The prevalence of obesity has significantly grown in the recent years, becoming a serious Public Health issue. The aim of the present study was to analyze the prevalence of overweight and obesity in children aged six to ten years in public schools in the municipality of Formiga, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, checking whether excessive weight interferes with physical performance, comparing obese children to eutrophic ones. The research was developed in three public schools, with a sample of 357 students. Tests were performed to evaluate flexibility, explosive strength, speed, corporal weight and height. The study classified 76.19% children as eutrophic, 11.48% as obese, 6.44% as overweight, 2.8% as underweight and 3.08% at risk of being underweight. The results of flexibility, explosive strength and speed tests indicated that overweight and obese children have poorer performance when compared with eutrophic ones.
Children obesity; Physical performance; Physical education
