Annotated Bibliography: Teenage Obesity

Ebbeling, C. B., Pawlak, D. B., & Ludwig, D. S. (2002). Childhood Obesity; Public Health Crisis, Common Sense Cure. The Lancet, 360, 473-482.

In this article, Ebbeling, Pawlak, and Ludwig acknowledge that childhood obesity is a public health crisis and seek to discuss complications resulting from childhood obesity, causes of childhood obesity, prevention and treatment of childhood obesity, and environmental factors that contribute to childhood obesity. The article is organized with headings and subheadings to help the reader follow through the authors' argument with ease. Among the complications resulting from childhood obesity are a tendency of increased blood clotting, chronic inflammation, hypertension, hyperinsulinemia, dyslipidemia, endothelial dysfunction. Obese children may also experience pulmonary complications, such as asthma and sleep-disordered sleeping. Childhood obesity is caused by inappropriate diet, family factors, and factors related to perinatal, early life, and genetics. Eating foods that are unhealthy and a high intake of fat contributes to childhood obesity. Family life, such as the consumption of food prepared from restaurants increases the intake of more energy, which may contribute to childhood obesity when the use of energy is not balanced with the intake. Genetic characteristics, prenatal overnutrition, and early life experiences also contribute to childhood obesity. The prevention of childhood obesity involves the consumption of appropriate quantities of healthy foods and engaging in physical activity. Bariatric obesity can be used to treat childhood obesity, but some of the related side effects include gastrointestinal bleeding and wound dehiscence. Environmental factors, such as sedentary lifestyle are among factors that limit the fight against childhood obesity. Comparing this study with other studies will facilitate an understanding of the complications, causes, and prevention of childhood obesity.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Kautiainen, S. (2008). Overweight and Obesity in Adolescence: Secular Trends and Associations with Perceived Weight, Sociodemographic Factors and Screen Time. Tampere: University of Tampere.

In this academic dissertation presented to the University of Tampere, Kautiainen explains secular changes in Finnish adolescents' perceived weight, obesity, and overweight, examines sociodemographic variations in overweight prevalence over time, and establishes the relationship between obesity and overweight with the type of ICT used. The collection of data involved the use of the country's nationwide system for monitoring the health behaviors and health of adolescents. Questionnaires were sent to adolescents at the age of 12 and above, 14 and above, 16 and above and 18 and above. The findings showed that there was an increase in obesity and overweight by two to three times between 1977 and 1999. It was also found that the increase in overweight and obesity continued up to 2005 and there were no significant differences in the sociodemographic subgroups. Concerning the type of ICT used and its effect on overweight, it was found that an increased time spent on TV contributed to an increase in obesity in girls, but digital games had no impact on overweight, implying that time spend on TV would need to be reduced to prevent obesity and overweight. The article informs on the need to continue monitoring obesity and overweight in teenagers and examine factors influencing the changes in the trends to facilitate the development of appropriate strategies for the prevention of obesity in teenagers. The article is also useful because it compares trends over a longer period than other articles, implying that detailed research was conducted. The article is useful ton scholars involved in the study of teenager obesity, health practitioners, and policymakers.

Lobstein, T., & Baur, L. A. (2005). Policies to prevent childhood obesity in the European Union. European Journal of Public Health, 5(6f), 576-579.

The authors of the article acknowledge the increase in childhood and adolescent obesity and overweight in the European Union and discuss the strategies that can be used to prevent childhood obesity. They recommend options for the European Commission, member states, market regulation and fiscal control, options at the retail sector and industry level, options for training and research, options at the school level, and the role of local governments in the prevention and management of obesity. The European Commission should, appoint a coordinator for public health to oversee the prevention of obesity, support research for the prevention of obesity, and require member states to come up with nutritional targets. Options for member states include establishing ministerial departments to work with the EC in the prevention of obesity, regulating TV programs to support healthy lives and physical exercise, promoting nutrition and physical activity, and funding programs for the prevention and management of obesity. At the school level, physical activity resources should be provided, unhealthy foods should be prohibited, and develop and promote health policies. The article provides a comprehensive approach for the management and prevention of childhood obesity from the school level to the European Commission. Just like other published articles, all the recommendations in the article address physical activity and healthy foods. The article could be useful at several levels. However, the article fails to address options at the family level that can be used to prevent childhood obesity. The article is undeniably useful and the implementation of the suggested options could facilitate the prevention of obesity in teenagers.

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. (2017). Obesity Update 2017. Paris: OECD.

In this report, the OECD presents statistics related to childhood obesity in OECD countries and strategies that could be used to prevent childhood and adult obesity. The report involves the use of ratios, percentages, and graphs to represent data and make it easy for the reader to follow and understand the report. The OECD notes that at least one in every six children and two in every five adults in the OECD countries are either obese or overweight. The prevalence of childhood obesity is lowest in Denmark at 10 percent and highest in the United States at 31 percent. The OECD also notes that the rate of obesity is expected to increase until 2030 with the highest increase in Mexico, England, and the U.S and a weaker increase in Italy and Korea. There are inequalities in obesity and overweight with the prevalence of male obesity being higher than female obesity and up to three times higher in less educated females than more educated females. A number of communication policies are recommended to help prevent obesity. First is the implementation of food labels to help consumers make informed choices when buying food from food stores. Second is the inclusion of a nutrient list for every food sold in restaurants. There should be an increase in mass media campaigns to increase the consumption of healthier foods. To prevent childhood obesity, there is a need to regulate the advertising of foods that are potentially unhealthy, especially sweetened beverages. This report is useful to everyone interested in preventing obesity, both in children and adults. It also introduces another aspect of obesity prevention, that is, communication policies.

Silva, L. d., & Freitas, H. R. (2016). Medical and Nutritional Approaches in Childhood Obesity. Campos dos Goytacazes, 22(6), 1-16.

In this article, Silva and Freitas examine the representative aspects of childhood antiobesogenic approcahes, the role of pregnancy and postnatal prevention, and the usefulness of interdisciplinary teams in preventing childhood obesity. The article follows the standard format of a research with the introduction, methodology, results, findings, and consclusion. Keywords, such as childhood obesity and eating disorders were searched through the use of indexed electronic databases. Articles that did not meet the required criteria were excluded from the study. The findings showed that the use of supervised physical activity played a significant role in preventing obesity in adolescents. This could be implemented in schools and homes. Other approaches that could be used to prevent childhood obesity included food education and the use of electronics to guide food choices, and providing dietary guidance. Drug therapy is also an approach that can be used to treat obesity in teenagers, but may lead to gastrointestinal discomfort. This article is useful in the prevention and treatment of obesity in teenagers because the authors draw from other researchers who conducted various studies to come up with accurate information. By using large volumes of published articles, the information provided can be used in the prevention of teenage obesity. The study is supported by other publications that recommend healthy eating and physical activity to prevent obesity in teenagers. Just like other publications, the authors also note that the treatment of obesity may result in side effects, such as gastrointestinal bleeding and discomfort, hence the need to prevent.

Starkey, A., & Cregan, L. (n.d). Child Obesity: Their Lives in Our Hands. Children's Food Trust.

In this article, the authors discuss food considerations for children in various environments, including home, childcare, schools, and the wider world as a way of preventing obesity in teenagers. The authors examine every environment, the problem, and recommendation to improve food for children. To ensure children eat healthy foods at home, parents and children should be given opportunities to learn how to prepare healthy food, prevent the advertisement of unhealthy foods to children, and introduce an additional tax on unhealthy foods. At the childcare center, providers should provide healthy foods by using nutrition that is age-appropriate and evidence-based, train childcare providers on health foods for children, and encourage the use of free childcare schemes. For children to eat healthy food, schools should be required to adhere to national standards on healthy food for children, implement universal school food programs, support schools in the provision of healthy foods, and ensure meals provided at schools help children living in low-income communities to eat healthy food.in the wider world, the advertisement of unhealthy foods for children should be banned and provide food education to children, parents, and food producers. This article is useful in the prevention of obesity in teenagers because it emphasizes the need for healthy food for all children as a way of preventing obesity in teenagers. It supports other articles that have emphasized the role of nutritious foods in the prevention of obesity. I will use this article as the foundation when examining the role of eating healthy in the prevention of obesity in teenagers.