What has contributed to the obesity problem in China?

With growing incomes in Chinese society, families are now able to afford these unhealthy but highly desired foods resulting in increasing rates of consumption of high-fat diets. As a major contributor to the spread of obesity, these high-fat diets are creating a major public health problem across the country.

Who is affected by obesity in China?

Over half of adults in China, or more than half a billion people, are now overweight, an official report has found. The figures have risen significantly since 2002, when 29% of adults were overweight.

What is the childhood obesity rate in China?

According to the latest statistics from China, the proportion of obesity among children under the age of 15 increased from 15% in 1982 to 27% today. Among the predisposing factors for increasing prevalence of childhood obesity in China, fast food and physical inactivity are the two most important.

Why does China have the Little Emperor Syndrome?

Little Emperor Syndrome. Combined with increased spending power due to China’s growing economic strength within the family unit and parents’ general desire for their child to experience the benefits they themselves were denied, the phenomenon is generally considered to be problematic. The British journalist Andrew Marshall even argues…

Why are so many people obese in China?

Obesity is a result of both biological and environmental factors, including one’s access to and knowledge about healthy food and one’s family traditions around food. What drives someone to eat fast food is complex, and perhaps in China, this drive is amplified by the one-child policy.

Is the Little Emperor Syndrome a behavioral time bomb?

The British journalist Andrew Marshall even argues that it is shaping modern Chinese society in unexpected ways that may culminate into a future “behavioral time-bomb”. Little emperors were primarily an urban phenomenon.

What was the impact of the Little Emperors?

Little emperors were primarily an urban phenomenon. The one-child policy generally only applied to urban communities and, given the value of labor, one-child families are not prevalent within rural communities. Economic development has not had as large an impact outside of urban centers.