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Obesity—A Growing Problem Among Children and Adolescents

Sabine Schneider · May 20, 2025

How Place of Residence and Education Affect Overweight Status

A research team led by Jessica Kerr of the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Melbourne recently published a study predicting that by 2050, about one-third of children and adolescents worldwide will be overweight or obese. According to the study, 20 to 23 percent of young people in Germany could be affected.

This projection, however, assumes that the trend of recent years continues unabated. Potential countermeasures, such as current fat-dissolving injections or new medications, are not taken into account. Nevertheless, it is an alarming analysis!

According to data from statista.com, between 2008 and 2023, obesity diagnoses among children aged 6 to 10 in Germany, for example, rose by about 23.6 percent. In general, there are significant differences between the individual federal states. But even within the various regions of the larger states, there are differing trends.

A look at living conditions in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania—where, according to statistics from the Robert Koch Institute, nearly 50 percent of the population is considered overweight and young people are particularly affected—provides a representative picture of possible causes of overweight and obesity among children and adolescents.

Frequent consumption of fast food can lead to obesity in children.

Causes of Rising Overweight and Obesity in Children

Professor Ralf Schiel of the Medigreif Inselklinik in Heringsdorf views the widespread prevalence of overweight among children in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania as a multifactorial problem.

Among the contributing factors are:

Place of residence: Rural regions are particularly affected, where distances are long and infrastructure is poorly developed.
Level of education: Families with lower levels of education are more likely to be affected by obesity.
Low income: Less physical activity, more stress, and less social participation; moreover, healthy, fresh foods and whole-grain products are often more expensive these days than processed foods and white-flour products.
Intensive media use: leads to a lack of physical activity.
Few obesity treatment centers nearby: No immediate help and hardly any information available for early intervention.
Outdated beliefs: Plates must be piled high.

The reasons mentioned above can also be applied to many other parts of Germany and show that, above all, place of residence, access to education, and income have a major influence on the lifestyles of children and adolescents.

The Opposite Trend in China

In international comparison, however, the opposite phenomenon can be observed in China, for example: There, the proportion of obese male adolescents aged 14 and older in cities is rising sharply, as this is seen as a way to demonstrate a family’s prosperity. In rural areas, people do not have the means to overindulge in food or visit expensive fast-food restaurants serving high-calorie Western food. Wealthy city dwellers, on the other hand, do.

Treatment of Obesity in Children and Adolescents

In Germany, there are many specialized centers that offer targeted treatments for children with obesity. The programs cover three areas:

Dietary changes in theory and practice
fostering a love of physical activity and sports
Individual psychological considerations

Social educators also teach children how to use media appropriately, explaining that excessive media consumption promotes a sedentary lifestyle and is also a contributing factor to poor dietary habits. During excessive media consumption, children do not eat mindfully but often consume large quantities of high-calorie and high-fat foods—such as chips, soda, and the like—as a side activity.

The involvement of parents and the child’s social environment is crucial for the child’s further development and the success of obesity treatment. Only when everyone works together can treatment help protect children from the serious health consequences of obesity.

In the Leading Medicine Guide, you’ll find more information on childhood obesity, as well as a selection of resources and specialists.

Adults affected by obesity can also find background information and contacts here, such as centers or clinics offering bariatric procedures like gastric bypass, gastric banding, and sleeve gastrectomy.

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