One Leicester school uniform supplier says they recently had to order a 52-inch blazer for an 11-year-old boy, and trousers with a 50-inch waist. This case is on the extreme side, but it does suggest that children are getting bigger. BBC Leicester's Chris Highton spoke to Ravi Chauhan, a school uniform supplier, and Dr Angela Lennox about the 'big' problem in Leicester schools…Ravi Chauhan works at the National Schoolwear Centre on Narborough Road. He says that over the last five years children have been getting bigger, but not just in terms of their waistlines.  | | Schoolboy Connor hit the news for being overweight |
While obesity is an increasing problem in schools, children are also taller now than they were 20 or 30 years ago, so Ravi thinks that this partly accounts for the demand for bigger school uniforms. However, Dr Angela Lennox thinks the growing size of schoolchildren is real cause for concern: "Nationally, if you look at the statistics it is appalling. This is a serious problem and we don't under-exaggerate when we talk about epidemics in the future. "Leicester's no different from the rest of the country, in fact we know that obesity in children under the age of 11 is much worse in cities than it is elsewhere." | "Leicester's no different from the rest of the country, in fact we know that obesity in children under the age of 11 is much worse in cities." | | Dr Angela Lennox, Leicester GP |
She believes that parents must be encouraged to look seriously at the two factors that lead to children being overweight: too little exercise and an unhealthy diet. Dr Lennox says she doesn't want parents to panic, as a healthy lifestyle is all about balance, but if the problem of obesity isn't addressed, the consequences for the future will be huge. She's concerned that children as young as 11 could experience health problems like heart disease and high blood pressure if they're overweight – conditions currently only associated with people in their 60s. | 
