Expert demands withdrawal of 'child obesity letters'
An expert in childhood obesity has written to the Department of Health asking it to withdraw a letter sent to parents claiming their children were overweight.
Tam Fry, from the National Obesity Forum, said he was angry the letter was simply based on measurements inputted in to a computer programme and not the result of intervention by a nurse or doctor.
His intervention comes after Kellie Pickering, from Nottingham, was sent a letter to say her daughter Kaisha Joyce, four, was overweight.
''The damage is incalculable because they are told their child is fat and they should do something about it. They may well panic about their child's weight which might be quite inappropriate.
''All of this could have been avoided by the Department of Health thinking seriously about what the letter is saying. It's totally inappropriate and should now be withdrawn and re-written.''
Mr Fry, who is also chairman of The Child Growth Foundation, added many tall children who are active could be classed as overweight because muscle weighs one-and-a-half times more than fat.
Kaisha was measured at Haydn Primary School in the city following the introduction of the National Child Measurement Programme.
As part of the initiative, the Department of Health has written to local primary care trusts across the country asking them to measure the height and weight of thousands of school children.
The measurements are then used to calculate each child's Body Mass Index, which relates height to weight and is often used to determine obesity.
Ms Pickering, 25, received the letter about Kaisha after her daughter, who stands at 3ft 7in and weighs 3st 5lb, was found to be in the overweight bracket by just 1lb. In it, she received advice about the dangers of diabetes and heart disease.
Ms Pickering said: ''You can put 1lb on drinking a large glass of water or putting more clothes on. I've weighed her and she's usually nearer 3st 2.5lb.
''She eats plenty of vegetables as the family is vegetarian, although I haven't raised Kaisha as vegetarian. She's tall for her age as well. I don't know how anyone can say she's overweight.''
There have been a few other cases to hit the headlines. Last week Kriss Hodgson, the mother of five-year-old Cian Attwood, complained after she received a similar letter from NHS Telford and Wrekin.
Ms Hodgson, 27, from Overdale, Shropshire, said it was ''ridiculous'' to say her son, who weighs 4st 2lb and is 3ft 10in, was overweight.
His intervention comes after Kellie Pickering, from Nottingham, was sent a letter to say her daughter Kaisha Joyce, four, was overweight.
''The damage is incalculable because they are told their child is fat and they should do something about it. They may well panic about their child's weight which might be quite inappropriate.
''All of this could have been avoided by the Department of Health thinking seriously about what the letter is saying. It's totally inappropriate and should now be withdrawn and re-written.''
Mr Fry, who is also chairman of The Child Growth Foundation, added many tall children who are active could be classed as overweight because muscle weighs one-and-a-half times more than fat.
Kaisha was measured at Haydn Primary School in the city following the introduction of the National Child Measurement Programme.
As part of the initiative, the Department of Health has written to local primary care trusts across the country asking them to measure the height and weight of thousands of school children.
The measurements are then used to calculate each child's Body Mass Index, which relates height to weight and is often used to determine obesity.
Ms Pickering, 25, received the letter about Kaisha after her daughter, who stands at 3ft 7in and weighs 3st 5lb, was found to be in the overweight bracket by just 1lb. In it, she received advice about the dangers of diabetes and heart disease.
Ms Pickering said: ''You can put 1lb on drinking a large glass of water or putting more clothes on. I've weighed her and she's usually nearer 3st 2.5lb.
''She eats plenty of vegetables as the family is vegetarian, although I haven't raised Kaisha as vegetarian. She's tall for her age as well. I don't know how anyone can say she's overweight.''
There have been a few other cases to hit the headlines. Last week Kriss Hodgson, the mother of five-year-old Cian Attwood, complained after she received a similar letter from NHS Telford and Wrekin.
Ms Hodgson, 27, from Overdale, Shropshire, said it was ''ridiculous'' to say her son, who weighs 4st 2lb and is 3ft 10in, was overweight.
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