Schools advised to monitor pupils weight

Teachers have been advised to monitor the weight of pupils as
part of plans to reduce the risk of obesity.

The recommendation comes after research revealed the number of
British children with weight problems has almost doubled in the
last decade with one in five classed as overweight. Poor diets
which lead to obesity have been closely linked to poverty.

Professor Peto, head of epidemiology at the Institute of Cancer
Research, said that a child’s body mass index could be included in
school’s annual reports on a pupil.

“Weighing and measuring children once a year would not
require specialist equipment. Nor would it involve an extra burden
on teachers,” he added.

Peto said that while many parents did not want to accept to the
fact that their child was overweight a teacher can provide an
objective view about a pupils’ weight.