More than one in four children in England are overweight or obese, said a government report published last week which showed that obesity in young people is continuing to rise.

The report showed that the prevalence of obesity in children aged 2 to 10 increased from 9.9% in 1995 to 13.7% in 2003. The total number of overweight and obese children rose from 22.7% to 27.7% in this period. Obesity increased most in older children aged 8 to 10, rising from 11.2% in 1995 to 16.5% in 2003. Levels of obesity were similar for both sexes, increasing from 9.6% in 1995 to 14.9% in 2003 for boys and from 10.3% to 12.5% for girls.

More detailed figures for 2001 and 2002 provided information on risk factors for obesity. Children living …