Expert: paedophile fear makes children fat

Published on Sunday 15 October 2006 00:44

SCOTTISH parents are harming their children by overestimating the risk from paedophiles, the nation's leading public health expert has claimed.

Dr Laurence Gruer urged parents to be "realistic" about the risk posed by sex attackers and murderers, and to let children play outside so that they get enough exercise.

Gruer, director of public health science at NHS Health Scotland, said children living in cities were often left with little option but to watch television and play on computers because their lives were so restricted.

But while some health campaigners welcomed his comments and called on families to give their children greater freedom, critics said parents were right to worry about the safety of their children while paedophiles lived anonymously in communities.

Gruer said: "Taking exercise is incredibly important for children, not just to avoid weight gain, but for the development of their bones, muscles and heart.

"It is also important for learning how to use their body and doing things with other kids. The inactivity that kids are suffering from is bad news from a lot of different points of view."

Gruer said this was often difficult to achieve because of the lifestyles families lead, particularly in cities.

He said: "They are taken to nursery and taken to school. They are not allowed to run around as they used to and when you are in the home there are various things like TVs and computers you are attracted to, to sit around and watch.

"Now, we are all concerned about the possibility of paedophiles getting hold of them or something else bad happening, so there's a tendency to keep kids inside and under supervision.

"I think it's unfortunate. As a parent you tend to overestimate certain risks. There are not any more children murdered now than there used to be, but the ones that occur get such publicity it leaves the impression there's a real risk to every child."

Gruer said there had been a reduction in road accidents and "part of that is parents not letting children out".

He added: "Society can help by creating environments where children can play safely. The message is that it makes sense for you to assess the risks as realistically as possible and do all you can to enable your child to be active both at home and outside."

But parents said that many families could not help but worry about the dangers to their children from all types of crime.

Eileen McCloy, spokeswoman for the parents' rights group Not With My Child, said: "It is very dangerous out there and parents do worry about their children - you worry about them all the time. You worry about being assaulted, about someone stealing their trainers or their phone. Parents are right to be concerned."

Child abductions and murders by strangers are so rare that when they occur they attract huge publicity.

Recent Scottish tragedies have included the murder of 11-year-old Rory Blackhall in Livingston and that of eight-year-old Mark Cummings in the Royston area of Glasgow. But last year there were 360 children killed or seriously injured on the roads. A total of 226 died in accidents in their homes.

And there is little doubt many Scottish youngsters lead unhealthy lifestyles.

Recent figures suggest a third of 12-year-olds in Scotland are overweight, and one in five is clinically obese.

One in three primary school-aged girls and one in four primary school-aged boys does not achieve the minimum levels of physical activity.

Helena Wray, spokeswoman for Family and Youth Concern, said: "There are risks associated with almost everything in life, but unfortunately a few high-profile cases have given the impression that the danger of being abducted by a paedophile is far greater than it really is.

"It is important for a child's health and the development of their independence to have a measure of freedom outdoors, and by keeping children indoors, parents are exposing them to other risks such as inactivity and obesity."