Paper Example on Childhood Obesity

Definition of Childhood Obesity

Obesity is a chronic condition in which individuals accumulate excessive levels of body fat that may result in direct negative effects on their health and well-being (WHO, 2000). For children and adolescents aged 19 years or less, obesity is defined by the age- and gender-specific BMI for age growth charts published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) with children at or over the 95th percentile categorized as obese (CDC, 2015). Overweight is defined as a BMI for children and adolescents at or over the 85th percentile and below the 95th percentile.

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Hypothesis

The working hypothesis of this literature review is to shed more light on childhood obesity and the reason why it has been on the increase in the recent past. The research also aims to come up with strategies to treat and prevent childhood obesity.

Purpose of the Study

The aim of the study is to ascertain the causes behind the increase in obesity cases among children. Today, obesity in children is turning into an undeniably significant issue in the United States in particular and the world in general. This obesity menace and related diseases represent a substantial general health challenge globally

Children and teenagers who are obese are at more serious risk for bone and joint issues, sleep apnea, and social and mental issues, such as low self-esteem. Moreover, obese adolescents are more prone than the youth of average weight to wind up plainly overweight or obese grown-ups, and like thus at a higher risk of related adult health issues, including coronary illness, type 2 diabetes, and stroke. In the United States, adolescent obesity and the absence of physical activity keep on impacting both the present and future health in children.

Objectives of the Study

• To define childhood obesity
• To establish the risk factors for childhood obesity
• To understand the consequences of childhood obesity
• To ascertain the treatment and prevention of childhood obesity.

Statistics on Childhood Obesity

The rising trend of childhood obesity has become a point of concern globally (Wang & Lim, 2012). Since the 1970s, there has been a threefold increase in the percentage of children with diabetes in the United States with one out of five children between the age of 6 and 19 years having obesity (CDC, 2016). In the years 1971-1974, the overall prevalence of childhood obesity was 5.0%, and increased to 16.9% by the years 2007-2008. The prevalence of obesity could be different the distinct groups as a result of distinct lifestyles . Actually, the national center for chronic disease control and prevention and health promotion in the US indicates that the prevalence of obesity currently is lower in Asian and white as compared to African-American and Hispanic children. This is attributed to the disparities in health care access among the groups mentioned. The access to a balanced diet as a result of low incomes could be a contributing factor too (Black et al 2013).

Statement of the Problem

According to the World Health Organization, obesity refers to the chronic condition in which persons accumulate excessive amounts of body fat, which ultimately result in adverse ramifications regarding health (WHO, 2000). The BMI classification of obesity is:

• 35 40 Severe obesity.
• 40 45 Morbid obesity.
• Above 45 Super obese.

Over the years, obesity has gotten to be noticeably a standout amongst the most chronic conditions among children and adolescents (Chen, Chou, & Yang, 2005). According to Foster et al. (2003), the treatment for obesity has been drawn nearer from a medical model. Today, extensive research depict that notwithstanding changes in physical movement and caloric consumption or restorative wellbeing, emotional, social, and psychological well-being components must be tended to with a specific end goal to give viable treatment to obesity in kids and adolescents (Braet, 2005). With a specific end goal to elevate this all-encompassing way to deal with obesity treatment, it is important to analyze the current confirmation and gather it in an organization that is effectively gotten to and additionally instructive for utilization of those in the medical, social insurance professions. Extensive research and numerous case studies have exhibited that being overweight or fat has both negative physical and emotional wellness effects in children (Xie, Chou, Liu, Xia, & Gong, 2005). Predicaments go from medical conditions, such as but not limited to, diabetes, hypertension, and respiratory issues to social disconnection, and lower self-esteem (Burrows & Cooper, 2002). In spite of these actualities, literature has demonstrated that doctors may underdiagnose or obesity in their diagnosis (Cook, Weitzman, Auinger, & Barlow, 2005). Underdiagnosis and the absence of treatment arrangements might emanate from various aspects such as, doctors who believe that conclusion will have little effect on the issue (Cook, Weitzman, Auinger, & Barlow, 2005). Additionally, doctors may hold negative convictions about the reasons for obesity crediting these conditions to such practices as absence of discretion or apathy (Foster, Wadden, Davidson, Sanderson, & Allison, 2003)

Furthermore, doctors may feel that they are by and by unequipped to give necessary treatment or that the available medications are incapable. At last, doctors also hold concerns that intercession amid the young may prompt further damage in the territories of naming, disorderly eating, or negative parental mediation (Burrows & Cooper, 2002). Along these lines, it becomes imperative to take an in-depth analysis of obesity. In so doing, this venture will furnish medical stakeholders with the confirmation indicating, in need of delicate conclusion and the best treatment medications. The motivation behind this endeavor, therefore, is to gather and analyze the current proof base to decide the segments of a viable treatment program. Both physical and emotional wellness medications will be analyzed and assessed to determine whether these parts, exclusively or in the mix, have been depicted through the examination to be the best instruments for treating obesity in children.

According to Wang & Lim (2012), childhood obesity has risen to be a global concern given the alarming rates recorded on the global spectrum. The United States stands top of the charts with the highest number of obesity cases. Data collected from 2009 to 2014 depicts that obesity rates were lowest in children aged below five years, while the figures were highest in the 12-19 years age bracket. All these kids diagnosed with obesity portrayed more inferior physical prowess (CDC, 2016). Across the different races/ethnicities of children aged 6-11 years, regardless of gender, Hispanic children had the highest prevalence of obesity at 25%, followed closely by non-Hispanic Black children at 21.4%, non-Hispanic White children at 13.6%, and non-Hispanic Asian children at 9.8%. Higher prevalence of obesity was found in non-Hispanic White and non-Hispanic Black females compared with males of the same ethnicities. Obesity was more prevalent in non-Hispanic Asian and Hispanic males compared with females of the same ethnicities. Analysis of the findings on obesity in children makes it possible to categorize it along social-economic constructs. Here, children from lower-income families, especially in developed nations, have also depicted a higher probability of obesity. Be that as it may, in developing countries, most obese children come from high-income families. In spite of these disparities, minority groups, especially in Europe and America, are evidently more burdened by the adverse ramifications of obesity. These differences can be highly attributed to the lack of proper health facilities and the presence of risk factors. All these assertions are bolstered by numerous case studies and researches by scholars and medical experts across the world.

Subsequently, there is an array of causes behind the prevalence of obesity in children. Noteworthy among these causes is dietary intake, whereby poor nutrition accounts for the most obesity cases. Most of the children with poor feeding habits hail from poor backgrounds, hence the lack of access to balanced diets. On the other hand, obese children from high-income families often consume a lot of junk food, hence the increased obesity cases. Furthermore, childhood nutrition can be affected by the difficulties in accessing and affording healthy food within the communities where the children live. Second, lack of adequate physical activity also contributes to heightened obesity cases. Physical activities help the children to burn calories, and the lack of suitable exercises is likely to lead to obesity in children. Third, sedentary behaviors today, have also contributed to numerous cases of obesity in children. These behaviors such prolonged hours of watching TV hinder children from taking part in physical activities hence the causes of obesity.

Finally, this backdrop will illustrate the ultimate result of this venture as a powerful tool in the medical domain. This tool will prove immensely valuable to the entire medical field and all experts who can use it as a source of the perspective instrument when working with children and teenagers that are obese. By exhibiting obesity administration as a condition that can be decidedly overseen and that is not exclusively one that creates as an absence of self-control, there is potential to expel the pessimism and shame that encompass the onset and administration of obesity. There is additionally potential to build the achievement rates of obesity and weight treatment when experts know about the best treatment systems, as demonstrated through the analysis. This way, not exclusively will this end item be imperative as a rule for experts in the treatment of overweight and obesity, it will likewise be significant in urging experts to morally and delicately take part in the treatment prepare with obese people. The literature will unite the current information base in regards to the impacts of obesity on kids and young people and highlight best practices in treatment. There is additionally potential, over the span of the literature, to recognize ranges for further research encompassing this subject. Through the consummation of this venture both experts and shoppers of their administrations will be given expanded mindfulness surrounding this point and in addition developed information about how to viably address obesity in children.

Risk Factors for Childhood Obesity

There are a couple of risk factors that predisposes children to obesity. They include race, socio-economic status, dietary intake, physical activity, sedentary behaviors, and lifestyle choices. The more active a child is and practices healthy dieting, the lesser the risk for acquiring childhood obesity. It has been strongly recommended by a group of health experts that policies should be designed and implemented in order to enhance the level of physical activity in children through school-based activities in order to prevent obesity (Foley et al., 2014).

Consequences for Childhood Obesity

Childhood obesity has both immediate and long-term health effects(Skinner & Skelton, 2014).Child and adolescent obesity contributes to high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, and joint problems, social and physiological problems (Ogden et al 2014). Some of the consequences include cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, artherosclerosis, left ventricular hypertrophy, and Type II Diabetes.

Prevention of Childhood Obesity

The best approach to containing and treating obesity is a properly managed diet (Karnik & Kanekar, 2015). The diet should include all minerals and nutrients that a body needs in the appropriate portions....