Detective Science has done it again . . . freed a prime suspect. It now seems that Inactivity (a.k.a, the Coach Potato) is innocent of the crime of rising obesity levels.
The scene:
It is well known that less active children are fatter, but that does not mean — as most people assume it does — that inactivity leads to fatness. It could equally well be the other way round: that obesity leads to inactivity.
Ah yes, the old “correlation is not causation” bug-a-boo.
Anyone spy an open box of donuts? I’ve got a cup of coffee and could use a little law-enforcement fuel.
Here’s the title of the morning briefing:
Inactivity ‘No Contributor’ to Childhood Obesity Epidemic, New Report Suggests
Okay. But how was this determined? DNA samples, fingerprints on donuts? No. Detective Science put the suspect to a test. You might say an attempt was made to frame Couch Potato.
The test results:
Physical activity had no impact on weight change, but weight clearly led to less activity.
Ho-ho. Inactivity is looking innocent. Lovers of crime stories need not mourn, however. For the mystery remains. And we have other suspects, such as this one:
EarlyBird [Diabetes Study, UK] has already shown how the trajectory leading to obesity is established very early in life, long before children go to school, and how most childhood obesity is associated with obesity in the same-sex parent. [emphasis added]
Hmm. In this round of Clue it is possible will we eventually hear this shocking revelation: It was Same Sex Parent in the kitchen with a box of creme-filled.
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Tags: critical thinking, diet
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