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Hopeful sign in obesity fight? Chubby babies on the decline

FILE - In this Oct. 3, 2013 file photo, a special supplemental nutrition program for women, infants and children, better known as WIC, bag sits on a shopping cart waiting to be loaded into a recipient's vehicle at a center in Jackson, Miss. Chubby babies and toddlers at risk for later obesity are on the decline in the government food program serving millions of kids, a glimmer of good news in the nation's fight to slim down. The trend was found in a study on children up to age 2 enrolled in the WIC nutrition assistance program for low-income women and children. Half of all U.S. infants up to 12 months old are enrolled in the program. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
FILE - In this Oct. 3, 2013 file photo, a special supplemental nutrition program for women, infants and children, better known as WIC, bag sits on a shopping cart waiting to be loaded into a recipient's vehicle at a center in Jackson, Miss. Chubby babies and toddlers at risk for later obesity are on the decline in the government food program serving millions of kids, a glimmer of good news in the nation's fight to slim down. The trend was found in a study on children up to age 2 enrolled in the WIC nutrition assistance program for low-income women and children. Half of all U.S. infants up to 12 months old are enrolled in the program. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)

By Associated Press 3 min read

CHICAGO (AP) – A decline in chubby babies and toddlers is providing a glimmer of good news in the fight against childhood obesity.

The trend was found in a study of children up to age 2 enrolled in a U.S. nutrition assistance program for low-income women and children. Half of all U.S. infants up to 12 months old are enrolled in the program.

The rate of youngsters at risk for obesity fell during the study, from almost 15 percent in 2010 to 12 percent overall in 2014, researchers from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Tuesday in the journal Pediatrics.

The rate declined in all ages studied. It was lowest – about 8 percent in 2014 – for the youngest infants, from 3 to 5 months, versus almost 15 percent among toddlers.

The results were unexpected, given rising rates earlier in the decade, said CDC researcher David Freedman, the lead author.