14 November 2017
This annual report uses data from the Jersey Child Measurement Programme (JCMP). It examines changes in children’s body mass index (BMI) that have taken place since 2000 for children aged 4 to 5 years old and since 2011 for children aged 10 to 11 years.
The 2016 / 2017 report shows:
- participation rates were high, with 98 per cent of 4 to 5 year olds and 95 per cent of 10 to 11 year olds participating in the JCMP. In the previous round (2015 / 2016), the participation rates were 94 per cent of 4 to 5 year olds and 86 per cent of 10 to 11 year olds
- in the latest round of measurements (2016 / 2017), an ‘opt-out’ method of parental consent was used, a change from the ‘opt-in’ method used previously
- a fifth (20 per cent) of children aged 4 to 5 years were overweight or obese
- the prevalence of obesity in 4 to 5 year olds has remained relatively constant since 2000. The prevalence of children who were overweight or obese has remained flat since 2011 following a decrease from 29 per cent to 21 per cent in the preceding 10 years (based on a three year average)
- for 10 to 11 year olds, the proportion of children who were overweight or obese was around a third (32 per cent)
- the prevalence of obese 10 to 11 year olds has remained constant since the measurement of this age group began in 2011, as has the prevalence of 10 to 11 year olds classified as overweight or obese (based on a three year average)
- differences between genders were not statistically significant for 4 to 5 year olds. However, the proportion of obese 10-11 year old boys (21 per cent) was significantly higher than obese girls of the same age (14 per cent)
- one in ten 10 to 11 year olds residing in rural parishes were classified as obese (10 per cent); this compares to one in five children living in urban (21 per cent) or semi-urban areas (20 per cent)
- the prevalence of obesity in 4 to 5 year olds was similar in both Jersey and England with around one in ten children being classified as obese. At age 10 to 11 years, obesity prevalence was 17 per cent in Jersey compared to 20 per cent in England
- the level of obesity in Jersey is comparable with the southern English regions (i.e. those with the lowest levels of obesity across England)
Jersey Child Measurement Programme 2016 / 2017 report
gov.je