If children are obese or in poor health as a teenager, this may increase their likelihood for developing disease or disability decades later.
In a new study published in the “Annals of Internal Medicine”, researchers assessed the weight and cardiorespiratory fitness of 1,079,128 teenagers. 28 years later, the researchers followed-up on the health status of these subjects. Subjects who had been overweight or showed low endurance levels as teenagers were significantly more likely to suffer from psychiatric or nervous system disorders, musculoskeletal injuries, or tumors.
Conclusions
Maintaining health and fitness levels during childhood can have life-long influences on health.
References
Henriksson, P., Henriksson, H., Tynelius, P., Berglind, D., Löf, M., Lee, I. M., … & Ortega, F. B. (2019). Fitness and body mass index during adolescence and disability later in life: a cohort study. Annals of internal medicine, 170(4), 230-239.