Childhood obesity
A growing public concern in the 21st century
Ion Puican, 15.10.2025, 09:28
The 2025 UNICEF report shows a significant increase in childhood obesity in Romania. The percentage of overweight children aged 5-19 has risen from 10% in 2000, to 23% in 2022, while the percentage of obese children increased from 2% to 9% over the same period. According to the World Health Organization, 28% of Romanian children aged 7-9 are overweight, and 12% are obese. In addition, approximately 16% of children aged 10-15 are obese and another 16% are overweight, totaling over 215,000 affected children.
The causes include the consumption of ultra-processed foods and a lack of physical exercise. Unhealthy eating habits and a sedentary lifestyle among children and young people can lead to the development of visceral fat – a type of body fat located deep in the abdomen, behind the muscles, surrounding vital organs such as the liver, stomach, and intestines.
A certain amount of visceral fat is normal and helps protect internal organs, but excessive accumulation is dangerous, as it increases the risk of serious diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, metabolic syndrome and heart attack. This fat triggers inflammatory processes and can lead to insulin resistance.
Sorina Ispas, a specialist in nutrition and metabolic diseases, spoke to us about the dangers of visceral fat in children:
“When we have excess visceral fat, it can lead to an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases, not just diabetes. That’s why visceral fat should concern us. It needs to be monitored and investigated. We need to observe the fat around the organs. I’ve seen several children who already have fatty liver disease at very young ages—around 10 years old”.
Doctors advise parents to carefully choose the foods they pack for their children’s school meals. Many products may contain much higher levels of sugar and food additives than recommended.
Prof. Dr. Bogdan Timar, the president of the Romanian Society of Diabetes, Nutrition, and Metabolic Diseases, spoke about the “disease of our times” – obesity:
“Indeed, obesity is one of the conditions with growing incidence in the number of people affected, and is becoming a major public health concern today. Obesity can be seen as a lifestyle disease. On the one hand, we have increased availability of energy-dense food; on the other hand, unfortunately—and we see this happening among children and adolescents—physical exercise is decreasing, so unfortunately, the outlook is not positive at all”.
Dr. Bogdan Timar emphasized the danger posed by the rising levels of obesity among children and young people.
“Why is it very dangerous? Because we know that without firm intervention when it comes to obesity, unfortunately, the tendency is generally an upward one. In other words, once we start gaining more weight than we should, in the future, without prompt and decisive action, that trend will continue. Moreover, the consequences that obesity brings are proportional, on the one hand, to the magnitude of the imbalance — meaning how much excess weight we have — and on the other hand, to the duration of exposure”.
What can parents or caregivers do to prevent, reduce, or manage children’s weight problems?
“In this regard, the intervention is multifactorial and starts with the family’s habits. These habits mean, on one hand, instilling in the child a set of healthy eating behaviors. That is, trying to offer a balanced meal, avoiding overemphasis on foods with high energy content, such as concentrated sweets, which should only be consumed occasionally, or foods very rich in fats. On the other hand, from a lifestyle perspective, emphasis should be placed on maintaining a lifestyle that includes plenty of physical activity. … Of course, it’s about adapting the lifestyle — a lifestyle that is learned in childhood.”
Doctor Bogdan Timar once again highlighted the dangers that obesity brings among children and how parents should pay attention, notice the problem, and seek help from specialists:
“Regarding obesity and overweight, indeed, beyond the fatty liver that frequently appears because of obesity, I must tell you that type 2 diabetes also occurs much more frequently — a condition that, 20 years ago, was almost nonexistent among children. I believe every parent, every family can see and notice when a child begins to have more kilograms than other children. That’s the moment when it’s good to see a pediatric specialist. … But what’s very important is to actually build a culture of obesity prevention — to perceive obesity as a genuine disease.”
The reality of recent years is that more and more children in Romania are facing weight-related problems. Despite the data and statistics, all of us — parents and society — can get involved now and change harmful habits together. We can offer our children a healthier and happier life. (VP)
