Abused Children at Risk for Obesity as Adults: Study

Children who are physically, sexually or emotionally abused or neglected are at greater risk for obesity later in life, a new review suggests. British researchers found that abused children are 36 percent more likely to be obese as adults. They concluded that child abuse could be viewed as a modifiable risk factor for obesity. "We found that being maltreated as a child significantly increased the risk of obesity in adult life," study author Dr. Andrea Danese, a child and adolescent psychiatrist at King's College London's Institute of Psychiatry, said in a news release from King's College. "Prevention of child maltreatment remains paramount, and our findings highlight the serious long-term health effects of these experiences." http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_137088.html