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Ryan Spanier
Dr. Rebecca Foco
Introduction to Public Health
30 September 2014
Examining Childhood Obesity
Although a multitude of factors have been identified as affecting obesity in
the general population, researchers are still working to identify the primary
reasons that Latino children have particularly high rates of obesity in the United
States. Childhood obesity is a positive predictor of obesity in adulthood. Because
obesity is linked to heart disease the most common cause of morbidity in the
United States prevention and intervention for childhood obesity are top
priorities in public health. Latinos are the fastest growing minority in the United
States. As such, determining why Latino children suffer unusually high rates of
obesity is especially important for the future of American public health.
Risk factors for obesity in the general population include a sedentary
lifestyle, TV viewing, poor dietary intake, and low socioeconomic status (SES).
Some studies have examined issues that are more prevalent in Latino
households, and may have a causal relationship with childhood obesity. These
factors include acculturation, country of origin, food insecurity, parental obesity,
and infant birth weight. Researchers have not been able to explain higher
childhood obesity rates among Latino children by investigating any of these
factors. Thus far, studies about factors affecting obesity in Latino children have
produced conflicting results.
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Individuals have the capacity to address the issue of obesity in children.
Children are able to reduce their likelihood of becoming obese, and they are also
able to improve their chances of overcoming obesity if they are already afflicted.
It is crucial for children to be aware of the health risks involved with obesity, such
as gallstones, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, coronary
artery disease, stroke, and sleep apnea. Most of these are major causes of
morbidity in the United States. Additionally, children must learn about how
obesity can be prevented or treated: a low-calorie and high-nutrient diet, routine
exercise, emotional health, and careful monitoring of prescription medications
can help. With this knowledge in hand, individual children can begin the
challenging process of learning to self-regulate and take control of their own
behavior.
At the interpersonal level, both adults and children can have the power to
make a positive impact on obesity rates. Much of this impact only requires people
to behave in a healthy manner themselves, because by doing so they influence
others around them. For example, someone who regularly consumes sodas is
likely to be harming his or her own health through excessive sugar consumption,
but that person is also promoting excess sugar consumption in others because
simply holding a can of soda in ones hand advertises the beverage. A similar
knock-on effect could be present with exercise. If someone signs up for (and
uses!) a gym membership, that person can not only reduce their own risk of
obesity and its associated conditions, but also helps the gym to expand its
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operations and entice more customers to join. This ought to apply to both
children and adults.
Each of the six disciplines within public health could be used to address
the problem of obesity in children. Epidemiology, statistics, environmental health
science, biomedical science, social/behavioral science, and health policy can all
continue to offer valuable contributions to a long-term solution. Epidemiology, for
example, has been used to identify groups of the population such as low-
income and Latino families that are most vulnerable to obesity. Such
identification generates clues about the causes and possible solutions to the
problem. In tandem with epidemiology, statistics assesses numerical data to find
significant trends. One town might have substantially different obesity prevalence
rates than another nearby town, but only statistical analysis can tell us if that
difference has an important cause or is merely due to chance. If there is indeed
an important cause, it could relate to environmental health those who live in
cities with poor air quality could (and should) spend less time outside, but doing
so might lead them to exercise less.
Taking another approach, biomedical science investigates bodily
functions, dysfunctions, and medical interventions for those dysfunctions. There
appears to be a large genetic influence upon obesity, as suggested by the fact
that parental body mass index (BMI) is the strongest predictor of pediatric weight.
Biomedical advances could allow doctors to screen children to determine if their
genes put them at a higher risk of becoming obese.
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With regard to the other two disciplines of public health, behavior science
can help us to develop public policies that promote healthy lifestyle choices.
Public policies such as a tax on sugary foods, restrictions on fast-food
advertising, and subsidies for pre-natal care would be (or, in some states, are)
intended to change peoples behavior. Hence, experts in behavior science and
public policy could cooperate to instigate positive change.
The public health approach can be employed effectively in the area of
childhood obesity, thus enhancing the health of individuals, families, and
communities. As a whole, the federal, state, and local governments in the United
States spent about one trillion dollars on healthcare annually, most of which is
directed towards medical treatments. A more effective public health approach,
especially with regard to obesity because of its commonality and preventability,
would involve budget-neutral government-backed incentives for Americans to eat
more nutritious foods, exercise more frequently, and treat psychiatric issues such
as low self-esteem promptly. An excise tax, determined by mass, on the retail
sales of high fructose corn syrup, sugar, saturated fat, and sodium would provide
a price-based incentive for Americans to reduce their intake of ingredients that
are over-consumed and contribute to obesity, among other health problems.
Revenues from such a tax could be earmarked for health education classes,
physical education programs, and counseling centers at public schools. Such
legislation would address the major facets of childhood obesity. Unfortunately, it
would be unlikely to provide extra assistance to Latino children. Until research
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can affirm one or more specific causes of childhood obesity among Latino
children, little can be done from a public policy standpoint to remedy the problem.