News April
Obese children prone to fractures
Overweight children are more likely to suffer fractures than normal-weight
peers, then find themselves unable to exercise, a study suggests.
Those who are overweight are also more likely to suffer muscle
and bone pain and other orthopaedic complications, the US research
in Pediatrics found.
Obese and overweight adults are already known to have an increased
risk of arthritis.
But a UK expert said overweight children should keep exercising.
The researchers from National Institutes of Health in Bethesda,
Maryland reviewed medical charts from 227 overweight and 128 non-overweight
children.
The overweight children were four and a half times more likely
to have experienced some type of skeletal fracture than those who
were a healthy weight.
The overweight children were also four times more likely to suffer
from bone or muscle pain.
The most common type of musculoskeletal pain - knee pain - was
seen in 6.6% of overweight children, compared to 2.3% of those of
normal weight kids.
Overweight children also reported more mobility problems.
People of above normal weight generally have denser bones and are
therefore have a lower risk of fracture.
Source http://news.bbc.co.uk
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