A recent study showed that being overweight can have negative effects on the children. It was found that overweight children suffer from negative feelings like depression and loneliness.

University of Missouri researchers, led by Sara Gable, revealed negative effects of obesity in childhood. Overweight children especially girls showed more depression, anxiety and loneliness, as compared to kids who were never overweight.

The research team used a tool - known as the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort - to study social and behavioral development of 8,000 school-age children upon entering kindergarten and through the third grade.

Sara Gable said: "Overweight is widely considered a stigmatizing condition and overweight individuals are typically blamed for their situation. The experience of being stigmatized often leads to negative feelings, even in children."

The study revealed that girls who were consistently overweight, from kindergarten through third grade, and girls who were on the verge of being termed overweight were viewed less favorably as compared to girls who were never overweight.

Ms. Gable added: "Teachers reported that these girls had less positive social relations and displayed less self-control and more acting out

than never-overweight girls."