How many obese children are there in america

While all of the previous data express the more obvious prevention methods with regard to childhood obesity, it is imperative to note that ensuring that the whole family is involved in the intervention will yield the greatest results. Thus, instilling some responsibility on the parents and informing them that controlled food preparation, diet control, and family participation in physical activities will all assist in the treatment and control of obesity in their children.

Childhood obesity has increased significantly in recent decades and has quickly become a public health crisis in the United States and all over the world. Its increase in prevalence has provoked widespread research efforts to identify the factors that contributed to these changes. Parents and caregivers with proper education on the causes and consequences of childhood obesity can help prevent childhood obesity by providing healthy meals and snacks, daily physical activity, and nutrition education to their family members.

Although prevention programs may be more expensive in the short term, the long-term benefits acquired through prevention are much more likely to save an even greater amount of health care costs. Not only will the children have a better childhood and self-esteem, but prevention programs can also decrease the incidence of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, stroke, and possibly cancers in adulthood.

In order to tackle the climbing obesity rate, overall health and lifestyle needs to be a priority as they balance one with the other. Among these potential mechanisms, only environmental factors are potentially modifiable during childhood and adolescence.

The use of pharmacotherapy should also be considered in overweight children with a strong family history of type 2 diabetes or cardiovascular risk factors. This elegant biological system is subject to disruption by a toxic obesogenic environment, leading to syndromes such as leptin and insulin resistance, and ultimately further exposing individuals who are obese to further weight gain and type 2 diabetes mellitus. With a greater understanding of these mechanisms, the field moves closer to understanding and eventually treating the casualties of obesity.

The number of children with obesity in the United States has increased substantially over the years; due to its public health significance, the increasing trends need to be closely monitored. While a complete picture of all the risk factors associated with obesity remains elusive, many of the studies agreed that prevention is the key strategy for controlling the current problem.

Since the combination of diet, exercise, and physiological and psychological factors are all important factors in the control and prevention of childhood obesity, primary prevention methods should be aimed at educating the child and family and encouraging appropriate diet and exercise from a young age through adulthood while secondary prevention should be targeted at lessening the effect of childhood obesity by preventing the child from continuing unhealthy habits and obesity into adulthood.

A combination of primary and secondary prevention is necessary to achieve the best results. Thus, a combined implementation of both types of preventions can significantly help lower the current prevalence of childhood and adolescent obesity in the United States.

Failure to take appropriate actions could lead to serious public health consequences. Author Contributions: AS: Contributed to conception and design; drafted manuscript; gave final approval; agrees to be accountable for all aspects of work ensuring integrity and accuracy. National Center for Biotechnology Information , U. Journal List Glob Pediatr Health v.

Glob Pediatr Health. Published online Dec 1. Author information Article notes Copyright and License information Disclaimer. Email: moc. This article has been cited by other articles in PMC. Abstract Childhood and adolescent obesity have reached epidemic levels in the United States. Introduction Childhood and adolescent obesity have reached epidemic levels in the United States, affecting the lives of millions of people.

Open in a separate window. Figure 1. Figure 2. Figure 3. Ethical Approval and Informed Consent Ethics approval and informed consent were not required for this narrative review. Definition of Childhood Obesity Defining obesity requires a suitable measurement of body fat and an appropriate cutoff range.

Etiology and Risk Factors Excess body fat is a major health concern in childhood and adolescent populations. Potential Risk Factors of Childhood Obesity. Health Effects of Childhood Obesity Childhood obesity is known to have a significant impact on both physical and psychological health.

Psychological Consequences of Obesity Several studies related to childhood and adolescent obesity have focused primarily on physiological consequences. Asthma and Obesity There is mounting evidence that childhood obesity is a risk factor for the development of asthma. Chronic Inflammation and Childhood Obesity Lumeng and Saltiel reported that obesity in children affects multiple organ systems and predisposes them to diseases. Figure 4. Prevention and Control There are two primary components to the prevention and control of childhood obesity.

Conclusion The number of children with obesity in the United States has increased substantially over the years; due to its public health significance, the increasing trends need to be closely monitored. Footnotes Contributed by Author Contributions: AS: Contributed to conception and design; drafted manuscript; gave final approval; agrees to be accountable for all aspects of work ensuring integrity and accuracy.

CO: Contributed to conception and design; agrees to be accountable for all aspects of work ensuring integrity and accuracy. XQ: Contributed to the acquisition, analysis, and interpretation. JL: Contributed to the acquisition, analysis, and interpretation. SR: Contributed to the acquisition, analysis, and interpretation.

References 1. Childhood obesity. Indian J Endocrinol Metab. Childhood obesity, prevalence and prevention. Nutr J. Overweight in children and adolescents: pathophysiology, consequences, prevention, and treatment. National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Overweight and obesity. Accessed November 14, Cancer Research UK. How being overweight causes cancer?

Establishing a standard definition for child overweight and obesity worldwide: international survey. Changes in Terminology for Childhood Overweight and Obesity. National Health Statistics Reports; No. Natl Health Stat Report. Characterizing extreme values of body mass index-for-age by using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention growth charts. Am J Clin Nutr.

The limitations of transforming very high body mass indexes into z -scores among 8. Demand Food Equity If you believe everyone deserves access to good food, join our fight for food equity and sign our pledge. Sign the Pledge. Initiatives Partners Events. There were also significant differences based on household income. In , obesity rates ranged from 8. Six states had youth obesity rates significantly higher than the national rate Eleven states had youth obesity rates significantly lower than the national rate Of youth from families in the lowest-income group have obesity, compared to 8.

States have obesity rates significantly higher than the national rate. News World Opinion Business. Share this —. Follow NBC News. By Maggie Fox.