A Clinical Research Fellow at the Kintampo Health Research Centre, says children must be involved in a physical activity for at least 60 minutes in a day to enable them expend the calories they consume.
He told the Ghana News Agency that more play time would help burn calories to reduce overweight and obesity.
He said childhood obesity, which used to be a menace in high income countries had now become a global pandemic with more children in low- and middle-income countries becoming overweight and obese.
Dr Kaali said the frequent consumption of processed canned foods and beverages high in sugar and salt with low nutritional value and a lack of physical activity among children were the major causes of overweight
He said childhood obesity, which used to be a menace in high income countries had now become a global pandemic with more children in low- and middle-income countries becoming overweight and obese.
Dr Kaali said the frequent consumption of processed canned foods and beverages high in sugar and salt with low nutritional value and a lack of physical activity among children were the major causes of overweight and obesity in Ghana.
“Obesity and overweight generally occurs when individual eats unbalanced diet with more calories and does not engage in exercises to expend the calories,” he said.
The World Health Organization says overweight and obesity are a growing threat to children’s well-being globally, largely driven by a trap of unhealthy and highly processed foods combined with a lack of physical activity and sedentary behavior.
It said almost 40 million under-fives around the world are overweight or obese and these are conditions that can lead to a lifetime of diseases, including some of the world’s biggest killers such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease.
Dr Kaali stressed the need for Physical Education (PE) to be revived and made compulsory in schools.
He called for a food policy that would help to determine standards of the nutritional content of processed foods and canned beverages imported into the country.
He said parents must be interested in the Body Mass Index (BMI) of their children, monitor their weight and reduce fatty food in a child’s diet to protect them for future health problems.
Dr Kaali advised parents to also increase the portions of fruits and vegetable in every diet to ensure that children drink more water and eat less calorie dense foods.
