Childhood Obesity Awareness for Supporting Children's Health

Childhood Obesity Awareness
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Childhood Obesity Awareness
Childhood obesity is increasingly becoming a significant public health issue, not only in the US but also globally with unprecedented health risks facing these children. Continuous health transformation is on track to reduce the epidemic. The progress, however, is not enough to curb the growing population of obese children. According to the study conducted by Skinner, Perrin & Skelton, (2016), in spite of the increased clinical and policy efforts addressing the issue of childhood obesity, evidence suggests that prevalence on the condition is not reducing. Awareness of childhood obesity is critical in ensuring this threat to health is eliminated.
Parents play a critical role in the intervention and management of overweight and obese children. According to Intermountain Healthcare (2016), obesity in children is putting 33 per cent of all American children in severe health risks. Some of the health risk conditions that obese children are exposed to include: breathing difficulties that include asthma and sleep apnea, type 2 diabetes and increased resistance to insulin, liver disease, hypertension and heart disease (Intermountain Healthcare, 2016). Childhood obesity remains a threat that can be prevented and wholly erased. The continued awareness and participation of all stakeholders is a step forward towards reducing the deadly effects of the condition.
A significant challenge in childhood obesity management is the inadequate recognition on the part of parents on the increasing weight issue in children. According to Davidson & Vidgen (2017), parents often underestimate the growing weight on their children that often leads to their children becoming overweight and eventually obese. The lack of ‘concern’ by parents to detect the life-threatening condition is a significant setback in the efforts put towards addressing the issue. Another major factor contributing to the limited success in obesity management and awareness is a large number of affected people making the effectiveness of obesity management programs less effective. Parental engagement remains critical in addressing childhood obesity with obesity management programs recording an increase in interested and committed parents.
Childhood obesity awareness is crucial in complementing efforts done by healthcare providers, and the government. Davidson & Vidgen (2017) opines the increased enrollment of parents towards obesity management programs has been motivated by the self-awareness of children regarding them being obese and overweight. Some of the triggering factors towards childhood obesity in children included being self-conscious about their weight and being upset about it. Also, being teased by other children regarding their weight contributed to their consciousness towards being obese. Different ways to recognize childhood obesity is taking note of the observations presented by children regarding their weight. Such considerations may include experiencing fatigue while trying physical exercises, not able to fit the same clothes and observing that they are slower than usual (Davidson & Vidgen, 2017). Supportive parents can recognize and iden...