Slim parents more likely to have skinny children
A parent's weight has a direct influence on that of their children, according to research from the University College London Epidemiology & Public Health.The research showed that a child whose parents are thinner is three times more likely to be thin compared to an infant whose mother and father are overweight.
Dr Katriina Whitaker, UCL Epidemiology & Public Health and lead author of the study, said: "We know from other studies that children's weights are correlated with those of their parents, but previous research has tended to focus on obesity rather than the other end of the spectrum."
If both parents are thin, the likelihood of their child being thin is 16.2 per cent, which drops to 5.3 per cent if a mum and dad are both overweight and 2.5 per cent for infants who parents are both obese.
Recent research by the University of South Australia revealed that children who go to bed and get up late are more likely to be obese than early birds.
