Childhood Obesity in the UK - Essay Example

Section/# Childhood Obesity The following discussion will be concentric upon discussing childhood obesity within the United Kingdom. Furthermore, the author will lay out some of the grave concerns that are attributed to this trend and the means by which stakeholders within various aspects of society should seek to counteract it. By engaging with these possibilities, it is the hope of this author that the analysis will be successful in engaging potential change with regard to this highly negative aspect of the current era. Currently, within the United Kingdom nearly 32% of all children are categorized as obese; a statistic that has a frightening connotation for the overall levels of disease and health that can be expected as this demographic comes into maturity. Culture and a litany of other factors impact upon the rates of obesity as they ultimately vary throughout the nation and the world. However, the alarming fact of the matter is that the actual rate and incidence of obesity is becoming alarmingly higher; creating a situation in which the overall health of society is placed at risk. As a function of this increased rate of childhood obesity, the following analysis will first seek to discuss the overall rate of obesity rates, how this problem affects the overall delivery of health within the county, and what steps health care professionals can take to integrate further knowledge and remediation of childhood obesity within the populations that they regularly interact. The problem of disease within society has defined health and life for children and adults since the dawn of human history. The past several decades indicate that the chances and medical science and technology can help to prevent and oftentimes banish entirely diseases such as rickets, mumps, whooping cough, polio, and a litany of others is profound. However, one of the realities that is been noted within the current time with regards to the health and longevity of the population is with respect to the detrimental effect that obesity has upon the health of those affected by it. Due to the fact that an increasingly technological society does not perform nearly as much physical labor as was required in the recent past, coupled with the fact that diets have not kept pace with the changes to human behavior and activity, has instigated a situation by which both children and adults are becoming increasingly overweight; oftentimes obese (a means of measurement to define 20% or more over ideal body mass). Whereas current average obesity rates around the world remain relatively low, within the United Kingdom it stands at an alarming 32% within the United Kingdom. This creates a systemic issue not only due to the fact that it is a precipitously higher level of obesity than the national average but due to the fact that such a high rate of childhood/adolescent obesity impacts negatively on the current and future health that these individuals can necessarily expect. For purposes of clarity, childhood will be defined as between the ages of 5-18 years and obesity will be measured using the national standard of 20% or more over ideal body weight. Further, for any nursing studies engaged, the years of publication and focus will range from 2009-2013. Recent scholarship has indicated that the situation regarding childhood obesity, in the United Kingdom, is reaching and alarming level. Scholars have indicated that roughly one in three children currently living within the United Kingdom can be considered obese (Saviñon et al., 2012). The obvious problem that exists with regards to this is not necessarily due to the fact that these children are merely obese; rather, the problem that exists is due to the fact that children who suffer from obesity facing exponentially higher risk of developing any number of other diseases. These can include but are not limited to diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and many others. Moreover, the issue with childhood obesity, as is oftentimes misunderstood, does not merely go away once the child reaches adulthood. Rather, further studies have indicated that an individual who suffers from childhood obesity is almost invariably going to suffer from adult obesity and likely developed at least one of the prior diseases which a been referenced earlier in this analysis. From the information that has been presented, only the situation and the problem concerning obesity is evident. Yet, in order to present a solution to this particular problem, the reader must understand that action, both metaphorically speaking, and literally speaking, must be taken by society and the children in question (Lewis, 2010). Ultimately, exercise plays a vital role in ensuring that children within society can maintain a healthy weight throughout adolescence and into adulthood. Furthermore, action from the societal standpoint must take place as stakeholders realize it is important to engage in more complete and thorough understandings of health and the means by which this can be affected to the child. Moreover, action is required of the part of the parent to ensure that fewer hours are spent in inactive forms of entertainment and more hours are spent on active engagement with any number of helpful activities. In short, what is been provided is a situation by which an epidemic of obesity is affecting the entire developed world. Due to the fact that television and video games integrate with and capture the imagination of children from the very earliest ages, it is necessary for educators, parents, and children to ensure that they limit these negative activities and maximize positive ones. Once again, even though childhood obesity is oftentimes spoken of and referenced with regards to a litany of diseases, the full range and brought impacts that childhood obesity has upon the health of the nation and the future of society is profound. Ultimately, if such a situation is not tackled and she levels of action are not taken in the immediate future, a situation in which roughly 1/3 of society will find themselves disease and in need of nearly constant medical intervention will likely be realized; doubtless a situation that will place an undue strain on health care providers as well as the tax base within the nation in question (Lewis & Filpes, 2010). As such, seeking to provide an actionable means of approach and understanding to this situation now is the key determinacy to staving off these negative outcomes in the near future. With regards to the personal reflection that can be inferred as a result of the information that has thus far been presented, it must be stated that adolescent obesity poses a systemic and fundamental threat not only to the nations of Western Europe or even the United Kingdom, but virtually each and every developed and/or developing nation in the global system. For instance, developing nations such as China and India are evidencing higher and higher rates of adolescent obesity. This not only places a strain on the healthcare systems within these respective nations, it also causes a situation by which the work force and productivity of these nations is profoundly affected by the litany of health issues that these obese adolescents experience. As a result of this, governments have sought to encourage childhood exercise and physical education requirements as a greater part of early childhood development and educational standards. Although this may not seem as a very important issue, childhood obesity has a massive impact upon the future outlook for the United Kingdom. Aside from the litany of health disorders that adolescent obesity fosters, there is a threat to the security of the nation itself. Hearkening back to the days of the Boer War and the establishment of the Boy Scouts, the British people can remember an era in which the United Kingdom was weak, effete, and ultimately unable to draw upon a resilient group of young men that were physically able to defend the empire. Although times have changed, the need for maintaining strength through a healthy populace remains the same. As childhood obesity robs the individual of good health, it also robs the nation of the strength of its youth. Perhaps other factors can have a price put upon them; however, the resilience of a nation’s youth and their ability to engage with the trials and difficulties of any particular era is something that is priceless. Because of this, nations such as the United States have seen their military establishment begin to express grave concern with respect the readiness of the youth to be able to be called to military service. From a societal point of view, adolescent obesity impacts upon each and every individual as the loss of workforce utility and increased healthcare costs will eventually be reflected to each and every citizen. However, rather than viewing this in a solely self interest means, it is necessary to realize the root cause of adolescent obesity is the direction result of the way in which current society is evidenced. Rather than blaming the child or even the parent, a far better approach would be to realize that the sedentary nature of society within the 21st century will require an entirely new approach as a means of combating adolescent obesity. Bibliography Gollust, S. E., Niederdeppe, J., & Barry, C. L. (2013). Framing the Consequences of Childhood Obesity to Increase Public Support for Obesity Prevention Policy. Journal Of Public Health, 103(11), e96-e102. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2013.301271 Saviñon, C., Taylor, J., Canty-Mitchell, J., & Blood-Siegfried, J. (2012). Childhood obesity: Can electronic medical records customized with clinical practice guidelines improve screening and diagnosis?. Journal Of Nurse Practitioners,24(8), 463-471. doi:10.1111/j.1745-7599.2012.00735.x Lewis, J. E., & Filpes, C. (2010). Childhood Obesity in Society. Journal Of School Health, 78(5), 243-244. doi:10.1111/j.1746-1561.2008.00295.x Read More