A report says that children with disabilities are 38 percent more likely to be overweight or obese than their peers without disabilities.
Analyzing data from the National Health and Nutrition Survey, the authors found that nearly 51 percent of children receiving special education services were overweight or obese.
The report notes that students with special needs often have distinctive challenges in preventing weight gain. Some, for example, have food aversions or don’t experience the same sensation of being full that other people do, and medicines they take to control behavior can exacerbate weight gain or cause lethargy.
The report comes from AbilityPath.org, an online community for parents of children with disabilities and the professionals who work with them.
