// BBC UK NEWS — CRONACA
The overlooked factor driving the childhood obesity crisis
The overlooked factor driving the childhood obesity crisis
Ibbie, 16, always struggled with her weight, but it was during the Covid-19 lockdowns that she started eating even more. She was bullied by classmates over her size, and in her first year of secondary school she stopped attending completely.
Away from the routine of the school day, her weight problems worsened.
"When you are at home 24/7 it is very easy to go into the kitchen to get a snack. It's not the same if you are at school," says Ibbie, from Doncaster.
By the age of 12 she weighed nearly 22 stone (140kg) and was diagnosed with liver damage. "I was told that I might need to have a liver transplant if I didn't lose weight. That was scary to hear."
Ibbie's experience is one of the more extreme examples of children living with obesity in the UK – but her story is not unique. She is one of more than 6,000 children who have been treated at a pioneering weight-loss service for the most obese children in the country. These Complications from Excess Weight (CEW) clinics are a network of 39 specialist NHS hubs across England designed to treat severe obesity in children.
Sixteen-year-old Ibbie lost 10 stone (64kg) with the help of weight-loss drugs. She says being away from school fuelled her obesity
Some of the young people treated at the clinics have mental health problems and learning disabilities; others are neurodiverse or autistic.
But there's one characteristic that unites nearly all the children: they do not attend school.
The scientific picture is still emerging, but senior doctors who have spoken to the BBC say that school attendance is emerging as a key, overlooked factor in the battle against childhood obesity.