The Change Mariner

Kids at risk of heart disease in late teens if obesity epidemic not addressed

Health Canada.com

Today's children face a future of heart disease, potentially as early as the end of their teen years, if parents and policy-makers don't urgently address the exploding problem of childhood obesity, a U.S. cardiovascular expert warned Sunday.

Dr. David Katz told delegates to the Canadian Cardiovascular Congress the research advances of the past couple of decades, which have improved the prognosis for people living with heart disease, are in danger of being lost.

The threat is obesity and the fact that it triggers Type 2 diabetes. Both are risk factors for cardiovascular disease.