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24/05/2013

Children With Married Parents 'Less Likely To Be Obese'

Children with married parents are less likely to be obese, according to the latest research.

Scientists from the Rice University in Houston and the University of Houston found that children who live with co-habiting parents are twice as likely to be obese as those who live with married parents.

The study revealed that children living in a traditional two-parent married household have a 17% chance of obesity, compared to 31% of those in a co-habiting home.

The researchers also found that 29% of children who live with an adult relative are obese, 23% of those living with a single mother are obese, and 23% of those who live with a cohabiting step-parent are overweight.

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Even when researchers accounted for factors associated with childhood obesity, including diet, physical activity and socio-economic status, the findings were the same. The only exception to the rule was children living with single fathers or in married step-parent households, who had a 15% chance of obesity.

Dr Rachel Kimbro, study co-author and associate professor of sociology at Rice University, explained: "Previous research has shown that single-father households tend to have more socio-economic resources than single-mother households.

"And since socio-economic status is the single greatest predictor of health, it serves to explain why children in single-father households may be less likely to be obese.

"For reasons we cannot fully measure, there appears to be something about people who marry and have a child that is fundamentally different than the other groups, and these factors are also linked to children’s weight."

The study examined the obesity rates of children living in traditional and non-traditional family structures in the US. The research sample of 10,400 children came from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study–Birth Cohort, a nationally representative study of US children and their families designed to provide information on children’s development.

(JP/CD)

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"Children with married parents are less likely to be obese, according to the latest research."