19 Sep 2024 --- Food insecurity in the early lives of children or their pregnant mothers increases kids’ chance of developing obesity or severe obesity in childhood and adolescence by 50%, according to new research. Moreover, these children also had a higher Body Mass Index (BMI) at ages five and 15. The associations became more robust as children aged and were most significant among kids who lived in low-income, low-food-access neighborhoods both during early childhood and their mother’s pregnancy. In these areas, a third or more residents live at least 0.5 miles (0.8 km) from a grocery store in urban areas or at least 10 miles (16 km) in rural areas.
