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Socio-Economic Status and Obesity in Childhood

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Epidemiology of Obesity in Children and Adolescents

Part of the book series: Springer Series on Epidemiology and Public Health ((SSEH,volume 2))

Abstract

Historically, obesity was a disease of affluence; while the wealthy were able to afford ample, energy-dense food, the poor often went hungry. This pattern can still be seen in many developing countries, where lower socio-economic status (SES) is associated with food insecurity, inadequate energy intake, and malnutrition among both adults and children (UN FAO 2009). In such situations, obesity continues to be largely the preserve of those of greater affluence, although there is some evidence that this pattern is beginning to change as Western diets are increasingly adopted by middle and lower income urban populations within developing countries (Mendez et al. 2005; Wang and Lobstein 2006).

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  1. Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, Gower Street, WC, 1E 6BT, London, UK

    Fiona Johnson & Michelle Pratt

  2. Health Behaviour Research Centre, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, Gower Street, WC, 1E 6BT, London, UK

    Jane Wardle

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  1. Fiona Johnson
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  2. Michelle Pratt
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  3. Jane Wardle
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Correspondence to Jane Wardle .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Fac. Ciencias, Inst. Ciencia de Materiales de Aragon, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, 50009, Spain

    Luis A. Moreno

  2. FB Mathematik und Informatik, Inst. Statistik, Univ. Bremen, Bibliothekstr. 1, Bremen, 28359, Germany

    Iris Pigeot

  3. und Sozialmedizin (BIPS), Bremer Institut für Präventionsforschung, Linzer Str. 8-10, Bremen, 28359, Germany

    Wolfgang Ahrens

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© 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC

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Johnson, F., Pratt, M., Wardle, J. (2011). Socio-Economic Status and Obesity in Childhood. In: Moreno, L., Pigeot, I., Ahrens, W. (eds) Epidemiology of Obesity in Children and Adolescents. Springer Series on Epidemiology and Public Health, vol 2. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-6039-9_21

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-6039-9_21

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