CHILDHOOD OBESITY

Childhood Obesity



Childhood Obesity

Thesis statement

This paper studies on the negative impact on self esteem of children developed due to obesity. The paper discusses the major reasons and contributing factors of obesity and prevention methods.

Introduction

Obesity is the most common nutritional disease in children and adolescents in developed countries, but not only limited thereto Recent studies in different countries show that 5-10% of school-age children are obese, and adolescents placed the proportion rises to 10-20% in figures Similar incidence was found in our country Moreover, the frequency tends to increase in developed countries, obesity constitutes a health problem of first order, as a common risk factor for various diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and hypertension.

Treatment is difficult and often refractory. Despite the difficulties in treating obesity, we must insist on it, because such negative consequences that obesity has both medical and psychological health of children and adolescents. Therefore it is necessary to act quickly and be convinced that the obese child lose excess fat and learn what a food and healthy lifestyle In this sense, it is essential to work in the prevention of obesity, raising awareness among pediatricians, nurses, educators and parents of the importance of nutrition education for children from the earliest ages.

Description of Obesity

Often use the terms obesity and overweight as synonyms, but are not. Obesity is a metabolic disorder that leads to excessive accumulation of energy as body fat in relation to the expected value according to sex, size and age Being overweight denotes a higher body weight in relation to the expected value according to sex, size and age. Obese children in the definition of obesity may not always accurate because it is often observed in them also an increase in fat-free mass.

The exact criterion for the diagnosis of obesity is determining the percentage of fat in the body. To do this you can use various measurement techniques that estimate the body fat content, such as: anthropometry, air displacement plethysmography, dual energy absorptiometry and bioelectrical impedance X, including In current clinical practice, the most widely used index for the diagnosis of obesity is body mass index (BMI). The main limitation of BMI is the failure to distinguish between fat mass and fat-free mass. Furthermore, it has been observed that many children have a BMI within normal limits according to Cole et al have values of fat mass, determined by air displacement plethysmography (BOD-POD system), in ranges of obesity The BMI provides yet another set of constraints such as: the need to find the ideal reference population, the secular changes that it can get, with the consequent need to update the reference curves, and finally to identify the limits of court to categorize obesity and overweight They recently published the new limits of overweight and obesity obtained in a cross-sectional study that brings nearly 100,000 international boys / girls and adolescents from different geographic locations: Brazil, Britain, Hong Kong, Netherlands, Singapore and United States.

Causes of childhood obesity

Only in few cases and 'possible to ...