Canadian youth are spending so much time in front of TV and computer screens that they rank fourth in the world for obesity, a new study finds.

The international survey is based on statistics gathered in 2001-2002 on more than 160,000 people aged 11, 13 and 15 across Europe and North America.

Couch potato habits can form early in life.
Couch potato habits can form early in life.

Dr. William Boyce of Queen's University in Kingston, Ont., co-ordinated the Canadian portion of the WHO project, which compared physical activity levels and dietary habits in 34 countries.

Wednesday's study, published in the May issue of Obesity Reviews, is the latest in a long line of such research that points to a disturbing weight trend among Canadian youth.




In almost all of the countries profiled, too much television and low physical activity were the main culprits behind excess weight, rather than poor diet.

In Canada, young people are watching an average of three hours of TV per day, and even more on weekends. Canadians ranked among the most frequent TV viewers.

Much of the time would be better spent outside or being active, said study author Dr. Ian Janssen, a phys-ed professor at Queen's.

"Clearly there is time for children to be out there doing more physical activity," said Janssen. "It's just a matter of, I think, getting them away from the screen and getting them out there being more active. Easier said than done, obviously."

Janssen and his co-authors conclude increasing physical activity participation and reducing TV time should be the focus of strategies to prevent and treat overweight and obesity.

One finding ran contrary to what they expected. As consumption of candy and chocolate increased, the likelihood of being overweight decreased.

The result doesn't mean the authors condone eating large amounts of sweets. Janssen noted his team looked at the frequency of candy eating, rather than the total amount consumed.

The study also found Canadian youth ranked fifth for being overweight.

Malta and the U.S. held the number 1 and 2 spots for most obese and overweight youth.

Those in Lithuania and Latvia were least likely to be overweight.