Nearly a third of Native American children in California are overweight, according to a new study from the California Center for Public Health Advocacy.

Based on public school fitness test scores for fifth-, seventh- and ninth-graders, the center found a growing number of overweight children. Of the nearly 13,000 American Indian and Alaska Native students, 31.7 percent were overweight during 2004.

Even though this rate was not the highest in the state, Native American children experienced thelargest increase in being overweight. The rate went from 25.1 percent during 2001 to 31.7 percent during 2004, the study said.

Get the Story:
Childhood Obesity Off the Scale in California (The Los Angeles Times 9/9)
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Get the Study:
The Growing Epidemic (August-September 2005)

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