years ago.

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Here’s another sign of how childhood obesity is seriously hurting kids’ health. An influential doctors’ group now recommends some children as young as age eight take cholesterol-fighting drugs to prevent having heart problems when they get older.

When I first saw the new guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), I thought I should be shocked, but the sad thing is I’m not…  just sad that it’s come to this.

The AAP says the new advice is based on growing evidence that shows damage leading to heart disease begins early in life. And recent studies show drugs that lower cholesterol (statins) are generally safe for children. But should kids really take statins? For how long? What about diet and exercise?

The theory is if doctors are more aggressive about cholesterol in childhood, it may help avoid heart attacks and strokes when they’re adults. But some pediatricians argue, there’s no proof it would work.

The guidelines say drugs would generally be prescribed for kids at least eight-years-old who have too much LDL – the “bad” cholesterol – plus other risky conditions, like obesity and high blood pressure. Again these are children.

For overweight kids who don’t have enough HDL – the “good” cholesterol – the recommendations say the first step should be weight loss, more physical activity and nutritional counseling.

The AAP says kids should be screened between ages two and 10 if they have a family history of heart disease.

Because of the obesity epidemic, the group is also now reversing its stance on milk, recommending low-fat milk for one-year-olds “for whom overweight or obesity is a concern.” The academy has long recommended against reduced-fat milk for children up to age two because they need saturated fats for brain development.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, about 32 percent of children are overweight or obese.

Okay, enough. Kids on pills and at risk for “adult” diseases just isn’t right. A few months ago, I did a story about preventing childhood obesity (and more are on the way, I assure you). It’s actually a video news story – take a look and let me know what you think. Anyone else disturbed by these new guidelines?

Photo Credit

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If you gain too much weight while you’re pregnant, it might raise the risk of your child becoming overweight. A  new study from the University of Pennsylvania finds children whose mothers gained more than the recommended amount of weight during pregnancy were 48 percent more likely than other children to be overweight at age seven.

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This is just the kind of story I like to hear – some Philadelphia elementary schools made changes to fight fat… and they won big! It was all part of a government-funded study to see if a few healthy tweaks could reduce the number of overweight kids.

Ten Philadelphia schools were in this study. Half of them made healthy changes to their vending machines, cafeterias, and classrooms. The report focused on 4th, 5th, and 6th graders – about 40 percent of them were overweight or obese when the study started in 2002.

Here are some of the changes the five elementary schools made:

• Replaced sodas with fruit juice, water, and low-fat milk
• Snacks had to be low in salt, fat, and sugar
• Got rid of candy
• During recess, students were urged to exercise at activity stations

If the students made healthy food choices, they got raffle tickets to win prizes like bikes and jump ropes. And the schools spent a lot of time teaching kids, their parents and teachers about good nutrition. The result? Fewer overweight kids – the number of students who gained weight during the two-year program was half the number of those in schools who did not make these changes.

“We found when you give children healthy choices, they pick them,” says Grace McGinley, a school nurse at one of the test schools.

Other things that helped cut back on overweight kids included teaching staff, students, and parents about good nutrition. And using creative ways to reinforce the message. For example, food labels were used to help teach fractions. And a fundraiser successfully substituted fruit salad for baked goods.

After two years, not only were there fewer new overweight kids, but the overall number of overweight students at the five schools dropped about 10 to 15 percent. At the schools that didn’t make the changes, the number of overweight children went up a quarter – to 20 percent.

Some bad news – there was no difference between the two school groups as far as new obese students (6 percent) or the overall number of obese students (about 25 percent). The researchers think obese children probably benefit more when they are targeted individually.

True, there is still work that needs to be done, but the results of this study make me realize it can be done. You go, Philadelphia schools!

The study is in the April issue of the journal, Pediatrics.

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The effects of lack of sleep start at a young age – not getting enough Zzzs could determine your kids’ weight. A new report finds infants and toddlers who sleep less than 12 hours a day are twice as likely to become overweight by age three than children who sleep longer. And if they sleep less than 12 hours plus watch TV two or more hours a day, they have a 16 percent chance of becoming overweight by age three.

Other studies have shown a similar link between lack of sleep and being overweight in older children, adolescents, and adults, but this one finds the connection in very young children.

Add in the TV factor, and your kids really have an uphill battle.

“Getting enough sleep is becoming more and more difficult with TV, Internet, and video games in the rooms where children sleep,” says lead author, Elsie Taveras, M.D., Harvard Medical School.

Taveras suggests parents remove televisions from children’s bedrooms to help them get more sleep… and better quality Zzz’s, too.

You can see the full study in the April 2008 issue of Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine.

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