View report page

73
as well as fat, and I believe that their size is 'normal' for their
genetic constitution. It follows that to reduce their weight
is really to make them unnaturally thin, and this is nearly
always a fruitless task, unless the children are prepared to
undertake really drastic dieting. This calls for a degree of selfcontrol
that very few children (and not many adults, either)
possess. Most of the girls reach puberty early, and thereafter
their rate of growth slows down considerably, so that soon
their age catches up with their weight, and their appearance
becomes more normal. The boys take longer to mature and
the delay at times causes parental anxiety about their poor
genital development; but this nearly always rights itself in
time.
"Parents are often very concerned about the obesity, but
as a rule the children are not bothered by their excessive size,
were it not that their school-mates point the finger of scorn at
them. This can make them very self-conscious, and is responsible
for a great deal of distress. I have known a child request
a change of school in order to escape the mockery. Children
can be very cruel to each other.
"I should like to thank the Assistant School Health
Officers for referring the children to me, and the General
Practitioners for granting them permission to do so; and my
colleagues the Pathologist and Radiologist at Whipps Cross
Hospital for kindly offering me the facilities of their
laboratories."
Under 5 years
New cases 32
Total attendances 53
Physical Defects:
Cases seen 36
Referred to Hospital 9
Discharged 13
Psychological Disorders :
(a) Enuresis 1
(b) Other 1
Referred to Hospital –
Discharged 1
(h) Invalid Children's Aid Association.—Mrs. Osora, Secretary
to the local branch of the Association, kindly reports that the
following cases of children under five years of age were dealt with
by her Association:—