NHS launches specialist clinics amid spike in childhood obesity
Joe Lepper
Wednesday, November 17, 2021
Specialist clinics for severely obese children as young as two are being launched by the NHS amid an "alarming" rise in children being diagnosed with obesity during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The move will see 15 clinics piloted across England to support around 1,000 children a year, who are aged between two and 18 and experiencing health issues related to severe obesity.
At the clinics children will be supported to lose weight through tailored packages, developed with families involving diet plans, coaching and mental health treatment.
Group sessions will also be provided with dieticians, psychologists, nurses, social workers, youth workers and a paediatrician.
An existing obesity support service at the Bristol Royal Hospital for Children, which has been running for three years, is the model for the pilot clinics. This focuses on a multi-agency approach, which combines nutritional, mental health, medical and social care support.
“Using a team of experts from many disciplines, including specialist dieticians, social support workers, and mental health professionals, we can pinpoint the exact causes of weight gain and create tailored treatment plans for each child to help accelerate weight loss and address the complications caused,” said Julian Hamilton-Shield, professor of diabetes and metabolic endocrinology at the Bristol based hospital.
The pilot clinics are based at hospitals and outreach clinics in areas including Southampton, Kent, London, Norfolk, Birmingham, Nottingham, South Tees, Sheffield and Leeds.
We're pleased to be announced as one of 15 NHS England clinics to be set up across the country to identify and treat complications of obesity in children.
— Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals (@NNUH) November 17, 2021
The clinics will provide specialist treatment and tailored care packages developed with their families.@nnuhjlch pic.twitter.com/X33Pv9W8vB
Clinics are also being set up in locations across the Northwest of England including at Manchester Children’s Hospital and Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool.
A key aim of the pilot scheme is to minimise the risk of long-term health problems including type 2 diabetes, strokes and cancer as well as further health issues include breathing problems, lack of sleep and mental health challenges.
The government estimates that obesity related conditions cost the NHS £6bn a year.
According to the NHS, obesity affects one in five UK children. The same proportion of 10–to 11-year-olds are obese.
NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard says that the Covid-19 health crisis has exacerbated the obesity crisis among children.
This is backed by figures from NHS Digital, released this week, that show obesity rates among reception age and year six children have increased by 4.5 percentage points between 2019/20 and 2020/21, during the pandemic.
“Left unchecked, obesity can have other very serious consequences, ranging from diabetes to cancer,” said Pritchard.
“This early intervention scheme aims to prevent children and young people enduring a lifetime of ill-health.”
Among young people to already be supported by another existing multi-agency specialist support for obese children is Lusanda, 17, who has autism and learning difficulties. He lost six stone after being helped by a surgical weight management service for young people at Kings College, London, two years ago.
His mother, Hettie, said: “The support we had from the dietician helped us keep a food routine and control his calories
“His brothers and sisters helped too – they didn’t eat in front of him, which stopped arguments about snacks – and I was able to advise his school to stick to a strict eating plan so that he wasn’t getting more food than necessary.
“The difference has been incredible. As well as the weight loss, his liver has improved and his blood sugar levels are also better so he doesn’t have to take medication for this anymore.”
The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health's officer for health improvement Max Davie said that the rise in obesity levels among children “is alarming”.
“While lockdown may have been a key factor, we mustn't assume that this year's results are an aberration since there may be other factors, including mental health difficulties, which will take time to address.
“One factor we must focus on is poverty. Every year we see the gap between the most and least deprived children widen. Obesity is increasingly a disease of poverty in the UK and any attempts to address this problem therefore need to be focused on these groups and the causes for their increased vulnerability."
