Overweight middle class kids

Researchers say children from wealthy middle class homes are more likely to be overweight or obese than those from poorer backgrounds.

The findings to some extent dispel the myth that the poorest families have the worst diets as they suggest that the risk of obesity is greatly increased in line with family income. The researchers put this down to the rise in the numbers of highly-paid working mothers - who are often forced to leave a child in the care of a nanny or a nursery who take over control of the child's diet and physical exercise. Other suspected factors include a high consumption of snack foods and sweetened drinks, long hours spent watching television and low rates of breastfeeding which has been found to prevent obesity.