Autistic kids 50 per cent more likely to be obese: Study

Children with developmental delays, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), are up to 50 per cent more likely to be overweight or obese compared with the general population, according to a study.

Among children with ASD, those with a higher degree of impairment and more severe symptoms were found to be at even greater risk of developing obesity by age five, said researchers at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and the University of Pennsylvania in the US.

The study, published in The Journal of Pediatrics, included nearly 2,500 children between the ages of two and five years old.

This age group is especially relevant, since it is an important window for early obesity prevention, researchers said.

The study analysed 668 children with ASD, 914 children with developmental delays or disorders and 884 children from the general population who served as controls.

The study showed that children with ASD were 1.57 times more likely to be overweight or obese than the general population.

Children with developmental delays were 1.38 times more likely to be overweight or obese.

The risk for obesity was even more pronounced in children with severe ASD symptoms, as they were 1.7 times more likely to be classified as overweight or obese than children with mild ASD symptoms.

"These findings make it clear that monitoring these children for excess weight gain at an early age is critical, and that prevention efforts should be expanded to include not just children with ASD, but those with other developmental diagnoses, as well," said Susan E Levy, director of the Center for Autism Research at CHOP.

Although increased obesity in children with ASD has been reported in other studies, this study is the first to examine if children with other developmental disabilities are also at increased risk for developing obesity.

The researchers examined connections between excess weight gain and the presence of other medical, behavioural, developmental, or psychiatric conditions.