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Topic: Childhood Obesity

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According to the American Heart Association (2018), one third of the children and

adolescents are affected by obesity in the United States. Going into the millennium, its

prevalence had tripled so much so that it is regarded as the number one health concerns among

parents today. In other parts of the world, the problem is rapidly growing, and it affects middle

class and low-income earning countries alike. A research conducted by Karnik & Kanekar

(2012) estimated that over 41 million children in Africa and Asia under the age of five were

found to be obese. Of these, it has been estimated that over 116,000 die each year.

Children with obesity have a higher risk of getting serious diseases like high blood

pressure, Diabetes type 2, high cholesterol, coronary heart disease, stroke and respiratory

problems (Hales, Carroll, Fryar & Ogden, 2017). Additionally, most of them grow up with the

condition, which results to more health issues that are psychological in nature, including low

self-esteem, negative body image and sometimes depression. It is also true that excess weight is

associated with earlier risk of obesity-related disease and death in adulthood (Cunningham,

Kramer & Narayan, 2014).

The prevalence of obesity in the U.S can be attributed to the availability of “good-

tasting” food with high calorie. Furthermore, these foods are not expensive yet their health

effects are disastrous. This accompanied with a lack of physical activity and inactive behavior

results to childhood obesity. All these factors are imparted by family characteristics and

environmental factors. For instance, if parents cultivate the culture of eating junk food at home

from a young age, chances are that their child will become obese. Watching TV and other

inactive activities should also be discouraged lest children become dormant. Advertisements that

encourage the consumption of junk food also attract children into poor eating habits. It is also
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important to note that genetic factors of the family can also contribute to child obesity (Ebbeling,

Pawlak, & Ludwig, 2002)

The impact of Child obesity goes beyond health related issues as it can negatively affect

the child’s social status. More often, it brings anxiety, self- esteem and depression because obese

children tend to be more vulnerable than the normal kids in school (Ludwig, 2018). It is also

associated with eating disorders such as Bulimia Nervosa. All these affect the health of the child,

its wellbeing and leads to poor performance because of the low quality of life the child is

experiencing (Reilly, & Kelly, 2011).

Clearly, a lot of effort and measures needs to be put in place to address this issue. First,

environmental change is inevitable, and perhaps the key and solution to obesity in children.

Instead of having vending machines in schools that are full of 'junk' foods, parents and schools

should opt for healthier food options, emphasize on physical activities and constantly remind

kids about the effects of unhealthy eating habits. The government should set tighter rules and

regulation on advertisements of fast foods by limiting them. All said and done, reaching and

maintaining an appropriate body weight is important and the best way to achieve this is by doing

it gradually. Children and adolescents should measure their weight relative to height using the

Body Mass Index (BMI), (Ogden, Carroll, Kit, & Flegal, 2014).

In conclusion, families and the health care fraternity as a whole should understand that

childhood obesity is a serious issue in the society today. The current efforts to tame it cannot be

disregarded, but more needs to be done. Its effects are long lasting, threatening the future of

millions of children that can easily be avoided. All stakeholders should therefore join hands and

fight it with all the tools we have.

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References

Cunningham, S. A., Kramer, M. R., & Narayan, K. V. (2014). Incidence of childhood obesity in

the United States. New England Journal of Medicine, 370(5), 403-411.

Ebbeling, C. B., Pawlak, D. B., & Ludwig, D. S. (2002). Childhood obesity: public-health crisis,

common sense cure. The lancet, 360(9331), 473-482.

Hales, C. M., Carroll, M. D., Fryar, C. D., & Ogden, C. L. (2017). Prevalence of obesity among

adults and youth: United States, 2015-2016. US Department of Health and Human

Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health

Statistics.

Han, J. C., Lawlor, D. A., & Kimm, S. Y. (2010). Childhood obesity. The Lancet, 375(9727),

1737-1748.

Karnik, S., & Kanekar, A. (2012). Childhood obesity: a global public health crisis. International

journal of preventive medicine, 3(1), 1.

Ludwig, D. S. (2018). Epidemic Childhood Obesity: Not Yet the End of the

Beginning. Pediatrics, e20174078.

Ogden, C. L., Carroll, M. D., Kit, B. K., & Flegal, K. M. (2014). Prevalence of childhood and

adult obesity in the United States, 2011-2012. Jama, 311(8), 806-814.

Reilly, J. J., & Kelly, J. (2011). Long-term impact of overweight and obesity in childhood and

adolescence on morbidity and premature mortality in adulthood: systematic review.

International journal of obesity, 35(7), 891.