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Page last updated at 10:35 GMT, Monday, 21 July 2008 11:35 UK
NHS fit camp aims to cut obesity
By Tulip Muzumdar
Newsbeat health reporter

Children at 'fit camp'

We as a nation are getting fatter. One in five men and a quarter of women are obese and as many as 30,000 people die prematurely every year from obesity-related conditions in the UK.

To combat the problem the government in England is spending more than £1m in one area of the country, on getting obese children in Rotherham to special residential fit camps where they'll spend six weeks losing weight and learning how to lead a healthier lifestyle.

It's estimated that one in three children in the town is overweight or obese, and six in 10 adults.

At primary school they used to call me Chubby Brown and they always used to make fun of me
11-year-old Jamal on going to fit camp
The local health authority is spending £3m over the next three years on the fit camp to try to deal with the problem.

Thirty-eight eight to 16-year-olds are on a summer long scheme, which is a last resort after other ways of losing weight have been tried.

The parents of the children at the camp also have to get involved, and there are weekly check-up sessions after the residential course to make sure all the good things the kids learn are actually put into practice at home.

There are also healthy cooking classes for parents.

Hard graft

The daily routine for the children at the fit camp is demanding.

While most other kids are enjoying their school holidays, these children are up at eight o'clock every morning.

It's then a long day of physical activities like boxercise or basketball sessions.

Fit campers play dodgeball
Dodgeball is one of the sports played at Rotherham's fit camp
They'll also learn about nutrition and how to make healthy snacks, like fruit smoothies.

The related social problems of being overweight at school, like bullying, are also addressed.

Jamal, 11, is on the course.

He said: "At primary school they used to call me Chubby Brown sometimes and they always used to make fun of me.

"It makes you feel a bit upset and a bit sad. It makes you less confident."

The government says it is up to parents to teach their children a healthy lifestyle but that isn't happening in many cases.

Recent statistics from Carnegie Weight Management, who run the scheme, show most parents with overweight kids thought their children were a normal weight, while a third of parents who had obese children described their weight as "just right".

Fitness cost

Dealing with obesity in children is a big issue for the Department of Health because it costs the government so much money to deal with later on, somewhere in the region of £3bn in England alone.

It increases risk factors of a wide range of health problems including heart disease and diabetes.

Jeneisha is eight and she told Newsbeat she was really looking forward to starting the scheme.

She said: "I'm feeling alright but a bit nervous about all the excitement.

"It's going to be really fun, playing rugby and games.

"I want to lose a bit of weight so people don't pick on me anymore.

"People have been calling me fat and I don't like it.

"It makes me upset. It's like someone's punching me."

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