Physical Wellness

Health Report Cited By Michelle Obama Regarding Plunge In Preschool Obesity Might Not Be 100 Percent Accurate

By Kamal Nayan | Update Date: Mar 18, 2014 11:38 AM EDT

A study released in February that claimed plunge by 43 percent in obesity rate for pre-school children has been discredited by experts. The report was also cited by first lady Michelle Obama who said it was sign that her health and wellness 'Lets Move' campaign was effectively working.

When the study was published, experts had no ready explanations for the astounding drop which caught experts by surprise. When they took a closer look at the data, they suggested that might be a statistical fluke. 

Contrastingly, based on the researchers' own data the obesity rate might have even risen rather than declined. 

"You need to have a healthy degree of skepticism about the validity of this finding," said Dr. Lee Kaplan, director of the weight center at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, according to Reuters.

He also added that there wasn't any evidence that explained a 43 percent drop in their obesity rates.

After looking at various related figures in past and present, CDC scientists concluded that "there have been no significant changes in obesity prevalence in youth or adults between 2003-2004 and 2011-2012."

In an another study of preschoolers in the in the federal WIC (Women, Infants and Children) program, it found virtually no change in obesity rates. 

In New York, WIC study found that obesity rates fell to 15.5 percent in 2011 from about 19.5 percent in 2003 which is a very humble drop in comparison to 40 percent decline. 

"We agree there is a slight downward trend in obesity among 2-to-5-year olds," said Shannon Whaley, a co-author of the WIC study, according to Reuters. "But a 43 percent drop is absolutely not what we're seeing."

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