Don't call the kids obese: Parents to get 'prissy' letters telling them their children are overweight

Using the word 'obese' should be taboo when it comes to children, Whitehall health chiefs say.

The guidance is part of a Government drive to inform parents of their child's weight and height at the ages of five and 11.

However, the term 'obese' will not be used. Children will instead be classified as 'underweight', a 'healthy weight', ' overweight' or 'very overweight'.

Research has shown parents are less likely to react to the word 'obese' (File photo)

Those in charge of tackling the nation's obesity crisis believe the word 'obese' is a 'turn-off' for parents.

Dr Will Cavendish, director of health and wellbeing at the Department of Health, denied the word had been banned but said officials had 'chosen not to use it'.

He said research showed that it 'shuts people down'.

'There's no point giving them a letter that doesn't have any impact on their behaviour,' he added.

But Tam Fry, board member of the National Obesity Forum, said it was important to be honest with parents.

He said that experts in the U.S. had considered banning the word obese but changed their minds, saying it was necessary to shock parents.

He added: 'The Americans have gone back to using the term because it's the kind of shock word that makes parents sit up and take notice.

'It's a nasty word  -  but by God it should sound alarm bells in parents' minds.

'I find this whole approach from the Department of Health a bit prissy.'

Under the guidance, primary care trusts are being urged to tell parents their child's height and weight unless they opt out in advance.

Children cannot be forced to take part and will not personally be given the results to prevent them being bullied.

The letter to parents will detail the child's height and weight, and what this means on a 'sliding scale' for their age and sex.

The measurement is based on a calculation of the child's body mass index (BMI), the scoring system used for classifying adults as overweight or obese.

However, the actual BMI will not be provided because it is feared that it would confuse parents.

The guidance states that research shows most parents of overweight children think of their offspring as being a normal weight, and therefore the word obese 'does not relate to their child'.

Obesity expert Dr Susan Jebb, who supports the approach, said: 'You can't bandy the word "obese" around when a child's individual circumstances have not been taken into account and they've not had an individual diagnosis.'

Parents of overweight children will be urged to seek help, with the letter advising them to contact a GP, school nurse or practice nurse  -  none of whom will otherwise be informed of the results.

Although the measuring scheme will be in force nationwide, the Government will not require trusts to inform parents of their child's height and weight.

Some 40 per cent have already said they will do so, and another 40 per cent said they would decide after seeing the guidance.

The National Child Measurement Programme for England, introduced three years ago, has been criticised for failing to provide useful information.

Up to 85 per cent of the 1.2million children in the target groups have so far been measured.

But research showed that some of the heaviest children are not taking part, leading to a 'systematic underestimate' of levels of obesity.

The latest figures suggest a fifth of children in reception classes, at the age of five or six, are overweight or obese, as are a third of 11-year-olds.

Caroline Butler, care adviser at Diabetes UK, said: 'Parents need to be educated about the dangers of obesity and obesityrelated conditions such as Type 2 diabetes.

'Ten years ago, Type 2 diabetes in children was unheard of in the UK. Now we have over 1,000 children with the condition, some as young as seven.'

Tory health spokesman Andrew Lansley said the scheme would encounter problems because there were not enough school nurses to spot problems at an early stage.

He added: 'If we are to avoid stigmatising children after being weighed then there needs to be sympathetic follow-up care, but Labour have failed to address the chronic shortage of school nurses.

'Three years ago they promised a nurse for every secondary school; it's time they stopped dithering and took action.'