Childhood Obesity Case Study

Childhood obesity is a major public health epidemic which has significantly risen over the past three decades and there is no chance in sight of slowing it down unless real action is taken. This major health crisis continues to reduce individuals’ quality of life and has caused severe health problem like heart disease which is the leading cause of death in the United States and around the world. In most cases, obese children grow up to be an obese adult. The prevalence of childhood obesity can be addressed through education initiatives such as school prevention programs because children spent a majority of their time outside of the home at school, therefore school provides a great opportunity to educate and improve a child’s health at an ideal point before the problem gets worst. My paper will focus on childhood obesity prevention in Hill Top Middle school Lodi, New Jersey.

“The physical and emotional health of an entire generation and the economic health and security of our nation is at stake” a quote made by the First Lady, Michelle Obama, as she launches her comprehensive initiative to change the way children think about nutrition and physical fitness (“Learn the Facts,” 2010). Three decades ago, children lived active lives that kept them healthier. They walked to and from school, ate home cooked, reasonable portion meals with vegetables and played outdoors most of the time. Today, children ride the bus instead of walk, eat more fast food and snacks throughout the day because parents are busier, and watch more television or play video games rather than be active outside with peers (“Learn the Facts,” 2010). Young children are becoming overweight and obese along with being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes more frequently. They are making poor dietary choices, inadequate physical activity, and spending too much screen time all contributing to the obesity crisis. One of the effective solutions to reversing the trend of childhood obesity is to provide safe, affordable and accessible after-school health and physical fitness educational programs for all school ages across the nation.

The new generation continues to increasingly fall under obesity’s evil spell. Although many Americans recognize that their children are obese, they fail to accept that this is an epidemic that should be controlled and given dramatic attention to. Research suggests that childhood obesity in the United States has doubled in the past decade. Despite the fact that we have necessary resources to control these statistics, Americans continue to expose their youngsters to unhealthy and fattening meals. It is no joke that America is the fattest nation in the world. Thus, preventing this serious issue should be perceived as a life-or-death situation where if we fail to control it, many more overweight children will grow up to be obese adults in the future.

“Childhood obesity is an condition in which a child is significantly overweight for her or his age and height.” (Mayo Clinic) With childhood obesity rates on the rise, concern among Americans is also heightening, and rightfully so. Due to this concern, many are asking, should the government be stepping in more with childhood obesity cases? Should more regulations and laws be passed to prevent childhood obesity in our children? What can our government do to help with this devastating epidemic? The government should enact higher regulations, education, and activity levels in adolescents to prevent the rise of childhood obesity rates.

To start of with what is Obesity? In the Merriam-Webster dictionary “obesity” is defined as “a condition characterized by the excessive accumulation and storage of fat in the body.” In the article by Kathryn Faguy (2016) called “ Obesity in Children and Adolescents: Health Effects and Imagining Implications” it goes deeper in explaining how obesity is determine in youth. It explains that obesity for adolescents, and children are categorized by weight to determine and compares a child’s Body Mass Index known as “BMI” to other children who are the same age and sex. A child is considered to be “overweight” if the child’s BMI is in the range of the 85th and 94th

Childhood obesity is a growing epidemic and continues to be the focus at the national level (Washington, Reifsnider, Bishop, Ethington, & Ruffin, 2010). Furthermore, many comorbidities and health issues, such as diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and depression are associated with this disease. Hence, combating childhood obesity would involve a collaborative multidisciplinary team consisting of family members, the client, health care providers, and policymakers. Therefore, radical changes need to be implemented into law to combat this issue. As a health care provider, this writer has seen the devastation that childhood obesity has not only on the child, but the family as well and wishes to propose a

The current epidemic of childhood obesity needs to be addressed by applying policy alternatives. The Act of 2010, Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids continue to administer subsidized and provide free meals to qualified children. Secondly, authorize all the Public

The current state of affairs isn’t ideal for school children as many schools offer children foods of minimal nutritional value with some schools still allowing fast food restaurants to provide their services in high schools and middle schools. The current policies actually contribute to the toxic environment that many children face both at home and at school as those most impacted by the obesity epidemic are minority and poor urban children who don’t have healthy choices at home or in school. Part of the problem

Childhood obesity is a pressing national health issue that requires policy attention at either the federal or state level. The health care costs associated with childhood obesity is staggering and according to the Duke Global Health Institute, “Childhood obesity comes with an estimated price tag of $19,000 per child when comparing lifetime medical costs to those of a normal weight child” (Duke Global Health Institute, 2014). Lack of action on the part of policymakers will only increase the number of obese children and the medical cost associated with it. The best way to address this issue is not by overt, heavy handed government action, but by policy prescriptions that indirectly influence behavior. The following three policy tools will leave

Statement of Health Problem: Childhood obesity has been a significant problem across our nation for decades, and can be clearly associated with insufficient nutrition, health, and wellness. Obesity is defined as a body mass index (BMI) at or above the 95th percentile for adolescents within the same age group ("Defining Childhood Obesity"). The most recent data show that the national childhood obesity rate for those between 2-19 years old is 18.5% ("The State of Childhood Obesity"). This equates to nearly 1 in 5 school age children being classified as obese ("Childhood Obesity Facts").

I will be researching childhood obesity in the United to states because I want to better understand the cause's and how it can be prevented.  I have chosen to research childhood obesity to help my readers understand the influence they may have in children's lives and in their future. By asking questions such as, when does the onset of child hood obesity occur, I hope to find out what social institutions play the biggest role. With social institutions comes the question of relevance of socioeconomic status, and the impact that has. I lastly will be asking the question of the long term effects of childhood obesity. My goal is to understand why so many

Childhood obesity has expanded tremendously within the past thirty years (CDC, 2015). It is not only a state, but also a nationwide issue. For many children, they depend on their school lunches to provide them the nutritious meals they cannot afford to have at home. As a community, we need to get our children into better shape. Not only will they become more astute, but they will also live healthier lifestyles, and have less health complications as they age. When you are overweight or obese, you are much more likely to develop health problems like heart disease, diabetes, or even a stroke. It is our responsibility as a community, state, and nation to offer nutritious meals and activities for our youth and future.

The rate of childhood obesity has grown an enormous amount over the years with more than 40 million children being overweight! That number is astonishingly high and it is very obvious that something needs to be done about this. Studies had shown in 2008 that more than 40 million children were said to be overweight and the sad truth is that they are still increasing rapidly to this day; also every 1 in 4 teenagers is said to not reach the fitness guidelines (Tanner) according to an article by Lindsey Tanner. For this problem to be resolved not only do the parents of children need to make sure their kids are staying active but also, the schools they attend need to make sure they are getting a well-balanced meal and have some type of physical activity during their school day. Each state in America is given a percentage rate on the number of obese people in that particular state. The highest ranking state is Mississippi with a percentage of 34.9 and the state ranking the least is Connecticut with 24.5 percent. Different researches have shown that each day 850 lives are taken due to obesity and each year there are more than 300,000 people that die from obesity related illnesses. These are deaths that most likely could have been avoided if these individuals would have had the proper exercise and diet in their lives.

Childhood obesity is one of the major public health challenges of the 21st century. The prevalence of obesity is increasing globally. In 2013, the number of overweight children under the age of five was estimated over 42 million. Childhood obesity can cause premature death and disability in adulthood. Overweight and obese children will grow up to become obese adults and are more likely to develop diseases like cardiovascular diseases and diabetes at a younger age. Many factors can contribute overweight and obesity in children, however a global shift in dietary habits and lack of physical activity play a crucial role. Overweight and obesity are preventable. Unlike adults, children cannot select the environment they live or the food they eat, they are unware about the long term health consequences of their behavior. Therefore, it is important to have strict policies for the prevention of obesity epidemic. School play an important role in fighting against the epidemic of childhood obesity (World Health Organization, 2016). Even after the legislature has enacted laws to support school nutrition and physical education, many states including, Texas has not yet adopted these policies. It is important to have these policies in practice to prevent childhood obesity (National Conference of State Legislatures, 2014). Government play an important role in making sustainable changes in public health. For that reason, the author is intended to

Childhood obesity has been a major concern of the Obamas’ Obesity Taskforce.1 Two indicators that this author would consider in evaluating the healthfulness of a neighborhood regarding childhood obesity are: 1) its safety in order to promote walking and other physical activities as opposed to sedentary activities. (TV, Internet, talking on cell) 1 and 2) accessibility to fast food (McDonald’s) vs. organic food.1