There is a need for future public health initiatives directed at South Asian populations.
South Asian boys are three times as likely to be overweight compared to their peers, says a new study released by the Women’s College Hospital in Toronto.
There is a need for future public health initiatives directed at South Asian populations, particularly children in Toronto, according to the authors of the study.
The report, which was recently published in the Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, was one of the first to look at ethnic group differences in overweight children living in Canada.
“Our findings are alarming. From a young age, South Asian boys appear to be on a path towards developing serious health conditions,” said Ananya Banerjee, PhD, lead researcher of the study, according to press release by the hospital today.
Researchers measured the heights and weights of 734 Toronto students between the ages of 10 and 12 years. Researchers tracked each participant’s physical activity during selected times over seven days and considered socio-demographic factors — including household income, highest level of education attained by parents living in the household and median household income, added the news release.
KEY NUMBERS
SOUTH ASIANS HIGHER AT RISK: Overall, the likelihood of being overweight was higher in populations of South Asian children (36.9 per cent), compared to non-South Asian populations (23.0 per cent)
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY: The median number of minutes per day spent engaged in moderate to vigorous physical activity was lower in South Asian children (24.1 minutes) compared to non-South Asian children (28.9 minutes)
