Primary Prevention in Childhood Obesity


by Eric Hartwell - Date: 2007-02-18 - Word Count: 514 Share This!

Obesity among children has been a major concern not just in the United States, but in countries all over the world. Environmental and genetic factors were previously thought to be the cause - these factors include sociocultural and familial habits. Recently, a study was undergone to determine what was considered a normal and healthy weight for children in different societies. The study took place in CNMI, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. This chain of fourteen islands is a United States jurisdiction. It is situated between the international date line and the Philippines. CNMI boasts high rates of obesity as well as a stable population that is multicultural. The CNMI culture is a care giving one, a trait that has been thought to influence the way children are fed and their subsequent weight.

In early 2002, four focus groups comprised of thirty two main care givers of children ranging in age from six to ten were interviewed and investigated. The subjects dealt with related to food preferences, perceptions of weight normalcy, care giving practices related to obesity in children, physical activity and inactivity, etc.

This study revealed conflicts between traditional dietary practices and beliefs, knowledge of disease as it relates to food, expectations of the family, and the values of society at large. Mothers especially seemed to experience unease when it came to evaluating their child feeding practices in comparison to cultural values regarding the nature of food. When it comes to weight in their children, the parents maintained that genetics, metabolism, physiology, intake of food, and level of physical activity all have to be factored in. There were major cultural differences that arose between two different ethnic groups, namely the Filipinos and the Micronesians. For the former, being obese is more of a stigma, while the latter associate thinness with disease and illness and find it less desirable. Micronesians further have it that, traditionally, food is associated with care, love, and generosity. As a result, more and more Micronesians have become afflicted with type 2 diabetes. So their attitude towards food is slowly starting to change, but what has thus happened is that there is now a major conflict between their deeply engrained tradition and the newly emergent issues of disease and diet.

Prevention of obesity ultimately begins at home. For children and young adults dealing with obesity, it is best to evaluate the individual's situation, taking in to consideration environmental, genetic, and metabolic concerns while treating the arising physical and psychological damage that has arisen. An obese child's eating plan should also come with an exercise plan. Long term counseling is often needed to deal with self esteem issues relating to obesity that can effect the child's performance in the real world.

Parents should keep in mind that weight loss is not a healthy or proper method for young children to employ, as their bodies are still developing. Unless a doctor assigns your child to be put on a diet for specific medical reasons, dieting should not be encouraged in young children, as it could deprive them of the nutrients and energy they need to grow.


Related Tags: obesity, diet, dieting, lose weight, overweight, fat, child obesity, teen obesity, teenager obesity

Visit us or share your opinions at the worlds best homepage or free content resource

Your Article Search Directory : Find in Articles

© The article above is copyrighted by it's author. You're allowed to distribute this work according to the Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs license.
 

Recent articles in this category:



Most viewed articles in this category: