- The baby was cared for at a specialist NHS weight management service in Somerset.
An eight-month-old baby has been cared for by a new service for severely obese children.
The NHS service in Somerset, called Splash, is one of the few in the country to offer children under four and their families access to dietary and psychological support.
Dr Chris Knight, clinical director of paediatrics, said: “Eight months is unusual, but at that age we can really make progress in the way they feed those children at such an early stage.”
‘There is a very good opportunity to change things.
“Most of our cases are between two and four years old, but about 15% are less than two years old.”
An eight-month-old baby has been cared for by a new service for severely obese children (file image)
Peter Fleming, professor of child health and developmental physiology at the University of Bristol (pictured), said: ‘It is not unusual for babies as young as six months to be severely obese because their parents often start giving them solids too early.’ .
He added: “At the young age of eight months, this is often linked to problems where young babies take in really large amounts of milk.
“That can be a difficult cycle to break, they rely on milk for comfort, but having a really high intake means they gain a lot of weight.”
Peter Fleming, professor of child health and developmental physiology at the University of Bristol, said: “It is not uncommon for babies as young as six months to be severely obese because their parents often start giving them solids too early.”
Somerset Pre-school Lifestyle Activity Skills for Self-Help (SPLASH) is a weight management service where doctors, dietitians and psychologists monitor eating behaviors and seek to build confidence in parents.
It started as a trial in April 2022, but was so successful that it has now received permanent funding.
More than 50 families have collaborated with the service since its inception and two out of five of them have also had the support of a psychologist.