Obesity in Italy has been increasingly cited as a major health issue in recent years.
Overall, the Italians, along with the French and the Swiss, are considered among the slimmest people in Europe on average.[1] In 2011, Italy was the only country in Europe where the average weight dropped.[1]
Causes
editCauses are the Mediterranean diet and lifestyle choices such as exercise and getting enough sleep.[2] However, obesity rates in Italian two-year-olds are the highest in Europe with a rate of 42%.[2]
Effects
editSeveral studies have shown that obese men tend to have a lower sperm count, fewer rapidly mobile sperm and fewer progressively motile sperm compared to normal-weight men.[3]
Programs
editScientists from the University of Verona designed a new type of park to help deal with obesity in Italian children, in which an adult trainer is in charge and the children follow a series of organised exercises.[4] All children are under six years old, and the cost of the playground was $250,000.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "New obesity report says world is fatter, rounder, less productive". Deutsche Welle. February 4, 2011. Retrieved February 4, 2011.
- ^ a b "Italien hat die dicksten Kinder in Europa". Die Welt. 13 November 2011. Retrieved 14 November 2011.
- ^ "Obesity linked to lower sperm count in young men". Reuters. August 11, 2010. Retrieved September 25, 2010.
- ^ "New park opens as Italy wrestles with record obesity". BBC. 27 June 2010. Retrieved 7 July 2010.
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