KARACHI, Sept 26: Obesity, poor diet, smoking and physical inactivity are among the leading causes of heart diseases and stroke, and the process starts in childhood.

Research shows that overweight children are three to five times more likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke before they reach the age of 65 than the children with normal weight.

World wide, over 300 million adults and 22 million children under the age of five have obesity problem, and many more are overweight, experts say. Prompted by such vital facts, the theme of the World Heart Day - 2004, is "Children, Adolescents and Heart Diseases".

In this connection a programme was organized by the Aga Khan University (AKU), in collaboration with the Pakistan Cardiac Society, on Sunday to create awareness of the mounting health risks faced by children, and to educate families about the importance of good diet and physical activity in pre-empting heart attacks and strokes later in the lives of their children.

The event, which was held at the AKU football ground, featured a Mela as well as a musical show by Bilal Maqsud and Noori, and drew over 3,000 participants, comprising children and their parents.

Writer and artist Anwar Maqsud interacted with children and highlighted the message of the World Heart Day. Children from various city schools also participated in a poster competition titled "Protecting your Heart", and prizes were awarded to the best three entries in each competition.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Salma H Badruddin, Professor and Consultant Nutritionist, AKUH, stressed that the habits of good diet and physical activity must be developed in childhood.

"Not only is obesity in children a problem, our research has found high cholesterol levels in a very large percentage of school children in Karachi, many of whom are in the normal weight range," Dr Badaruddin revealed.

She added that when children and their parents were counselled about healthy diet and lifestyle, they were able to make positive changes in their eating and activity patterns.

She also pointed out that parents must serve as role models with regard to their lifestyle if children were to develop healthy habits. "As such it is important for both parents and children to stay informed," she added.

Dr Khawar Kazmi, head of the Aga Khan UniversityHospital's Cardiology section, said: "It is necessary to adopt a healthy lifestyle in childhood. That is the most effective way to prevent heart diseases later in life." The priority for every mother, he added, should be to encourage her children to lead a more physically active life.

"Two-thirds of children worldwide are insufficiently active. Children and adolescents, who have balanced nutritious diets, exercise regularly and who resist smoking, grow into fit and healthy adults," Dr Kazmi observed.

Dr Javed Khan, Professor and Consultant Chest Physician at the AKUH warned the audience of harmful effects of tobacco, which "threatens the future cardiac health of children". Globally, he added, nearly 25 per cent students indulged in smoking before the age of 10.

"The situation is exacerbated by the fact that almost half of all children world wide live with smokers, and regularly subjected to second-hand smoke in the home environment," he added.

Dr Javed Khan further said that such children involuntarily suffer from many of the diseases associated with active smokers, and run a 25 per cent increased risk of developing both heart disease and lung cancer. "There is also an 80 per cent increased risk of stoke," he added. -PPI