In each classroom there is at least one overweight or obese child and a significant number of them have diabetes.
This problem has increased in recent years. For example, in 1996 14.9% of children between 5 and 13 years old recorded an excess of fat. That number rose to 21.4% in 2008.
The data comes from the National Nutrition Survey 2008-2009, which is updated every 10 years, so it is suspected that the number of children with this problem could be much higher.
Carol Delgado, a nutritionist from the College of Dietitians, explained that physical inactivity, inadequate eating habits and little supervision in schools, are the main factors that favor high levels of overweight.
Although there is a decree to regulate the sale of non-nutritious meals in schools, the truth of the matter is that the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health have no budget to monitor compliance.
According to Delgado,
It is a risk to have a sick adult population in the future, because the productive capacity and economic performance would be affected.”