Obesity is the most important public health concern among the children. Obesity occurs when the individual weigh more as compared to the ideal weight. The obesity related to children is however, a disturbing situation with respect to child’s well-being and health. The childhood obesity is, however, defined as a body mass index at or above the 95th percentile for a child of the same sex and age. The classification the child obesity depends on the composition of the child’s body, because it varies according to the sex and the age of a child. Childhood obesity is because of the imbalance between the intake of the calorie by the child, and the utilization of calorie for development, growth, physical activities and metabolism (Karnik & Kanekar, 2012). The child consumes calories through beverages and food, and if these calories are not utilized then it paves the way to obesity in the child.
Furthermore, genetic factors that influence the body metabolism by changing the fats contents, expenditure of energy, and intake of energy in the body of a child, environmental factors such as lack of the physical activities due to the lack of facilities, and the behavioral factors such as consumption of more food that provide energy but the energy is not utilized due to non-activity, are also responsible for the child obesity. Obesity can, however, be multi-factorial as far as children are concerned. Moreover, it is also claimed that parenthood is a contributing factor to the child obesity. It is noticed that the children of single parent are more obese as compared to dual parent children. The saturated fatty acids intake and the total calorie is more in the single parent children as compared to the dual parent children (Huffman, Kanikireddy, & Patel, 2010).
There are several consequences that are associated with the childhood obesity; they include the development of the health risks in the adulthood. The health problems that occur, as a result, of the obesity are not just physical, but they are also social as well as psychological. Obese children have a greater risk of suffering from high blood pressure, cardiovascular diseases, and increased levels of cholesterols (Weiting, 2008). It, however, also increases the risk of developing insulin resistant type 2 diabetes, respiratory problems such as asthma, sleep apnea and the breath shortness. However, the physical effects may exert their influence on the musculoskeletal system, leading to the discomfort because of the increased weight on the joint that further cause bone and muscle disorder. The obesity also badly affects the liver that pave the way to the degeneration of the liver (Blum, 1998).
Furthermore, there are certain interventions that can help in bringing a positive attitude in the child behavior and to make him/her well aware about the obesity and nutritious food. These interventions include play based interventions, community-based interventions, school based interventions, family based interventions, and behavioral interventions (Karnik & Kanekar, 2012). The play based interventions include promotion of the education related to nutrition in an efficient way such as when it comes to the children through the games and the fun activities. The community based interventions are important, in a way, that community plays a significant role in the healthy living standard of children.
Arranging programs relating to the health activities for children, and allowing the children to get the healthy, accessible and the affordable food items helps in encouraging healthy nutrition in children. The school-based interventions are the most important; this is because of the fact that children spend most of their time in the schools. So, school plays an essential role in the life of children. A school can adopt several strategies for intervention, such as nutrition based interventions, and the physical based in order to control the child weight, while both can also be adopted in order to create awareness and for eliminating the ill effects associated with the obesity.
Further, the family-based interventions can also help a child in overcoming obesity, because family can influence the behavioral pattern of child. They can help the child in the choice of the food, and in the physical activities, such as encouraging a child to walk, and to take the stairs instead of using escalators or elevators. In order to cope with the problem of the child obesity, such an environment should be built that enable access to the public open place such as parks, walking tracks such as trails and the footpaths, and recreation centers , so that children develop healthy habits and remain protected from the harmful effects of obesity (Dehghan, danesh, & Merchant, 2005).
The academic knowledge will, however, exert great impact on obesity in the next 5 to 10 years. This is because of the fact that children spent most of their time in schools, and if they are taught about the harmful effects of obesity in the early ages, and encouraged for healthy food, and physical activities then they will develop an understanding about the obesity and all the issues that are associated with it, which can be harmful for their health. They will avoid those food items that can cause obesity, and to remain protected from the dangerous effects of obesity they develop a habit of exercise, and in the coming 5 to 10 years the number of the obese children can be reduced. Furthermore, children are regarded as a priority population, because it is easy to control obesity in childhood as compared to the adult age, and in this regard schools are the natural settings in order to influence the physical activity, and the food environment of the individuals.
Furthermore, in this regard, the pre-school institutions, and the after school institutions are also very effected as they educate children about the healthy living and development of the healthy habits. Furthermore, the curriculum based approach is also influential in this regard, as it helps to influence the eating habits and the eating patterns, reduction of the sedentary behaviors, and promotion of the higher levels of activity in the children, particularly the children of 6-8 grades, which is also helpful for decreasing the number of obese population in coming 5 to 10 years.
The encouragement of the active mode of transportation such as cycling, public transport, and walking to and from the school, is also an effective way for controlling obesity in children, but as a matter of fact this requires policy modification at the school level , local government level, and support from the parents as well as from the community. There are some communities that have considered this issue serious and have implemented various programs such as walking bus, cycling routes, promoted safe walking, and road crossings.
The academic knowledge is also beneficial because of the fact that it helps to create awareness in the children about healthy and unhealthy food. Considering the fact that the companies are now promoting fast food, which is quite unhealthy for the children, and they do not provide any nutrient instead the lead to obesity, so education is helping them to choose between the nutritious and non-nutritious items, as they were taught about such items by their teacher, so they try to avoid them. Sweden has seriously considered the increasing problem of child obesity, and banned the television advertising to the children having age less than 12 years. Furthermore, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Austria, Australia, Greece, and Ireland have also imposed restrictions on the television advertising to the young children (Swinburn & Egger, 2002).
Additionally, Most of the schools have adopted initiatives such as use of the school report card in order to make the parents aware of the weight problem of their child, which are believed to be help in preventing the obesity. However, In Boston, a study has revealed the fact that the parents who got report cards are likely to be more aware of two times more aware of the fitness and health of their child as compared to those who do not get the repot card (Dehghan, danesh, & Mechant, 2005).
Moreover, in the video named Critical mass crisis: child obesity, Mark Fainaru-Wada, have presented the positive influence of the academic knowledge about the physical activity in schools on the health of the children. The video is indicative of the fact that one out of seven children is suffering from obesity, and in the 4th grade, one out of five children is a victim of obesity. If a child spends just 40 minutes in the exercise or physical activity then he can remain protected from the obesity. Obese children have high body mass index, and de-emphasis on the physical activity in the schools is aggravating the problem of obesity. Most of the schools do not educate children about the obesity, and they do not have experts for the physical education.
The cut backs in the physical activity is the major factor of the child obesity, and because of this children are suffering from the Type II diabetes at the age of 6-12, this situation was not prevailing 25 years ago, as only a few children were obese (Fainaru-Wada, 2009). Children are compelled to spend more time in the classes, and master their skills in mathematics etc, and the time for physical activity is reduced, which is posing serious threats to the health of children. According to the video, the Department of Health and Human Service, 20% of the children in the United States will be defined as obese in the coming year, which is about 4 times the rate that was prevailing in 1970s.
The physical activity breaks are helpful in curbing the obesity, this is because a child develops the habit of playing and exercise, which is helpful as it makes a child active and safeguard from the obesity. Physical activity twice a week i.e., for 30-90 minutes is also effective for the children. Additionally, The National Association for Sports & Physical Education, which is a nonprofit organization that is made up of the PE coaches, directors of athletics, teachers, and many other professionals who advocate the physical activity, has emphasized that the children should receive 150 minutes of the physical activity per week.
References
Karnik, Sameera., & Kanekar, Amar. (2012). Childhood Obesity: A Global Public Health Crisis. International Journal of Preventive Medicine, 3(1), 1-7
Huffman, Fatma G., Kanikireddy, Sankarabharan., & Patel, Mathan. (2010). Parenthood—A Contributing Factor to Childhood Obesity. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Weiting, J. Michael. (2008). Cause and Effect in Childhood Obesity: Solutions for a National Epidemic. The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association, 108(10), 545-552
Blum, H.E. (1998). Gut and the Liver. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Great Britain
Dehghan, Mahshid ., Danesh, Noori Akhtar ., & Merchant, Anwar T. (2005). Childhood obesity, prevalence and prevention. Nutrition Journal, 4(24), 1-8
Swinburn, B., & Egger, G. (2002). Preventive strategies against weight gain and obesity. Obesity Reviews, 3(4), 289-301
Fainaru-Wada, Mark. (2009). Critical mass crisis: child obesity. Espn. Retrieved from:
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/otl/news/story?id=4015831
