Being overweight is rapidly becoming the new "normal" for child body-shape, European health leaders warn today.
Already up to 27% of children aged 13 are overweight across Europe, according to the World Health Organisation.
And among 11-year-olds the most overweight children are found in Greece, Portugal, Ireland and Spain, WHO says. In all four countries, more than 30% of the children in this age group are overweight.
The slimmest children are found in the Netherlands and Switzerland.
The findings were being revealed at a conference in Athens, Greece, as the financially-stricken country took the presidency of the European Union.
WHO said physical inactivity was part of the problem – with more than 30% of teenagers not getting enough activity in about two-thirds of the 36 countries in its European region.
Among adults, it said, rates of inadequate activity range from 16% in Greece to 76% in Serbia and 71% in Malta.
WHO regional director Zsuzsanna Jakab said: "Our perception of what is normal has shifted; being overweight is now more common than unusual. We must not let another generation grow up with obesity as the new norm.
"Physical inactivity – coupled with a culture that promotes cheap, convenient foods high in fats, salt and sugars – is deadly."
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