One in four children in Co Leitrim are overweight or obsese, a conference in Letterkenny heard today.
The national conference hosted by the North Western Health Board heard how partnerships have been formed with local authorities and education centres in the North West region, in an attempt to combat the problem.
Sligo County Council has introduced a 'pragmatic play and policy plan' while parents, teachers and children in primary schools have collaborated on a set of healthy eating guidelines.
The Co Letirim figures on numbers of overweight children are based on research carried out in the county's primary schools during 2003.
The report shows that 25 per cent of children aged between five and seven years of age in Co Leitrim can be categorised as overweight or obese, while 8 per cent can be classified as obese.
Researcher Dr Christine McMaster from the NWHB's Regional Children's Services, said the Leitrim findings were in line with preliminary results from other research projects carried out with children and young people nationally.
She warned that obese children tend to grow up to become obese adults and obese parents are more likely to have obese children.
The conference heard that while physical exercise and nutrition are important factors, infrastructure and the built environment contribute to increasingly sedentary lifestyles. Concerns about road safety, lack of play and sports facilities both in schools and communities as well as television and computer use by children are also barriers to active play.
NWHB Health Promotion Officer Ms Janet Gaynor said the healthy choice is not always the easier choice and effective ways of preventing and treating obesity are complex. She said the issue needs to be addressed collectively - "through the co operation of many agencies and communities coming together."
The event is being attended by members of local authorities, the education sector, the agriculture and food industry, health service providers, the community sector and sports partnerships