The childhood obesity window is closing: Genetic influence of height and weight grows as we get older

July 9, 2014

By Matthew Mientka A new study on twins shows the importance of early intervention as America’s childhood obesity rate continues to rise after doubling during the past 30 years, with more than one-third of children overweight and obese. By comparing...

Study: Children who exercise have better body-fat distribution, regardless of weight

June 23, 2014

Maybe the numbers on the scale are not alarming, but that doesn't mean that healthy-weight children get a pass on exercising, according to a new University of Illinois (U of I) study published in Pediatrics. "The FITKids study demonstrates the...

Less sleep linked with obesity in low-income kids

June 6, 2014

Kids from low-income homes who get less sleep at night may have a higher risk of obesity, a small new study suggests. Researchers from the Rush University Prevention Center examined several potential obesity risk factors — including food intake and...

Mothers’ monitoring of media tied to kids’ weight

May 7, 2014

By Andrew M. Seaman Children whose mothers pay close attention to how much time they spend watching TV and playing video games tend to weigh less, according to a new study. Researchers found that mothers who were more active in...

Mom’s obesity tied to higher risk of preemies

June 20, 2013

By Genevra Pittman Pregnant women who are overweight or obese are more likely to give birth prematurely, according to a new study from Sweden. Researchers found that link was strongest for babies born the earliest - between 22 and 27...

Longer gym class periods reduce childhood obesity

May 31, 2013

By Ashik Siddique More time in gym class actually does reduce the likelihood that young children will become obese, according to a new study published in the Journal of Health Economics. The findings are some of the first evidence that physical education (P.E.)...