National statistics show that 30 percent of U.S. kids aged 6 to 19 are overweight (have BMIs at or above the 85th percentile). About 15 percent of these kids are obese, or severely overweight (with BMIs at or above the 95th percentile).

A 1999 national survey of high-school-aged children found that 26 percent were overweight: 16 percent had a BMI between the 85th and 95th percentiles and 10 percent had a BMI at or above the 95th percentile.

Any way you look at it, a large percentage of kids in the United States weigh too much.

Among children aged 6 to 11, 36 percent of blacks and 39 percent of Mexican-Americans are overweight or obese, compared with 26 percent of whites.
Among adolescents (ages 12 to 19), 40 percent of blacks and 44 percent of Mexican-Americans are overweight or obese, compared with 27 percent of whites.

Data from 1999 show that about 38 percent of Native American children aged 5 to 17 are overweight.

Data from 1996 show that 21 percent of Asian-American teen-agers (ages 13 to 18) are overweight.

In 1970, only about 5 percent of U.S. children were obese (severely overweight); today, more than 15 percent are obese. This change occurred because of lifestyle factors, not genes. It is true that children of overweight parents are at increased risk of being overweight, but it's not clear how much of this is due to genes and how much to environmental and behavioral factors.

Some important factors that are contributing to childhood obesity today include:

• A lack of regular exercise
• An increase in sedentary activities, such as watching television or playing computer games
• Overeating, especially high-calorie foods
• Eating while watching television or doing homework, which can cause children to continue snacking even after they are full
• Lack of recreational facilities in communities
• A decrease in the number and frequency of physical education classes in school
• Exposure to advertising for high-calorie foods with little nutritional value

Although some parents know their children are overweight and are taking steps to help prevent the long-term health problems associated with being overweight, many parents either do not believe their children are overweight or don't think the condition is a problem.

In a survey conducted by the American Obesity Association, only 12 percent of parents said they thought their children were overweight, although nationwide about 30 percent of children are overweight. Only about 6 percent of parents thought that being overweight was one of the greatest risks to their children's long-term health and quality of life.

Girls are more likely to see themselves as overweight, but boys are actually more likely to be overweight. According to a 1999 national survey of students in grades 9 through 12:

• 29 percent of boys and 22 percent of girls were overweight or obese
• 24 percent of boys and 36 percent of girls considered themselves to be overweight or obese
• 26 percent of boys and 59 percent of girls said they were trying to lose weight

In 1999, only 29 percent of high schoolers attended a physical education class every day.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, half of all children and adolescents don't even eat one serving a day of fruit, and 29 percent don't get even one serving a day of vegetables (not counting French fries or other fried veggies).