Obesity in Children: A Plan of Action - Research Paper Example

? Obesity in Children: A Plan of Action The deep rooted problem of obesity in children in the United s has grown and continues to grow. In fact, it has been estimated that one in every three American children is either overweight or obese. It is sad that obesity is the easiest health problem to detect. Ironically, it is the hardest to eliminate. This paper shall give an in depth analysis of obesity in the United States. It shall define obesity; explain its consequences as well as possible solutions. In addition, it shall look into previous works concerning obesity that will be analysed in the literature review section. Data used in this paper is collected from secondary sources. The conclusion shall issue recommendations to curb the problem of obesity. Obesity in Children: A Plan of Action Introduction Obesity can be defined as having excess fat in the body. Obesity takes place when an individual eats up more calories than one’s body can burn. However, it is different from being overweight. This is in the sense that being a person who is overweight weighs too much while an obese individual has too much fat. More than 16% of the children in the United States are considered obese (Friis and Sellers, 2009). Since children grow at rates that are different, it is sometimes difficult to tell whether a child is overweight or obese. Only when a child’s weight is 10% higher than recommended can one be considered obese. Before determining whether one is obese, the doctor takes factors like height and body type in consideration first. Obesity usually begins at the age of 5 or 6 or at times during adolescence. Unhealthy weight gain caused by lack of exercise and poor diet. Obesity causes other health problems including heart disease, high blood pressure, and raised levels of cholesterol as well as type-2 diabetes (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009). Additionally, the psychological effects far outweigh the physical effects. Low self esteem, depression as well as negative self image are some of the worst effects of obesity in children. Excess weight in childhood has been linked with early deaths in their adulthood. This paper will analyze a project aimed at reducing obesity among children and shall be implemented in the State of Massachusetts. Literature Review This section will deal with previous research concerning this topic and how to it relates to the project at hand. Friis and Sellers (2009) identify overeating, genetics and lack of exercise as the three main causes of obesity among children. The results of obesity are both physical and psychological. Causes of Obesity Most times people judge obese people by saying that they brought it upon themselves. Although this is half true, the causes of diabetes are complex. There are cultural, biological, genetic and behavioral factors that lead to obesity. If a parent is obese, there is a 50% more chance of the child being obese as well. If both parents are obese, this percentage increases to 80% (MacDermott, 2008). Some medical disorders can bring about obesity, but only 1% of all obesity cases are the effects of physical problems (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009). The two biggest causes of obesity in children remain poor diet and lack of exercise. A good number of children today choose to watch television and play computer games instead of going out there to play. Today’s working mum is too busy to prepare nutritious home cooked meals at home. Additionally, stressful events in life for example, divorce, deaths and abuse also lead to obesity. The Impacts of Childhood Obesity Physical Effects The epidemic of childhood obesity can be said to be the most serious problem facing the people of America today. This pandemic does not discriminate. It is occurring in girls and boys, across all socioeconomic lines and all States. As already mentioned, childhood obesity has been linked to many chronic diseases that classically manifest themselves in adulthood. Type-2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and some cancers have been associated with childhood overweight (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009). This is because the metabolic precursors for most of these diseases start in childhood. Research has shown that 60% of overweight 5-10 year olds had an additional risk factor for diseases like high cholesterol and blood pressure. Psychological Effects The obese child is not a happy child. The obese child gets taunted and bullied both at school and at home among his peers. It is no wonder then that low self esteem, self blame, social rejection and depression is highest among obese children (MacDermott, 2008). Obese children are not popular among their peers. They therefore, tend to spend most of their time alone since they are afraid of being mocked. Since they cannot play with other children, they end up watching a lot of television and spending time with the computer. Their parents are likely to be out there trying to make ends meet and thus have little time to counsel their stressed out children. On the other hand, teachers cannot concentrate on just a few students. This way the obese child is left all alone with his gadgets. He continues to eat a lot of junk food and do little exercise. This way the weight continues to accumulate and will be a lot harder to get rid of. Community Setting and Aggregate Population This project is based on the United States of America where the rates of childhood obesity have tripled since the figures in 1963 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009).In particular, this project is based on the State of Massachusetts where the rates of obesity are high. The method of collecting data was through interviews as well as secondary sources. Children between the ages of 5-15 are either obese or overweight (American Heart Association, 2013). The best time to prevent obesity and subsequently all the diseases that come with it, is during childhood. The place start this journey of curbing this problem is at school where the children spend more at least 60% of their time. In Massachusetts there is already legislation to help control this problem. The bill, which was sponsored by Representative Peter Koutoujian has been named ‘the school nutrition bill’. It was endorsed by two legislative committees, the Health Care financing committee as well as the Public Health committee. Currently, the bill is in the Means and House ways committee. This project is pegged on the hope that this bill will be passed into law. Plan of Action The project hopes to send a nurse to each of the schools in the Massachusetts area. The nurse will teach the students about matters regarding nutrition. The aim is to teach students to be able to eat healthily whether they are under supervision or not. The nurse will teach the children facts regarding unhealthy eating. The teaching methods will be mostly visual whereby video will feature prominently. The lesson will not be examinable but the students will be made to realize the detrimental effects of obesity. In light of this, they are expected to take the lessons seriously (Friis and Sellers, 2009). Additionally, colored wall charts will come in handy. In addition to this, students will be given assignments that they can do at home. This will include simple healthy recipes that they can prepare on their own (Laurson, 2008). Nevertheless, everyday, a short video will be played in the cafeteria will be played to show the negative health effects of obesity. This is not to mention a newspaper cutting posted on a daily basis on the school notice board. Also, the students will be advised to visit the school clinic on a regular basis in order to have their Body Mass Index calculated. Although BMI cannot be said to be perfect in measuring body fat, most time it suffices (Waters et al., 2011). The goal is to establish BMI for all the children in the school. Once their BMI is established, they child will be taught the interpretation and what to do about their weight. The children who are found to be obese will be counseled by the nurse and their parents will then be involved. The obese children will be helped deal with their emotional issues as they are taught how to deal with the physical needs of their bodies. Measurable Criteria to Evaluate their Attainment The results of the project will be visible by the number of children who have successfully lost some weight. When the obese children are identified, they will be required to make follow up visits to the nurse’s office. Their progress will be evaluated on a weekly basis to determine how much weight they have lost. They will also be required to keep a nutrition diary (MacDermott, 2008). They will be required to keep a record of all the food they eat. They will have been properly guided on how to take care of their nutrition needs prior to this. Therefore, they will have an easy time recording their daily nutrition as well as exercise. The diaries will then be graded by the nurses. At the end of every four weeks, the best performing students will be rewarded. The rewards are expected to be a trip outside the school to a museum of their choice. Additionally, it is expected that the food chosen by students in the cafeteria is expected to change. Whereas, most prefer to eat burgers and products of meat, they are expected to start choosing healthy choices, for example salad bars. Furthermore, the level of activity by the students is expected to increase (Waters et al., 2011). The children are expected to focus less on computer games and more on playing outside. Participation and enthusiasm for gymnasium is expected to increase. Children will also be expected to play more outside during recess instead of playing with computers of mobile phones. The long term goal is to bring about a better and healthier America. When children are healthy, they are happy and in turn their grades are expected to improve. Their concentration in class is expected to increase and thus better grades. Less mood swings will be expected and thus they will relate with their teachers as well as their peers better. The children who were obese will no longer be taunted by their peers and thus they can be their very best. Social interaction between them and their peers is expected to greatly improve (Yagnik, 2009). Cost of the Project The project will use materials already used by the students and thus is not expected to be expensive. As a matter of fact, the only major expense would be to hire a nurse. The nursed is expected to be remunerated a total of $1000 per month. In case the legislation is passed into law, the school is expected to cater for this. In case the school cannot afford to pay the nurse, the Parents will pay some extra money to ensure this gets done. Other than that, the charts used will be the ones used by the school. Additionally, the most videos will be downloaded from the internet. The BMI calculator can also be found online (Laurson, 2008). Conclusion The problem of obesity among children is rampant in this country. All hope is not lost. With the correct diet and exercise, it can be a thing of the past. The issue of obesity is complex (Yagnik, 2009). It carries with it a stereotype on both the physician as well as the patient. The solution is patience. It takes time for the results of adapting a healthy lifestyle to show. The main aim of this project is to eliminate the problem in its early stages. Children can lose weight faster than adults. Additionally, if they lose weight when young, then the likelihood of getting cardiovascular diseases is minimized substantially. However, this project is just the beginning. The government, teachers, parents and all relevant stakeholders need to ensure this project is sustained. The children also need to play their part. If people work together as a community, then it will be easier to battle with this persistent problem. References American Heart Association. (2013). Childhood obesity. Retrieved from http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/WeightManagement/Obesity/Childhood-Obesity_UCM_304347_Article.jsp Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2009). Childhood overweight and obesity. Retrieved from http://www. cdc.gov/obesity/childhood/index.html Friis, R. H., & Sellers, T. A. (2009). Epidemiology for public health practice. Jones and Bartlett: Sudbury, MA. Laurson, K. R. (2008). Designing and evaluating clinical cut points for childhood obesity. ProQuest. MacDermott, S. J. (2008). The Stigma of childhood obesity: A literature review. ProQuest. Waters, E., Swinburn, B., Seidell, J., & Uauy, R. (2011). Preventing childhood obesity: Evidence policy and practice. John Wiley & Sons. Yagnik, J. P. (2009). Evaluation of association between childhood obesity and depression: A systematic literature review. ProQuest. Read More