My first Lifestyler column was all about obesity. I often write about healthy lifestyle topics to help combat this issue and avoid health problems in later life.

– #Quiz360: WIN Dhs250 Legends Sports Bar voucher
– #360win: WWE LIVE Abu Dhabi tickets and Superstars meet & greet

But the sad thing about childhood obesity is that children aren’t directly responsible for their condition and a whole generation of youngsters will grow up with a very high probability of suffering from diabetes, heart disease, strokes, liver/gallbladder disease, respiratory problems, certain cancers, osteoarthritis, disability and hypertension, not to mention the adverse psychological effects an overweight child will carry forward into adulthood.

It is for this reason that February’s Lifestyler column will be devoted to the childhood obesity topic, providing what parents will hopefully find to be useful information to help ensure that their children are well nourished and maintain a healthy weight.

By way of introduction, this week is all about statistics:

1. Globally: The number of overweight or obese infants and young children (aged 0 to 5 years) increased from 32 million in 1990 to 42 million in 2013.

2. African region: Childhood obesity more than doubled during the same period, with obesity being a bigger problem now for developing countries.

3. USA: Seven per cent of 6 to 11-year-olds were obese in 1980 compared to 18 per cent by 2012. During the same period, obesity in 12 to 19-year-olds went from five to 21 per cent.

4. UAE: 14 per cent of 6 to 19-year oldsare overweight and almost 20 per cent are obese. The older the child, the greater the risk of excess weight and obesity.

5. Europe: One third of 11-year-olds and 27 per cent of 13-year-olds are overweight or obese, with Greece, Portugal, Spain and Ireland in the lead.

6. Asia: Compare the above figures to South Asia where 33 per cent of children are underweight. Overall in Asia, five per cent of preschool children were deemed overweight in 2010 and although this is much lower than the statistics above, this represents a rise of 53 per cent since 1990.

7. Obesity is more common in boys than girls, although girls are more likely to be overweight.

8. Stunting and overweight coexist in many developing countries, and stunting may increase the risk of obesity later on in life.

9. The average American adult weighs 11kgs more than in 1960. A child is far more likely to be overweight if the parents are too.

10. In 2014, more than 1.9 billion adults were overweight globally and of these over 600 million were obese (39 per cent of adults overweight, 13 per cent were obese).

Forecasts for 2030 range from 42 to 50 per cent of the population being obese, a figure that can be significantly reduced if we tackle the problem amongst our children now. An obese child is highly likely to be an obese adult.