Tantalizing evidence that America's epidemic of childhood obesity might be starting to subside was presented Sunday by a team of researchers led by Gary Foster of Temple's Center for Obesity Research and Education. The NIH-funded study also found that the decline could be speeded up through school programs. This is the first major study to detect the trend, and it was in a national sample dominated by low-income blacks and Hispanics — the groups at highest risk. "These are the kids you expect least to change," said Foster, who chaired the study of 4,603 students in 42 middle schools around the country, including six in Philadelphia. Foster's teams found that middle schoolers at high risk for type 2 diabetes can shed pounds and reduce their risk for the disease if health interventions are made in the school. The results of the study were published online in the New England Journal of Medicine.