Ireland's teenagers are now taller and heavier than they were 35 years ago.
A new global study has looked at how the height and weight of 19-year-old men and women have shifted since 1985.
The Lancet medical journal study shows that teenagers that age in Ireland have stretched out a bit in the 35 years - growing an average of about 2 centimetres.
Men now stand at an average of 179cm tall and women 164.5cm - in feet that's about 5'9 and 5'4.
The study shows the BMI of 19-year-old men and women went from 21.7 in 1985 to 22.7 and 22.6 respectively.
NEW—Most comprehensive global study to date suggests concerning height and BMI trends among school-aged children and adolescents: a pooled analysis of 2181 population-based studies with 65 million participantshttps://t.co/CXlqcAvYHA pic.twitter.com/Nzj1krjuhH
— The Lancet (@TheLancet) November 5, 2020
Professor Donal O'Shea, the HSE's Clinical Lead on Obesity, says it's down to how life has changed since the mid-80s.
He said: "Our diet has become much more processed, and high in fat, salt and sugar.
"Our physical activity levels have changed and reduced significantly in terms of how we get to school, how we get to college even just levels of physical activity in the workplace."
The Healthy Ireland surveys show childhood overweight and obesity rates here are starting to level off.
And for the first time ever, the HSE is finalizing a model of care for managing overweight and obesity issues.
It is now recruiting more than 50 dieticians and healthcare professionals to provide structured weight management support in primary care centres across the country.
Reporting by Niall Colbert
