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Social determinants of health child obesity
The problem of obesity among schoolchildren
The problem of obesity among schoolchildren
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Recommended: Social determinants of health child obesity
In this article Hollar et al. examined the effects of an obesity prevention program in school. This study was a quasi-experimental design that took place over a two year period. It included 5 schools totaling 4588 students. Out of those 5 schools, one was a control school. The intervention strategies that were used included dietary planning, school curriculum and physical activity. Dietary improvements included adding more fruits and vegetable to their diet and by lowering saturated fats and sugary foods. School curriculum improved by teaching students, parents and staff about becoming healthier. The physical activity component improved by increasing the amount of physical activity that the students received during school hours. The students that were involved in the study were students who qualified for a free or a reduced lunch program.
The study found that implementing an obesity prevention program in school can help students to become healthier and perform better academically. All of the schools that had an intervention program decreased their BMI compared to the control school. With a decrease in BMI also came higher reading and math scores in those schools as well.
The limitations in this research included the study population not being random, limited geographic variability and not enough schools acting as controls. I found this article to be very enlightening and would be a very good source for my research. I would like to take this study and duplicate it in some of the schools that I am surrounded by.
In this article Trotter et al. examined if being disadvantaged as a child and as an adult would have a negative effect on BMI (body mass index) levels as an adult. This research article studied the correlation between c...
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...ildren. American Journal of Public Health, 100(4), 646-653. Retrieved from Health Business Fulltext Elite database.
Trotter, L., Bowen, D., & Beresford, S. (2010). Testing for Racial/Ethnic Differences in the Association Between Childhood Socioeconomic Position and Adult Adiposity. American Journal of Public Health, 100(6), 1088-1094. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2009.173492.
Tyke, J. (2010). Who ate all the pies?. Practice Nurse, 39(5), 50. Retrieved from Health Business Fulltext Elite database.
Wen, L., Merom, D., Rissel, C., & Simpson, J. (2010). Weight status, modes of travel to school and screen time: a cross-sectional survey of children aged 10-13 years in Sydney. Health Promotion Journal of Australia, 21(1), 57-63. Retrieved from CINAHL database.
(2009). Child obesity 'levelling off'. Practice Nurse, 38(9), 8. Retrieved from Health Business Fulltext Elite database.
National Audit Office. (2007) Tackling obesity in children [online]. Available from: http://www.nao.org.uk/publications/0001/ [Accessed on 15/03/2011].
Viner, Russell M and Tim J Cole. “Adult Socioeconomic, Educational, Social, and Psychological Outcomes of Childhood Obesity: A National Birth Cohort Study.” British Medical Journal 330. 1354. Web. 30, August 2011.
From Kindergarten to 12th grade, children spend most of their time at school. School, what we adults think, is supposed to be the teachers of our children while we are at work. They feed them lunch, and possibly breakfast, five days out the week, keep them active, and teach them all about their body and health in health class. But, are they really taking care of them enough? Some schools fail to serve healthy foods, teach health class, or even provide enough time to be physically active. One in three kids are obese, that is reason enough to care about these children’s lives at school. Schools are one of the reasons that the younger generation has a fast growing obese rate.
Childhood onset overweight and obesity and its’ associated health consequences are quickly becoming major significant public health issues facing America today. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) define overweight as a body mass index (BMI) between the 85th and 95th percentile while obese is defined as BMI above the 95th percentile for children of the same age and sex . The prevalence of overweight children, defined based on 2009 CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics data, has more than tripled in the past 30 years. Between 1980 and 2006, the incidence of overweight among children aged 6 to 11 years increased from 6.5% to 17.0% while overweight levels for adolescents aged 12 to 19 years increased from 5.0% to 17.6% . Not only has prevalence of child and adolescent overweight and obesity increased dramatically over the last several decades, but being an overweight or obese child puts one at a heightened risk for adult overweight and obesity .
Over 60 million people are obese in the world today. The socioeconomic statuses of the Americans play a major part in the obesity rates across the country. People with higher incomes are less likely to be obese than people with lower incomes. One in every seven preschool-aged children living in lower income areas are obese (Center for Disease Control and Prevention). A 2008 study showed that obesity is highest among American Indian and Alaska Native (21.2 percent) and Hispanic Americans (18.5 percent) children, and it is lowest among white (12.6 percent), Asian or Pacific Islander (12.3 percent), and black (11.8 percent) children (Get America Fit).
Obesity in children across America has become an increasing public health concern. Obesity has been identified as an epidemic that is plaguing our children in the United States. In some countries around the world children are dying of starvation everyday. How can this happen when here in America the opposite is a major problem? This is not to say that in America there are no hungry or starving children. It has been proven that our children suffer from obesity, and “children who are overweight or obese as preschoolers are five times as likely as normal-weight children to be overweight or obese as adults” (“Hope”). Obesity not only can cause a child to become more prone to having health problems down the road, but it can also make them feel insecure about themselves. There needs to be action taken in schools as well as in homes to help prevent this growing epidemic.
Childhood obesity has become a huge problem in the United States. Over twenty one percent of African American children are obese, not including the twenty percent who were just overweight. Studies show that the increase in Type II diabetes, which is caused by obesity has increased dramatically in children of African American culture. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) The hospital costs associated with childhood obesity were 127 million dollars from 1997-1999, increasing $92 million from 1979-1981. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) However, long term effects are also a concern for adolescent obesity. Overweight children have a 70 percent chance of being obese or overweight adults, which increases to 80 percen...
Obesity has become an epidemic in adults and children in the United States. Moreover, children are at risk of obesity because they do not eat enough fruits and vegetables and do not obtain enough physical activity. Also, children have a higher chance of developing health diseases related to obesity such as hypertension, high cholesterol, stroke, heart disease, diabetes and pulmonary disease. In addition, obesity in children from ages one to seventeen is an issue in Texas, since children are not aware of the serious consequences of being obese. Therefore, Texas should find ways to prevent obesity by authorizing healthier school lunches and allowing a school program to help obese children lose weight. Also, television advertisements are influencing obese children to make unhealthy choices.
Many kids in America suffer from type 2 diabetes and obesity. Schools do not inform children enough on what they should know about to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Schools should give information about having a healthy lifestyle by what they offer kids for breakfast and lunch, offering health classes to children at young ages, and limiting the amount of unneeded material students are exposed to at school.
Mary Louise Fleming, E. P. (2009). Introduction to Public Health. Chatswood, NSW, Australia: Elsevier Australia.
Stunkard, A., Eugene, D., Fox, S. & Ross, D., (1972), The journal of the American medical association, influence of social class on obesity and thinness is children, http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=343791#References [accessed 06 Nov 2013]
Obesity is a very common disease in America. An estimated one third or 12.5 million of children in the United States are overweight or obese. Out of this number an estimated four to six percent of children and teens are severely obese. Children are determined to be overweight or obese based on where they are on the body mass index (BMI) growth charts. Children that are in the 85th to 95th percentile are considered to be overweight. Children that are above the 95th percentile are considered obese. Doctors are advised to calculate their patients BMI and weight-to-height ratio at least once a year. If they find that their patient is overweight or obese, they are typically help to create an exercise plan, tell their patient to moderately cut back on calories, and send them to health counseling. The side effects that go along...
Educational institutions have the potential to, first and foremost, educate and assist the young people of today with making the positive, healthful choices necessary to maintain good health. Over 4,500 students have been followed in recent research studies and these “thousands of sixth graders who participated in a school-based health program were less obese by eighth grade than a group of similar children who did not, according to a new study done for the National Institutes of Health” (Rabin). Schools need to create health programs focused on assisting all children suffering from being overweight or obese. Policies such as fitness programs, nutrition classes, and healthful meals can even impact every student by creating a strong foundation and awareness of the negative, long term effects associated with practicing unhealthy habits. Although the financial expenses would be necessary, the adaption of scho...
American Journal Of Public Health103.1 (2013): 27-31. Business Source Premier.
Physical education in schools improves children’s physical health. Getting the recommended amount of exercise can combat obesity. “Regular physical activity can help children and adolescents improve cardiorespiratory fitness, build strong bones and muscles, control weight, reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression, and reduce the risk of developing health conditions” (CDC.gov). PHIT America states,