Signs of obesity can be identified in six-month-old babies, claims report

The pathway to obesity can be identified in babies as young as six months of age, scientists have shown.

Researchers used simple body mass index measurements to single out infants destined to struggle with weight in later life.

Study leader Allison Smego, from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital in the US, said: “These children have a high lifetime risk for persistent obesity and metabolic disease and should be monitored closely at a very young age.”