More than one hundred thousand children and adolescents under the age of 17 in Italy suffer from severe and premature obesity, a dangerous condition that can lead to a reduction in life expectancy of over 15 years compared to their peers, the Italian Society of Pediatrics (SIP) said at its 80th annual congress Thursday.
In fact, it goes hand in hand with serious risks that can occur even at a very young age, such as hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia and fatty liver.
But also anxiety, social isolation, and low self-esteem.
The alarm was raised on the occasion of the 80th national congress by the Italian Society of Pediatrics, which focused on the time factor: intervening early allows us to prevent the problem from becoming chronic.
The simplest risk indicator to observe for severe obesity is the waist/height ratio: if the waist circumference exceeds half the height, it is already a warning.
