Root causes of childhood obesity

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 Childhood obesity is something we ignore and consider as a “healthy child.” However, we do not realize the body’s weight influences overall personality to act in a society with friends and families. Besides, it impacts the cognitive behavior of children as well.

Also check: Childhood Obesity and school performances 

What is childhood obesity?

In general, the word obesity defines an excessive amount of fat in a person’s body, which leads to several issues in the body. Childhood obesity is becoming a serious issue day by day. It has become one of the most important health problems, especially in the United States. 


The most welcomed method of screening for overweight is calculating Body Mass Index (BMI). There are many different definitions of obesity worldwide. Nevertheless, a BMI>85th percentile is described as obesity in the US and UK.

Current statistics of childhood obesity

According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data, the pervasiveness of obesity among the children of the US has been increasing since 1990. 

Similarly, Data from WHO (1 April 2020) shows that approximately 340 million children and adolescents at the age of 5-19 were overweight in 2016. 



Besides, another survey of 2019 estimated 38.2 million children were having obesity problems in both rural and urban areas. 

Surprisingly, in the year 2020, almost 158 million children-adolescents (5 to 19 years) were estimated obese. It has clear evidence of the consequences of lockdown during covid 19. 

Root causes of childhood obesity

Childhood obesity has become a very popular and one of the most common public health issues worldwide. Several reasons can cause obesity in children of different ages. 

According to the study of Cuschieri & Grech ( 2020),  there are three major pillars associated with the Obesity epidemic and i.e., (i) genetic, (ii) behavioral, and (iii) environmental determinants.



Moreover, genetics is one of the major reasons that can cause obesity in a child. The Ecological Model of Davison et al. stated that factors for childhood obesity are:

  1. Diet of the children
  2. Less physical activity. 
  3. Parenting style
  4. Environmental factors 
  5. Personal psychological issues
  6. Social issues
Conclusion

As you can now sum up, childhood obesity is a very outspread issue in the world. It can become a disease if it is ignored and not diagnosed over time. Besides, it can be caused by many reasons in which genetics are the most major reason, but other factors like environmental and psychological factors can be controlled. 

There are several reasons for obesity, including dieting habits, parental skills, bad eating habits, etc.

If your child has this problem, we recommend that you pay attention to their health and diet as a parent. And get your child medical treatment as well. 


Sources:

Cuschieri, S., & Grech, S. (2020). COVID-19: a one-way ticket to a global childhood obesity crisis?. Journal Of Diabetes & Metabolic Disorders, 19(2), 2027-2030. doi: 10.1007/s40200-020-00682-2

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/obesity-and-overweight#:~:text=lived%20in%20Asia.-,Over%20340%20million%20children%20and%20adolescents%20aged%205%2D19%20were,just%20over%2018%25%20in%202016.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4408699/#ref18

https://www.healthylondon.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Obesity-in-Children-BMJ-best-practice.pdf

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/obesity-child-17-18/overweight-obesity-child-H.pdf

https://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpao/multimedia/infographics/getmoving.html

https://www.mayoclinicproceedings.org/article/S0025-6196(16)30595-X/pdf


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