Research Topics: Childhood Obesity

PREVENTION OF CHILDHOOD OBESITY

How do we know the normal weight of our child and when it is considered as childhood obesity? Unlike adults, children needs extra supplements like nutrients and calories to support and fuel their growth and development. Throughout the world, the incidence of childhood obesity is rapidly rising. This epidemic is more evident in industrialized nations where many people live in sedentary lives and eat more convenience foods, which typically contains high calories and low in nutritional value thus it is not good for growing children. In this situation, children tend to consume about number of calories than they need gain weight beyond what is needed to support their growing frames thus they need extra daily physical activities for the proportion to their added inches (Ross, J. G., & Pate, R. R., 1987). Thus increasing of added weight also increases the risks to have weight-related health problems or obesity. Having childhood obesity this will lead to adult’s serious diseases like diabetes, high blood pressured, and high cholesterol. Obesity is simply defined of too much accumulation of body fat. Obesity varies in sex and age. Obesity is present when an individual exceed his weight that it is not suited to his required age.  In boys, obesity happens when the total body weight is more than twenty five percent fats while more than thirty two percent fats in girls (Lohman, 1987). Childhood obesity is also determined in weight-for-height where there is an excess of one hundred twenty percent in ideal weight in relation to height. Skin fold is used in measuring and determining the fats because of its accuracy. Skinfold measure is relatively easily obtained in either a school or clinical setting by a trained technician (Dietz, 1983; Lohman, 1987). It is been done through the used of children’s and adolescent’s triceps alone, triceps and subscapular, triceps and calf, and calf alone. By using the triceps and calf, a sum of skin folds of ten to twenty five millimeter is considered optimal for boys; and sixteen to thirty millimeter is optimal for girls (Lohman, 1987). Causes:             There are factors that causes of childhood obesity, namely; genetic, hormonal, familial, nutritional, psychological and physiological factors. These also cause by kids by taking too much caloric foods with limited exercise where there is unexpected reaction of chemicals in the body resulting to imbalance between energy taking in and energy of taking out. Taking in energy is pertaining to the amount of calories (obtained from foods) being taken into the body while taking out energy is pertaining to basal metabolic rate and physical activity that the calories being expended.  In genetic factors, this factors is more reliable source in gaining weight of one individual especially those children have parents both obese than those children having only one parent who is obese in their family.  This is where the parents play a significant role in preventing their children from getting abnormal weight or being an obese. Here they must be careful in giving the right foods to their children, foods that are free from high calorie and parents must encourage their children in involving physical activity especially in an environment where high calorie foods is at the reach of the children.  On the other hand family factors are somehow related to genetic factors, the only difference here, is that family is considered a modifiable factors thus it has a greater chances of preventing this factor. One example of this factor is the lifestyle of the family, for instance, the parents should put their mind that we can blame our children of being attached and attracted to foods especially foods that are sweet. Most common examples of these sweet foods are candies, cakes, ice cream, cookies, chocolates and marshmallows. Children also loves to taste salty and fatty foods which we that these kinds of foods are less nutritional to the growing children. But these foods are modifiable, modifiable in a sense that it can be controlled by anyone at any place. Anyone is pertaining to the parents, where they should be strict enough in picking and buying foods that contains high caloric value. At home, the parents must see to it that it would be out of reach from the children if there are any foods containing high caloric value. This place is pertaining to some parts of the house where the children has no access to this place like putting it in a high place or putting it in a cabinet that has a lock.  Another factor that contributes the obesity of the child is a psychological factor; in this factor it involves the emotions of the child. In preschooler stage, the child is very sensitive and immature enough to cope his stress that he encountered during this time and at this time he is still in a period of adjustment. The environment of the child and the people around him are the factors that can determine if he has stress free environment. This stress and boredom are the emotions that the child is having difficulty in coping and dealing with these problem and depending also how his parent help him to deal with this problem and how he was  treated by his parents. Through treating the child properly it can lessen the boredom of the child, but there are some instances that the parents failed to treat their child properly that lead to a child to seek some attention from others or engaged in a certain activities just to cope his emotions and feelings.  In this stage, the common coping mechanism of a child to relief his feelings are to become more interested in foods. According to Lohman, the child becomes more attracted to sweet, salty and fatty foods if the child experiencing emotional trouble. This incidence can lead to a child of becoming obese. Physiological factors play also an important contribution of becoming an obese and it is somehow related to hormonal factors. In physiological factors it deals with the normal functions of the body and how it is going to respond normally on the chemical reaction in breaking down of foods. If there is something wrong in physiologic functions it can really affect the normal flow of breaking down of foods as well as in the contribution of nutrients to the body. For instance, if one part of digestive system gets infection and it really affects the entire flow in contributing the desired amount of nutrients to the different parts of the body because their will be less stimulation to the hormones that signals to have proper metabolism in the body. Metabolism it includes the foods that have taken by the individuals, it is in the metabolism that makes the people become fat or thin, depending the what hormones is being affected.  In nutritional factors is also somehow connected to physiological factors, in a sense that if one individual is taking too much calorie that the digestive system cannot respond properly to the chemical reaction thus leading it storing of fats to the body and may it lead to obesity and further complications like heart problem due to storing of fats that are not properly converted and dispose to the body. Furthermore, nutritional aspect is the primary reasons of becoming obese. Excessive taking of foods especially foods that contains high caloric value, such as salty, sweet and too much fatty foods. These kinds of foods are the most likable of among children and even worse if these kinds of foods are available always to their place where they can easily access it at any time. Nutritional problem is somehow can control and prevented if it is coupled of having good and constant physical activity. Thus inactivity is also the main reason of getting obese children. At this modern time, lots of activities emerge that caught the attention of the kids because of the reasons that these leisure activities are stressful free and acquired less energy but enjoyable and fun. This kind of activity is likely suited to the preschoolers where they called sedentary kids. Being sedentary kids, they are prone in gaining too much weight in a reason that they do not burn calories because sedentary kids are kids that prefer to play indoor rather than outdoor plays. Indoor activities include playing video games, watching cartoons in the television, playing card games and chess these activities can contribute to the problem. With these activities the body producing less energy causing it not to burn the calories thus it will be going to be stored in the body as fats that cause to become an obese person. Becoming an obese is controllable but there are some instances that it is hard to control thus it can contribute to the child to suffer this problem. Like for example those children who belong to the poor family, where their parents cannot provide the right and nutritional foods because the reasons of having insufficient salary thus making the children more prone of becoming obese. It shows obesity and being poor is somehow inter connected to each other because of the reasonable reasons that the parents have an insufficient time and resources to make their diet becomes healthy for the reasons of not having enough salary. Due to lack of salary, the family members have no time in engaging exercise because their only concern is to find money. Prevention or Treatment for becoming an Obese Child             Prevention is better than cure, this pertain that an individual is not yet acquiring a certain diseases where an individual is already aware the predisposing factors that does not make an individual of having a greater chances in acquiring of a certain disease. In preventing the child of becoming obese an education with the parents must be conducted regarding the condition of what is all about because it counts most in measuring the knowledge of the parents on how to prevent these conditions. In teaching with the parents, it should be focuses about proper feeding of the child since infancy, because it is where the metabolism starts to function. In order for the metabolisms to function very well it should supplemented with proper nutrients, where breastfeeding is the only thing that contains lots of vitamins that support and makes the metabolism works efficiently.  If the metabolism is healthy and working well it makes an individual become healthier for the preparation of taking solid foods. In parent education during infancy the recognition of the taste and delayed providing of solid of foods is also focuses in this case for the reason that during infancy the child has an immature or not yet develop metabolism that causing an irritation of the gastric mucosa that makes the child vomits or there is alteration in distributing the nutrients that cause the child to become obese or thin. In early childhood, proper introducing of nutrients is emphasized, where the child is taught to select foods that are low in fat and it is in calorie free, such as eating of fruits and vegetables. It is in this stage also that parents start to teach their young ones of engaging exercise rather than encouraging them to play indoor activities such as watching of television or playing video games. In prevention of becoming obese physical activity is important because it burns more calories in our bodies. It is where the parents are advised to engage their children into sports at early age. These sports include tennis, soccer, basketball, swimming and gymnastics. These outdoor games are applicable only for those children who do not have heart problem because it will aggravate the condition. In engaging the child at early stage it makes them healthier and makes them more fitted and active and makes the child to socialize with their friends thus helping him to grow into better one. Competition in this sports is not important what matter most is that the child is enjoying and having fun in learning new ideas of sports and through discovering new things that making him physically fitted and enhancing him in creating new coordination as well as his motor skills. Being involve in physical activity it makes a child to maintain to loss his weight.       Diet modification is one important consideration in preventing the child of becoming obese. Here, the parents should be aware of what their children will be going to take. Diet modification is not merely meant that the child should go fasting and totally banning of foods that contains excessive caloric value. The parents should be careful in modifying the diet of the child because there is a tendency that the required amount of nutrients needed by the child may be not meet or sometimes it is taken for granted. Remember that children below five years of age should meet the required nutrients needed by the body for the reason that the physiologic changes of this stage is very prevalent thus the increasing demand of energy is very high. In order to compensate and to acquire the energy needed by the body, the children should eat adequate amount of foods that contains all nutrients and supplement. As what have mentioned above fasting and totally restriction of taking of foods that have calories is not advisable because our body still needs that kind of foods and for the reasons that it may alter the normal growth of the child as well as the normal eating perception of the child. It is important also to orient the child and be aware the balance diet where there is moderation of taking foods that contains fats. These fatty foods include ice creams, chocolates, cakes, cookies and cupcakes. Taking of foods that high in carbohydrates such as fries, burger, potato and spaghetti must not be restricted for the reason that it is the source of energy and children required to take these foods for there high energy demand, it must be taken in a moderate manner. Diet modification should be paired with proper exercise for the best result.       Behavior management is one strategy to prevent the child of becoming an obese. It deals the pattern of activities of the child in preventing of becoming obese, where the parents must also be supportive and cooperative in order to achieve the goal of this strategy. In behavioral management, it involves self-monitoring but in application to the young ones who are below five years old, they are still needing the guidance from there parents, because if they do it alone it is hard to achieve the objectives of self monitoring. In self-monitoring it should be hand in hand with the parents and the children, where the parents monitor and tally the food intake and the physical activity that they are in to. It is also include the manner of eating of the child where they tally of how the child eats, how many times the child eats in one day including the snacks and where he usually eats his foods and what time he usually eat his foods. Through this behavioral management it helps the parents to identify easily the interventions needed to help their child of becoming obese. In this situation the children must be informed from their parents of how it is going to work so that the children may not find it difficult in adjusting and their normal eating perception may not be altered that causing them to have eating disorder which is more complicated than of becoming obese for the reason that it needs medical attentions.       Problem solving is somehow interrelated to behavioral management in a sense that it involves again the behavior of the child, the only problem with this, is that, it is more complicated than behavioral management because in problem solving it needs strict concentration in solving the problem where the normal activity of the child is being alter in which the child cannot tolerate the activity thus it will defeat the purpose of the activity. There is a greater chance that the purpose of this activity will be defeated for the reason that the child will not cooperate. Cooperation of the child is important and the highlights of this activity, but there is a tendency that the child will not cooperate because of the strict rules and regulations and hard tasks in order to achieve the objectives and success of maintaining the proper weight. Hard tasks and in coordination of strict rules and regulations, it pertains to the scheduling of daily activities of the child, where the child have time and motion that he really needs to follow the tasks and it should be comply with the end of the day. In problem solving also, the child cannot choose or select the foods they want where the child find it too difficult but helpful and accurate in maintaining the proper weight of the child because the parents provide only nutritious foods that are containing less amount of calories whether the child likes the foods or not because the main objective of problem solving is to provide the right one in order to assure a child that he is healthy and avoid eating foods that may contribute of becoming obese. The problem with this activity the normal growth and development of the child may alter that causing the child to have psychological problems because the activity is prohibiting the things that is normally done by preschoolers. Preschoolers are adventurous that they really want to discover something and it is normal that they do what they really want because it is part of growing up and because of this activity their normal development is altered that causing them not to follow and thus there is poor compliance with this activity that there will be less positive effect in terms of relationship between parents and their children. Conclusion:       I conclude that in preventing the child of becoming obese the parents should cooperate and be supportive in maintaining the weight of the child. It is in the parents that cooperation also of the child will be met. The parents should provide the appropriate foods to their children and if ever there are foods that are not suitable for children’s health just make it sure that it is out of reach from the children and hide it to a place where children have no access to that place. The parents should be aware all the prevention methods in dealing with this serious problem; these prevention methods are include diet modification, children must be involve in physical activity in order to burn  out the calories that are stored in the body, problem solving and behavioral modifications. These preventive measures help the parents to help their child not to acquire this condition. Parents must see to it the negative effect of each preventive measures, it should be balanced while implementing these preventive measures to the child so that there will be no further complications. Thus the health of the children lies on the hand of their parents, where the parents should be careful in caring their child. It is their hands that the future of their children lays, so as parents we must be knowledgeable in things we do so that there are no complicated problems may exist. In order for the parents to become more knowledgeable the parents must be resourceful and active the issue that happens in their surrounding so that they are aware and protect their children from any threat to their health. References: Bouchard, C., Tremblay, A., Despres, J-P, Nadeau, A., Lupien, P. J., Theriault, G., Dussault, J., Moorjani, S., Pinault, S., and Fournier, G. (1990). The response to long-term overfeeding in identical twins. The New England Journal of Medicine, 322(21), 1477-1482. Dietz, W. H., & Gortmaker, S. L. (1985). Do we fatten our children at the television set? Obesity and television viewing in children and adolescents. Pediatrics, 75(5), 807-812. Dietz, W. H. (1983). Childhood obesity: Susceptibility, cause, and management.   Journal of Pediatrics, 103(5), 676-686. Epstein, L. H., Wing, R. R., Koeske, R., & Valoski, A. (1987). Long-term effects of family-based treatment of childhood obesity. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 55(1), 91-95. EJ 352 076. Gortmaker, S. L., Dietz, W. H., Sobol, A. M., & Wehler, C. A. (1987). Increasing pediatric obesity in the United States. American Journal of Diseases of Children, 141, 535-540. Graves, T., Meyers, A. W., & Clark, L. (1988). An evaluation of parental problem-solving training in the behavioral treatment of childhood obesity. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 56(2), 246-250. EJ 373 116. Lohman, T. G. (1987). The use of skinfolds to estimate body fatness on children and youth. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 58(9), 98-102. EJ 364 412. Office of Maternal and Child Health. (1989). Child health USA ’89. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Maternal and Child Health Clearinghouse. ED 314 421 Roberts, S. B., Savage, J., Coward, W. A., Chew, B., & Lucas, A. (1988). Energy expenditure and intake in infants born to lean and overweight mothers. The New England Journal of Medicine, 318, 461-466. Wolf, M. C., Cohen, K. R., & Rosenfeld, J. G. (1985). School-based interventions for obesity: Current approaches and future prospects. Psychology in the Schools, 22, 187-200. EJ 318 072. Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

PREVENTION OF CHILDHOOD OBESITY

How do we know the normal weight of our child and when it is considered as childhood obesity? Unlike adults, children needs extra supp...

Araby

Araby is about an unnamed speaker, who, by hints of the story, is a male student residing in North Richmond Street.  It focuses on the protagonist’s sudden realization, revelation and awakening about life.  It is about a boy discovering reality as something disappointing from his ideals and fantasies.  The protagonist directs the perception of the story in his own boy eyes.  To him, North Richmond Street is a “blind” and “quiet street”.  The other buildings are described as having “brown imperturbable faces”.  There is a sense of decadence in the boy’s description of the living place.  This places even though “the most hostile to romance” is the setting of the boy’s first love.  The object of his affection is Mangan’s sister, and for some time he had followed her in a voyeur manner.  The boy is clearly overwhelmed by his new emotions of infatuations, “yet her name was like a summons to all my foolish blood”.  The following passage presents the overflow of indescribable emotions: Her name sprang to my lips at moments in strange prayers and praises which I myself did not understand. My eyes were often full of tears (I could not tell why) and at times a flood from my heart seemed to pour itself out into my bosom. I thought little of the future. I did not know whether I would ever speak to her or not or, if I spoke to her, how I could tell her of my confused adoration. But my body was like a harp and her words and gestures were like fingers running upon the wires” (paragraph 5).                This passage too will reveal the author’s choice about point of view and how this develops several aspects of different elements of the story.             The protagonist has been clearly blinded by love and instant devotion just from the excerpt.  It compels people to do things spontaneously.  In this case, the boy promises the girl a souvenir gift from a bazaar she wanted to go to.  He looked forward to this fair but he was not taken seriously by the uncle he was supposed to collect money from.  When the boy had gone to the bazaar, it was already closing.  The boy felt a sense of defeat and disappointment when one of the store owners, a young lady, had been engrossed in conversation with two men and did not appear interested in him.  This is perhaps when reality had struck him, for having expected, but not being able to perform the task.  The boy’s perception of the world reveals the innocence and isolation as well as his growth from his experience of first love.  His opinions shift from the ideal to the real, which disappoints the boy.  Thus one witnesses how the boy falls in love in the midst of an impassive city.  From his point of view, Mangan’s sister is a divine character.  His magical, mystical, fantastic dreams would be interrupted by how his uncle took long in going home to bring him money.  Consequently, the bazaar was already closing when he arrived.  The young lady behind a store paid him little attention which enhances this sense of being dejected.  Initially, the world appeared ideal thanks to Mangan’s sister.  The boy saw the milieu positively despite having unpleasant odours or depressing architectures.  There was the mention of the benevolent priest.  Then the boy’s entire world becomes to be Mangan’s sister.  Clearly from the excerpt above, Mangan’s sister is illuminated with a light that outshines others such as the pious Mercer and the working uncle who delayed his trip to the bazaar.  The bazaar presented a reality bite which interrupts the boy’s romantic views of the world.  There were only people who did not sympathize with him or love.  They did not care beyond financial returns.  He realizes the world is not as magical and fantastic as it appears, but in fact it is so engrossed by material things.  The point of view emphasizes disillusionment and realization in a manner that directly involves the reader as the story proceeds in the eyes of the boy.  By allowing readers to see through the boy’s eyes, the ending may have a stronger impact as the audience is allowed to feel his disappointment and witness first-hand his awakening to reality.  Eventually, expectations which are detailed by the lengthy passage above, had not been met.  There is a change of the character on the boy before and after the bazaar.  Prior to the bazaar, it is well evident that the boy would be incoherent and afloat.  Post-Bazaar, there is a bitterness and cynicism through anguish and anger that takes over the love and overflowing devotion of the boy to the girl.  Any other Point of view would not have been effective in sending this message across.  The reader would be kept outside instead of inside the psyche of the boy.  It is important to emphasize that the story is about the boy’s awakening and this will need to be undergone in a psychological, mental or internal sense rather outside.  In this manner, the reader is able to witness and undergo the boy’s experience.  The point of view brings significant impact and allows the message of the story to be communicated and to resonate clearly.     Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Araby

Araby is about an unnamed speaker, who, by hints of the story, is a male student residing in North Richmond Street. It focuses on the pr...

WHY IS CHILDHOOD IMMUNISATION IMPORTANT?

The human body has the ability to resist almost all types of organisms or toxins that tend to damage the tissues and organs. This capability is called immunity. Much of immunity is acquired immunity that does not develop until after the body is first attacked by a bacterial disease or a toxin, often requiring weeks or months to develop. An additional portion of immunity results from general processes, rather than from processes directed at specific disease organisms (Guyton & Hall, 2000).   For this topic, the article by Charles J Hackett will be used for discussion. His article entitled ‘Addressing Parent’ Concerns: Do Vaccines Cause Allergic or Autoimmune Diseases?’ talks about anecdotal case reports and uncontrolled observational studies in the medical literature which claim that vaccines cause chronic diseases such as asthma, multiple sclerosis, chronic arthritis, and diabetes. This article was published on March 1, 2003 in the journal called Pediatrics.   According to the study, autoimmune diseases might occur after immunization because proteins on microbial pathogens are similar to human proteins (“molecular mimicry”) and could induce immune responses that damage human cells. However, wild-type viruses and bacteria are much better adapted to growth in humans than vaccines and much more likely to stimulate potentially damaging self-reactive lymphocytes. Consistent with critical differences between natural infection and immunization, well-controlled epidemiologic studies do not support the hypothesis that vaccines cause autoimmunity.   Remaining without immunization for childhood diseases is a risk no child should face. Chronic illness of children has become a global concern. Although the etiology and types of chronic illness may differ from developing countries to developed countries, some aspects are universal.   With the advent of public health programs and a decrease in childhood mortality, large populations of children all across the globe are experiencing chronic disease states. Although accurate data from developing countries is sometimes questionable, there has been a steady decline in infant and child mortality and a concomitant increase in chronic disease in children across the world.1,2 Statistical predictions point to an accelerated transition from acute to chronic disease in the next 50 years (Judson, 2004). Without immunization, children are in danger of getting chronic diseases.               Immunity can be active or passive. In active immunization, antibody production is stimulated by administration or antigen or by exposure to naturally occurring antigens such as bacteria, viruses or fungi. In passive immunization, preformed antibodies actively produced in another person or animal are given to the recipient in the form of serum γ-globulin. Childhood immunization comes in the form of active immunization.               Immunization programs against infectious disease need to be developed on a global basis and administered to all children on the planet. Communication and education are imperative and culturally sensitive, community-based programs that convey information on how to recognize, treat, and seek appropriate health care are required. This is particularly important for potentially devastating communicable diseases such as diarrhea and malaria. Frequently, persons from westernized societies expect cultures other than their own to embrace treatment approaches fostered by Western medicine. These approaches are often used by these cultures as a last resort after traditional healing practices have failed (Judson, 2004).   Global chronic illness in children has multifactorial etiologies. Poverty, malnutrition, inadequate immunization programs for preventable infectious diseases, and environmental hazards play a significant role as causal factors of chronic illness in children (Judson, 2004).   The organisms that cause a disease (or materials produced from those organisms) are weakened or killed and then made into vaccines. These vaccines are injected into the body or are taken by mouth. The body reacts by making disease-fighting substances – antibodies – that build up in the system and guard against these diseases for a long time, often for a lifetime. Thus, immunization helps the body to defend itself against a particular disease.   Because they have received antibodies from their mother’s blood system, babies are immune to many diseases when they are born. But this immunity wears off during the first year of life (Marieb, 2004). That’s why immunization programs, which help young bodies of the children build their own defenses against disease, should be started early and carried out faithfully. Immunizations are very important.   The eight childhood diseases (measles, mumps, rubella, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, Haemophilus influenzae type b, and polio) which are preventable by immunization, can, and do, cause crippling and, sometimes, death. These illnesses are serious and their complications can be terrible. With the exception of tetanus, these diseases are contagious. They can spread rapidly from child to child and from community to community. As long as children remain unprotected against them, serious outbreaks of disease – even epidemics – can occur.   All children should receive active immunization with diphtheria toxoid, the type of toxoid or combination used depending on the age of the child. Schick tests generally are unnecessary; instead of a follow-up Schick test, a booster dose of toxoid is given at the recommended time. For those over 12, the best procedure is to immunize or boost with tetanus-diphtheria toxoid, adult type.   Active immunization may be started at age 1 to 3 months, either with separate injections of pertussis vaccine or through the use of DTP (Diphtheria and Tetanus toxoids and acellular pertussis vaccine) vaccine. In either case, the manufacturer’s recommendations should be followed, since the dose may vary from preparation to preparation. For those over 6 years old, routine use of pertussis vaccine, either separately or in combination, is not recommended.   The initial DTP immunization series is followed by a DTP booster at age 18 months and another of 0.5 ml given when a child reaches school age. Subsequent routine tetanus boosters every 10 years should maintain protection. More frequent boosters are unwarranted since untoward reactions to toxoid may occur. At any interval after basic immunization, immunity can be reestablished by a single 0.5 ml s.c. booster dose; however, after an interval of more than 10 year since the last injection of toxoid, the rate of the booster response may be somewhat slower.   The fourth dose of DTP may be administered as early as age 12 months, provided 6 months have elapsed since the third dose and the child is unlikely to return at age 15-18 months. Tetanus and Diphtheria toxoid is recommended at age 11-12 years if at least 5 years have elapsed since the last dose of tetanus and diphtheria toxoid-containing vaccine. Subsequent routine Tetanus and Diphtheria toxoid boosters are recommended every 10 years (Kozier & Erb, 2004).   Usually, the parents of children who are with chronic and infectious diseases preventable by immunization support the immunization recommendations to help ensure that more people are immunized against the many chronic diseases like pertussis, or whooping cough, which is a highly contagious disease.   Pertussis immunity from early childhood vaccinations wears off, leaving adolescents and adults susceptible to the disease. Adults and adolescents may suffer from a severe and prolonged cough, vomiting and complications, as well as disrupted home and school routines. While some have relatively minor symptoms, anyone with pertussis can spread the infection to others, particularly infants who are too young to have been fully immunized. Infants are at higher risk for severe illness, complications and death, and 90 percent of unvaccinated children living with someone with pertussis will contract pertussis.   Primary immunization of infants with trivalent vaccine should begin at about age 2 months, integrating the schedule with other routine immunization procedures. For primary immunization of children up to 6 years old, three doses are given at approximately 8-week interval. Inactivated poliovirus is recommended for children with immunodeficiency diseases.   Measles immunization is recommended as a routine procedure for all susceptible infants or children. Live attenuated vaccine is the agent of choice in healthy children and is given at about 15 months of age, when about 95% of children have an antibody response. If exposure to measles is likely before that age, the vaccine should not be withheld; reimmunization at an older age may be necessary. Vaccine may be given to at any later age to those not vaccinated earlier.   Measles, mumps and rubella vaccine for second dose is recommended routinely at age 4-6 years but may be administered during any visit, provided at least 4 weeks have elapsed since the first dose and that both doses are administered beginning at or after age 12 months. Those who have not previously received the second dose should complete the schedule by the 11-12 year old visit (Kozier & Erb, 2004).   While mumps infection is a largely benign disease when contracted during childhood, it becomes more dangerous in older children and adults, who are more susceptible to severe neurological, testicular, and ovarian complications from the infection. It is alarming to see that vaccination is clearly shifting the occurrence of this disease from young children toward those who are older (Feldman, 2003).   Three types of polio vaccines have been used throughout the world: 1) the OPV, or oral polio vaccine (Sabin vaccine), consisting of live, attenuated poliovirus; 2) the IPV, or inactivated polio vaccine (Salk vaccine), consisting of killed poliovirus and given by injection; and 3) the eIPV, an enhanced potency inactivated polio vaccine, consisting of killed poliovirus with high viral antigen content (Feldman, 2003).   Do vaccines protect us from the disease for which they are given? This question might seem absurd on the face of it, given the near disappearance of many infectious diseases for which vaccines are given credit.   Vaccines have been called potential allergens because they introduce foreign proteins directly into the blood without digestion or “censoring by the liver.” When we remember that one of the chief causes of allergies is the presence of undigested proteins in the blood, the connection between vaccinations and allergies becomes apparent (James, 1995).   Vaccines have also been called drugs because, like drugs, they are inherently toxic and work on the principle of suppression rather than expression, as do natural therapies. This suppression of symptoms prevents the body-mind from discharging what needs to come out and only compounds the problem. Also, the expression of symptoms is part of the full immunological response which is necessary for the development of true immunity (James, 1995).   Perhaps the only real difference between vaccines and drugs is that drugs work to suppress present symptoms and vaccines work to suppress possible future symptoms. Orthodoxy regards this latter as immunity, but evidence suggests it is immune suppression (James, 1995).               One theory used to explain the increased incidence of allergic diseases in children according to the article is the “hygiene hypothesis,” which states that better hygiene is associated with an increased risk of developing allergies. Several epidemiologic findings support the hygiene hypothesis. For example, children are less likely to have allergies if they are part of a large family, attend child care, experience a large number of infections early in childhood, or come in contact with animals. On the other hand, children are more likely to have allergies if they live in areas of better sanitation, are not infected with helminths or worms, or live a “Western” lifestyle.               Over the years, vaccine-preventable diseases have been responsible for the illnesses and deaths of many infants, children and adults. Since the development and increased usage of vaccines, many diseases such as polio and measles have become very rare (Indianapolis Recorder, 2001).               An important way that parents and caregivers can help combat vaccine-preventable diseases is to keep copies of updated shot records of the child so that they can not miss an immunization. This could help the child a lot, even save his or her life, as there are instances that vaccine-preventable diseases can take lives.    2. IS FREQUENT BREAST EXAMINATION A MEANS TO DETECT EARLY ONSET OF BREAST CANCER?   Hope that regular self-examination of the breasts might protect women against dying from breast cancer was finally extinguished by a huge study that demonstrated it was useless, an article titled “Self-examination ‘useless’, breast cancer study finds” said.   The source of this article is the London paper The Independent. The author of the article is Jeremy Laurance. This article was published on October 3, 2002. Although this was written in 2002, this topic is still relevant at present. The topic of breast cancer is one which has been around for years and will surely be around in the next few years.   The article summarized talks about mammography as a useful tool to try to detect breast cancer early in women over the age of 50 and to reduce a woman’s chance of dying from breast cancer whereas for general public health policy it does not appear that breast self-exams are very helpful.   Cancer of the breast is the most common malignant condition among women and carries with it the highest fatality rate of all cancers affecting this sex. Breast cancer is rare in men, but when it does occur, it is usually not recognized, until late, and thus the results of treatment are poor.             Breast cancer appears to have reached epidemic levels. Talk to any group of people anywhere in the UK and they all seem to have some experience of it–someone in their family, a friend, a neighbor or work colleague. And it is not just a vague impression that this is the case, there are hard statistics to back it up. Every year around 39 000 women and between 200 and 300 men are diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK. Government figures show that the number of people who develop breast cancer every year has increased by 70 per cent since 1971, and by 15 per cent in the ten years to 2000. It is by far the most common form of cancer in women and the most common cause of cancer death in women (Ogden, 2004).   While history, physical examination, and mammography or thermography may strongly suggest breast cancer, the diagnosis can be made only by microscopic examination of tissue removed by open or aspiration biopsy.               Human breast cancer appears long after the organ finishes its development. Age is associated with the location of the tumors. The area of the breast where breast cancer originated was more central in the older patient population we studied. Breast tissue involutes first in the lobular parts and then in the larger central ductal structures.   Declining ovarian function in the premenopause leads to regression of epithelial structures and stroma. The central duct system remains but the lobules shrink and collapse. The last structures to appear with sexual maturity are the first ones to regress. This is reflected in the location of breast cancers in younger as opposed to older women. The cancers originate first in lobular ducts and later in the larger ductal structures (Janssens, 1999).   Breast cancer probably originates in an involuting target organ with a time relationship between the histogenesis, histoapoptosis, and development of breast cancer. It is surprising that breast cancer does not originate in the developing organ, as is the case for nearly all other epithelial and stromal cancers, which usually initiate and grow in regenerating or rapidly developing tissues. It is rare for breast cancer to develop before the age of 24. This is exactly the time when normal involution starts in most women. Involution of human breast tissue is well known to clinicians through mammography or magnetic resonance imaging and is a normal aging process. The development of breast cancer in involuting tissue argues that susceptibility to breast cancer is probably created much earlier in life (Janssens, 1999).             Many, if not most, ailments of the body cause pain and this includes breast cancer. Cancer pain syndromes can result from the progression of the disease or from efforts to cure or control the disease (Kozier & Erb, 2004). The sense organs for pain are the naked nerve endings found in almost every tissue of the body. Pain has been classified into two major types: fast pain and slow pain. Fast pain is felt within about 0.1 second after a pain stimulus is applied, whereas slow pain begins only after 1 second or more and then increases slowly over many seconds and sometimes even minutes (Guyton & Hall, 2000).   Fast pain is also described in many alternative names, such as sharp pain, pricking pain, electric pain and acute pain. Acute pain is generally the result of a specific injury and can be clearly explained in terms of where we feel it in the body. This type of pain is felt when a needle is stuck into the skin, when the skin is cut with a knife, or when the skin is acutely burned. It is also felt when the pain is subjected to electric shock. Fast, sharp pain is not felt in most deeper tissues of the body.             Slow pain also goes by multiple additional names, such as slow burning pain, aching pain, throbbing pain, nauseous pain, and chronic pain. This type of pain is usually associated with tissue destruction. It can lead to prolonged, unbearable suffering. It can occur both in skin and in almost any deep tissue or organ. Chronic pain is the other type of pain which is so called because it can continue for months or years and even trigger additional health problems such as depression and lead to lifestyle changes in attempts to remedy the situation.           Breast cancer presents a type of slow or chronic pain. This pain largely results from overstimulation of nerve endings. The nerve endings may be stimulated by inflammatory substances that are produced by damaged cells from the cancer and released from the surrounding capillary network.   The evidence that endogenous sex hormones influence risk of breast cancer has been reviewed extensively elsewhere; for pubertal girls, however, the modulation of endogenous estrogens is much more important. The main difference between high and low risk women for breast cancer is the persistent difference in serum estrogens secondary to early and late menarche. In addition, the serum levels might be further modulated to a great extent by nutrition, body fat, and exercise during puberty. Adipose tissue converts androgens to estrogen by aromatization. Bodies weight (fatness) influences additionally the direction to potent and less potent forms of estrogens (catecholestrogens). Late pubertal development and late menstrual patterns are thought to result in part to smaller amounts of body fat (Janssens, 1999).             Breast Cancer Campaign funds independent research into breast cancer at centers of excellence throughout the UK. The Charity aims to find a cure for breast cancer by funding research which looks at improving diagnosis of breast cancer, better understanding how it develops and ultimately either curing the disease or preventing it.             Friends and relatives can be a major source of support, but face their own difficulties. They have to provide emotional support, physical care and help in making decisions about treatment. Many of the observations about the impact of cancer are as true for them as for the patient. Their response to the illness depends on things such as their relationship to the patient, the stage of the disease and their own personalities.               It is important that healthcare professionals, especially the nurses, examine the breasts of male and female clients. A small amount of glandular tissue, a potential site for the growth of cancer cells, is located in the male breast. In contrast, the majority of the female breast is glandular tissue.               Early detection is the key cure to breast cancer. It is therefore a major responsibility for nurses to teach clients health behavior such as breast self examination. Studies suggest that only a minority of women perform breast self-exams (Potter & Perry, 2004).               Surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapeutic agents are the major modalities used to treat patients with cancer, though various biologic therapies are beginning to have a significant impact. The basic problem is to make available drugs (natural products or synthetics) that kill cancer cells effectively but are not excessively toxic to normal cells.               Current cancer treatments – “cut, burn, poison” – are recognized as crude and painful. Promising new methods focus on delivering anticancer drugs precisely to the cancer (via monoclonal antibodies that respond to one type of protein on a cancer cell) and on increasing the immune system’s ability to fend off cancer (Marieb 2004).   In all these, the nurses are responsible for co-ordinating care following any operations and/or treatment for breast cancer. As well as supporting the patients and his/her family through the operation and treatment, the nurses can provide the patient and his/her caregivers with clear written and verbal information; and can also examine the patient and arrange any tests that might be needed.   The NHS Cancer Plan, published in September 2000, sets out the first ever comprehensive strategy to tackle the disease. It is the first time any government has drawn up a major program of action linking prevention, diagnosis, treatment, care and research. The NHS Cancer Plan contains a wide range of targets and commitments. The NHS Cancer Plan Progress Report released in March 2005 substantial progress has been made in meeting the Plan’s targets. The thirty-four cancer networks which have been established have achieved important improvements in delivering cancer services across England (National Audit Office, 2005).   The progress report also mentioned that cancer networks have helped improve cancer services and have achieved some particular successes. These include planning for the introduction of new cancer drugs and developing plans for funding specialist palliative care. In addition to the NHS Cancer Plan, the Department has launched other initiatives to improve cancer services, including a tobacco advertising ban and a strengthening of the partnership between the NHS and the voluntary sector (National Audit Office, 2005).   There have been many largely anecdotal descriptions of the extreme psychological distress, social, and sexual difficulties associated with breast cancer treatment (Clark & Fallowfield, 1991). Numerous descriptions in the scientific literature and lurid accounts in the popular press continue to chart the psychosocial havoc wreaked by the diagnosis of breast cancer and its treatment, especially if that treatment involves breast amputation.   It is also important to remember that denial is a common and important coping strategy for many women with breast cancer. This is just a normal psychological process and what the nurse can do is to provide support.   For a woman who has already undergone many emotional and physical assaults, the news that she must now go through several courses of chemotherapy or other therapeutic procedures over a period of several months after being diagnosed of cancer is often regarded with a mixture of fear and suspicion. Just as the diagnosis of breast cancer has created denial and anxieties, the need for chemotherapy or other therapeutic procedure may create similar anxieties.   Women with breast cancer also has counselling needs which has to be taken cared of. The primary aim in counseling patients with breast cancer is to help women find their own means of coping with the emotional stresses of having a life-threatening illness. Coping is referred to as ‘constantly changing cognitive and behavioural efforts to manage specific external and/or internal demands that are appraised as taxing or exceeding the resources of the person’ (Clark & Fallowfield, 1991). The outcome of good coping in this sense means successfully adapting to the difficult and changing physical and emotional demands placed on a woman with breast cancer.   Tremendous emotional upheaval is common after being diagnosed with cancer. Many cancer patients experience feelings disbelief, shock, fear, and anger. They may also feel overwhelmed by the girth of information about their cancer and their treatment options, by the decisions they are required to make, and by the sudden changes in their lives. It takes time to accept and understand the diagnosis. As overwhelming and painful as a diagnosis of cancer is initially, many cancer survivors say that their struggle against cancer gave them an opportunity to re-evaluate their lives and to find strengths and abilities that they hadn’t known they possessed (Ogden, 2004).   The UK Department of Health abandoned the policy of advising women to examine their breasts in 1991 and the current advice to women is to be “breast aware”. Lesley Walker, director of cancer information at Cancer Research UK, said being “breast aware” meant looking out for changes such as a new lump or thickening in one breast or armpit, any puckering, dimpling or redness of skin, changes in the position or condition of the nipple and any new pain or discomfort felt on one side. In light of this, it is understandable that even if self-breast examination cannot really be effective, other means of breast examination can still be helpful.    References Breast Cancer Campaign, Retrieved from: www.breastcancercampaign.org Clark, A. & Fallowfield, L. 1991, Breast Cancer. Routledge. Feldman, M. 2003, Vaccination: An Analysis of the Health Care Risks – Part II. Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients. Guyton, A. and Hall, J. 2000, Textbook of Medical Physiology 10th Edition. Harcourt Asia Pte Ltd. James, W. 1995, Immunization: The Reality Behind the Myth. Bergin & Garvey. Janssens, J.P. 1999, Risk Implications for Research and Dietary Guidelines for Children. Nutrition Today. Judson, L. 2004, Global Childhood Chronic Illness. Nursing Administration Quarterly. Hackett, C.J. 2003, Addressing Parents’ Concerns: Do Vaccines Cause Allergic or Autoimmune Diseases? Pediatrics. Kozier, B. and Erb, G. 2004, Fundamentals of Nursing: Concepts, Process, and Practice 7th Edition. Pearson Education Inc. Laurance, J. 2002, Self Examination Useless, Breast Cancer Study Finds. The Independent. No Author. 2001, Immunization is Important in the Prevention of Diseases. Indianapolis Recorder. Marieb, E. 2004, Essentials of Human Anatomy and Physiology 7th Edition. Pearson Education Inc. NHS Cancer Plan. Retrieved from: http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys- files/Society/documents/2003/08/26/cancerplan.pdf No Author. 2006. Parents Guide to Childhood Immunization. Retrieved from: http://www.hoptechno.com/book42.htm Ogden, J. 2004, Understanding Breast Cancer, Wiley. Potter, P. and Perry, A. (2004). Fundamentals of Nursing. Mosby. The NHS Cancer Plan: A Progress Report.  2005, Retrieved from: http://www.nao.org.uk/pn/04-05/0405343.htm Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

WHY IS CHILDHOOD IMMUNISATION IMPORTANT?

The human body has the ability to resist almost all types of organisms or toxins that tend to damage the tissues and organs. This capabil...

IMPACTS OF PARENTS IN THE REDUCTION OF CHILD OBESITY

Impact of parents in the reduction of child obesity   Objectives and Questions The need to gain research insights and evidences pertaining to childhood obesity and such reduction intermingling parent oriented factor for reduced cases of child obesity. Research focus will be on the impact of parents in the reduction of obesity amongst children, upon utilizing case study methodological approach catering to case study survey questionnaires for Rwanda population.   <li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%"> What comprises of a parent? Do parents play a crucial role in resolving cases of obesity in children? Why? Provide examples </li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%"> What are the roles of parents for the situation? And how can they act and function as a positive motivator when it comes to healthy eating and diet of their children? </li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%">  What does obesity mean in children? What assumes and integrates child obesity? </li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%"> How reduction towards obesity be manifested through parental impacts of the situation? What are several of these impacts that lead to child obesity reduction? Briefly discuss and provide literature basis </li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%"> Aside from parental impact in reducing child obesity, are there any other impacts and or factors that reduce childhood obesity in additional to the latter? Elaborate and name some </li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%"> How parental impacts adhering to obesity reduction are to be realized and maintained in Rwanda?   </li>   Sample Literature The home environment has the potential to affect children’s energy balance and diet composition in numerous ways. Parents may influence the family environment by exposing family members to certain foods, by actively encouraging the family members to eat certain foods, or by passively allowing certain foods in the regular diets. Food related parenting practices and the physical and emotional environment in which eating and activity behaviors are developed are also important variables ( and , 1998; , ,  and , 2003; , 1988). Parents may also serve as role models for their children’s eating and activity behavior, although various studies have shown low family resemblance in food preference (, 1991). Parental behavior is important during the acquisition of the skills, whereas changes in the environment and reinforcement for new eating and exercise behaviors may be operative over follow up periods (,  and , 1990). While it is apparent that parents should be involved in treatment of obese children, there is no consensus on the how. It has been suggested that strategies that emphasize parental control over the quality and pattern of the food environment should be encouraged, whereas strict parental control over a child’s food intake should be discouraged ( and , 1998;  and , 2001; , 1996). Parenting skills were mentioned as the foundation for successful intervention that includes gradual targeted increases in activity and a targeted reduction in high fat, high calorie foods ( and , 1998). In family based behavioral weight loss programs for children, the obese child is the main agent of change, with varying degrees of parental involvement, if parenting style is the focus of treatment, the parents are the main agent of change, and they, rather than the child, should be targeted by the intervention. Thus, exclusively targeting the parents in the interventions that had family health centered approach led to weight loss in obese children (, ,  and , 1998). Parents served as source of authority and role model for their children. Parents provided an environment with fewer “obesogenic” factors and more self-regulation and healthy behavior practice. A program that omitted the obese child from direct intervention and targeted parents only was associated with greater weight loss and higher consumption of healthy foods compared with a program that treated children with the child-only condition, where they were the main agents of change (,  and , 1998).     Methodology Overview  The main method is case study approach presenting in survey questionnaire in accordance to cases. The questionnaire will comprise of three sections for the parents to answer, these parents are not just parents having obese children but these refers to general parental role and in avoiding biases, there should fair number of parents as participants of both male and female parents as these are residents at Rwanda. A total of 50 questionnaires to be given to 50 parents these fairly present an ideal research sample. The first section will adhere to personal information of the parents such age, gender and if they are parent of obese child or not. The second and third section caters to the main questionnaire part linking to the survey statements in lieu to a five point scale system to arrive at valid and reliable discussion, analysis and interpretations. The total statements for each of the section will have to twelve so in all twenty four statements will be executed. The second section will integrate to parental influence which encourage excess food intake and idealizes thinness, play crucial role in the epidemic of childhood obesity and eating disorders. Because parents provide a child’s contextual environment, they should be considered key players in interventions aimed at preventing or treating weight-related problems. Parenting style serves as the crucial factors in fostering healthy lifestyle and awareness of internal hunger and satiety cues, with the parents as central agents of change. The third section will integrate to parents as major factors implying to management of childhood obesity through parent based approach and be delivered through parents emphasizing healthy lifestyle and not weight reduction in integrating behavioral, social learning as well as parent/family system approach. There maybe changes in parental cognition, emphasizing parenthood presence as it assume that parents do serve as amiable source of authority and role model for the obese child, providing ideal environment that fosters healthy practices related to weight control issues and personal responsibility for control of health behavior.         References   Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

IMPACTS OF PARENTS IN THE REDUCTION OF CHILD OBESITY

Impact of parents in the reduction of child obesity Objectives and Questions The need to gain research insights and evidences pertain...

Childhood Obesity

Community Health Issue Paper: Childhood Obesity   Introduction Childhood Obesity in Ethnic Minority and Low-Income Community Overweight and Obesity are among the most pressing challenges that are being faced worldwide (). It is am international public health priority (). The incidence of childhood obesity is rapidly rising throughout the world. The local socioeconomic environment, with often-profound disparities in physical and financial access to healthy foods and physical activity, may contribute to the obesity epidemic, particularly among minority groups, who tend to suffer even higher obesity rates than the general population. Higher obesity rates are associated with socioeconomic status and limited access to healthy foods (2005). Although rates of childhood obesity among the general population are alarmingly high, they are higher still in ethnic minority and low-income communities. Various environmental factors contribute to higher obesity rates among disadvantaged and minority children. Low income and minority children watch more television than white, non-poor children thus exposed to many commercials for high-fat and high sugar foods. Neighborhoods where low-income and minority children live typically have more fast-food restaurants and fewer vendors of healthful foods than do wealthier neighborhoods. Children in these neighborhoods often face many obstacles to physical activity such as unsafe streets, dilapidated parks, and lack of facilities (2006). Reason for Selection The increase in childhood obesity over the past several decades, together with the associated health problems and costs, is raising grave concern among health care professionals, policy experts, children’s advocates, and parents (2006). The issue of childhood obesity was selected because of its impacts on the children’s health and the community as a whole. Obesity in children can lead to different health problems. In addition,  (2001) argued that childhood obesity is a strong predictor of obesity in adulthood. A better understanding of the issue is necessary to prevent and combat childhood obesity. With the high and rising rates of morbidity and mortality due to obesity, the lost productivity, the impact on quality of life, and the burden on our health care system dollars–an estimated 7 billion in the year 2000–it is a problem that is too costly to ignore (2003). Description of the Problem Childhood Obesity threatens the long-term physical and psychological health of the children. It is arguably the most pervasive and serious threat to children’s health today and in the future. Although obesity, like most other chronic health problems, is caused by complex interactions between genetics and environmental factors, the rapid increase in obesity over the past 30 years strongly suggests that environmental influences are responsible for this trend (Wakefield 2004).     Background Factors According to , childhood obesity can be caused by genetic and hormonal factors. In addition, excess weight is caused by children eating to much and exercising too little. Some factors that contribute to childhood obesity, according to Mayoclinic.com include: Diet – habitual consumption of high calorie foods Inactivity – inactive leisure activities, like watching television or playing video games Genetics – some children who come from overweight families are genetically predisposed to put on excess weight Psychological factors – some children overeat to cope with problems and deal with emotions such as stress or boredom Family/ Social factors – the parents buy unhealthy foods, low-income families The United Health Foundation identified the following as the factors that cause Childhood Obesity: 1. Biological factors Although common obesity is not entirely biological or genetic, and individual behavior plays an important role for most obese individuals, the importance of biology is not to be minimized. Biological factors may govern behavioral responses to environmental conditions, foe instance, one individual may prefer the sour taste of fruits compared to the sweetness of baked desserts. Another individual may have physical abilities in sports that make exercise more enjoyable and easier to sustain. 2. Environmental factors Convincing, causative, etiological factors <ul style="margin-top: 0in; margin-bottom: 0in" type="disc"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%"> Sedentary lifestyles</li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%"> High Intake of energy-dense, micronutrient-poor foods</li> </ul> Probable etiological factors <ul style="margin-top: 0in; margin-bottom: 0in" type="disc"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%"> Heavy marketing of fast-food outlets and energy-dense, micronutrient-poor foods and beverages</li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%"> High intake of sugars-sweetened beverages</li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%"> Adverse socioeconomic conditions</li> </ul> Possible (lower strength of evidence) etiological factors <ul style="margin-top: 0in; margin-bottom: 0in" type="disc"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%"> Large portion sizes</li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%"> Food eaten outside the home</li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%"> Psychological eating patterns</li> </ul> Local Data According to The annual National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one-third are overweight or at risk of becoming overweight or nearly overweight (www.mayoclinic.com). According to a 2004 report by the Institute of Medicine Committee on Prevention of Obesity in Children and Youth, approximately 9 million American children over 6 years of age are considered obese – that is they have a body mass index (BMI) equal to or greater than 95th percentile as calculated by the Centers for Disease Control and  Prevention ( 2005). Childhood obesity rates are increasing in low-income neighborhoods and minority groups. Sedentary lifestyle and poor nutrition are among the reasons given for the increase in childhood obesity. In addition, children living in poor, urban neighborhoods are often forced by their parents to play indoors due to neighborhood safety concerns. Another possible contributing factor is the reduction in recreational sports programs for disadvantaged children, which further limits the after school physical activity options of minority children (2002). Possible Interventions The Surgeon General’s call to Action to Prevent and Decrease Overweight and obesity () declared this a national priority and called on individuals, families, communities, schools, businesses, organizations, the media, the health care system, and the government to work together toward a unified vision for a healthier America. Community-based Strategies () 1. Ensure daily, quality physical education for all school grades. 2. Ensure that more food options that are low in fat and calories. As well as fruits, vegetable, whole grains, and low fat dairy products, are available on school campuses and at school events. 3. Make community facilities available for physical activity for all people, including on the weekends. 4. Create more opportunities for physical activity 5. Reduce time spent watching television and in other sedentary behaviors. 6. Educate all expectant parents about the benefits of breast-feeding. 7. Change the perception of obesity so that health becomes the chief concern, not personal appearance. 8. Increase research on the behavioral and biological causes of overweight and obesity. 9. Educate health care providers and health profession students on the prevention and treatment of overweight and obesity. Conclusion Childhood obesity is one of the most pressing problems that most communities worldwide are facing. There are different factors that cause childhood obesity. One of these is environmental or social factors. Children who live in low-income and ethnic minority communities are found to be more at risk. This is partly because of sedentary lifestyle and poor nutrition. These children are also forced by their parents to stay indoors because of the safety concerns in these kinds of communities. Another contributing factor can be the reduction of recreational sports programs for disadvantaged children. Effective intervention requires proper education, involvement, and cooperation among the various groups and organizations in the community. The health care professionals also play an important role in the prevention, intervention, education and treatment of childhood obesity.                                             Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Childhood Obesity

Community Health Issue Paper: Childhood Obesity Introduction Childhood Obesity in Ethnic Minority and Low-Income Community Overweight an...