Childhood Obesity Essays

Childhood Obesity Essays Childhood Obesity Essay Childhood Obesity Essay HTH can be done with education, prevention, healthy habits, and physical activities promotion. Also through Continuous Quality Improvement (ICQ). This approach helps to focus on the process of what needs to be improved rather than the individual alone. ICQ principles, tools, and techniques will help create different ways of to help with childhood obesity. 3 Childhood obesity is a growing epidemic in the United States. It is the most common chronic disease of childhood. The greatest health risk facing child ere today is not a terrible disease such as Bola, it is obesity. Childhood obesity is serious medical condition that affects children of all ages. It is particularly troubling because the extra weight usually Start children down the path to health problems in their futures. Obesity is a major contributor to diabetes, cardiovascular disease, high cholesterol, depression, low self esteem and different types of cancer. The formula for keeping a healthy weight has always been the same, it a balance of the number of calories you consume with the number you burn. One of the best strategies to reduce obesity in children, is to improve diet and exercise habits. Childhood obesity continues o increase since the past decade. Treating and preventing childhood obesity needs to be established at a young age. It is important for parents and children to be educated and focused on making healthy lifestyle choices. The growing concern for obesity has become a public health concern. Efforts need to be made to prevent this disease from happening in the first place. Its important to get to the root causes of this disease. It is important to target children early in life to prevent unhealthy habits that may lead to obesity. Children are dependent on the nutritional environment and habits in which they grow up in, such as their homes, schools and communities. A shared effort from these groups are important in addressing childhood obesity. Childhood prevention policies should be created to ensure families, schools, and communities with the right tools and information on childhood obesity. Policies that CHILDHOOD OBESITY 4 improve access to healthy foods, support communities with healthy environments, and require healthcare facilities and schools in supporting healthy lifestyles for children. Theses are all great ways to make a positive impact on childrens health. Its important in creating environments in communities and schools, where physical activity and access to healthy foods are the standard. Addressing socioeconomic factors, such as poverty and education, has the largest potential impact on population health (Friend TRY). Communities Will also decrease both the health costs and financial burden that childhood obesity generates. In doing so, creating healthier, more vibrant communities for children and families that will help in long term success. Along with education, social and physical environment changes will help with healthy choices and attention have a great impact. Childhood obesity prevention efforts should become a focus in schools and communities. Changing our food environment can help improve nutrition and reduce obesity by educating people, changing our exposure to food, and improving the image of healthy food while making unhealthy food not attractive. Obesity results from eating too much as well as eating the wrong foods and lack of exercise. Consuming food and beverages high in energy density but low in overall nutritional value, such as food high in sugar and fat, is associated with weight gain and obesity (Ladylike 2006). A main contributor to weight gain and obesity is sugar, sweetened beverages. Other choices such as water would help reduce caloric intake for children. These efforts have led to improve the healthy quality of the food and beverages served at schools. For example schools now have healthier options such as water or milk in order to promote a balanced diet, along with an effort to improve the quality of food offered in schools. Local health departments can establish plans as well to reduce childhood obesity. This can be done by educating parents with healthy behaviors, the importance of physical activity and diet. A CHILDHOOD OBESITY 5 project can be put into place that aims to facilitate clinical quality improvement in primary care clinics with the importance of childhood obesity. In order to improve childhood obesity screening protocols can be established. An appropriate screening using IBM percentiles, education about obesity, establishing motivation and goal setting to implicate lifestyle change, and referrals that would help support the lifestyle changes, and the proper management that is based on national guidelines. Health departments, schools, and clinics can be provided on how to facilitate clinical quality improvements (ICQ) projects. Along with tools and resources needed to create a ICQ project and address challenges. Clinics will help in assisting health departments to establish formal obesity screening and management tools and protocols. The ICQ program will 1) get clinics and other health facilitates with clinical leaders, 2) arrange the quality improvement attempt with other organizational change efforts, 3) create a protocol along with tools based on national guidelines that are specific to holding obesity, 4) show the use of the Plan Do Study Act (PADS) model to create an effective use of this protocol and tools, and 5) reexamine protocols and tools based on the PADS results. The process of objectives were focused on a PADS cycle for childhood obesity. Discussing it with families, intervening to prevent it, and treating it when it occurs. Healthcare facilities can have obesity prevention that include assessment and prevention. Then prevention visits that focus on treatments. Also going beyond the practice of prevention and treatment. Health practices deed to identify overweight children and make referrals depending on IBM to dieticians or other health programs. Talk to families about good habits. As for the PADS Plan, this would include a team using forms to track IBM and other information. They will try it for one month. Then discuss forms with front desk and nurses. Do: Pilot with team, families were receptive to the forms and discussion. Study: No data collected other than measurements, but discussed with the rest of the clinic. Act: Show forms to rest of the clinic, and discuss process with them and get ready for implementation. CHILDHOOD OBESITY 6 Another PADS was Plan would meet in clinic teams and discuss what could be improved in process. Discuss different members of the teams plans and meet with other staff. Goal was to improve percentage of forms handed in. Do: Team members speak to staff to see if forms are getting to patients and check in with patients to remind them about forms and programs. Study: look over the different forms. Act: improvement in scores, discuss with other teams about the forms and programs at meetings. Also discuss individually with each patient over the next few weeks. The USDA that were set up were in eloping with future goals. To keep tract on forms and programs that would be offered. Track appropriate use of referrals based on Bums. Ultimately to see changes in Bums of the children and fewer obese kids it the clinics. Then in order to facilitate each ICQ step, tools were developed, challenges established and addressed, along with research and assessment needs were identified. Referrals were also made, questioners were answered, forms were collected, and plans were implemented. The clinics that participated have improved obesity screening and management in children. They also learned how to perform ICQ. Clinics can also help inform families to instill the importance of a healthy diet and nutrition. It is very important for parents to infuse healthy habits in children, if there is a desire for children to eat healthy, progress will be made. Children must want to eat healthy foods, and families that encourage children to do so will have a positive impact. Studies show that the earlier parents get involved in their childrens nutrition the better. One study, conducted by the Center for Childhood Obesity Research in Philadelphia, has shown that the hillier who were fed vegetables during adolescent years are more likely to maintain these habits and eat vegetables in their teenage years. Parents also need to become positive role models when it comes to nutrition, therefore the more educated they are, their children will become. Children are constantly observing their parents choices. Parents have a huge impact on 7 their children, simply by eating healthier themselves along with excising will help to encourage their children. Health professionals, parents and schools all can have a positive impact with promoting healthy lifestyles. Children consume more calories than they actually need each day, due to unhealthy eating options, habits, or lack of exercise. Children who arent shown healthier lifestyle choices, dont know any better. In order to prevent childhood obesity and future health complications associated with this disease, changes in the committees and there families must take place. It is essential that these changes are implicated. Its important to implement certain programs for children and making sure the right strategies are being used. Childhood obesity can affect that child for the rest of their lives. A good understanding among families and communities Of the causes and consequences of this disease is important in order for change to take action. The most important factor should be based on health benefits rather than weight loss. Communities and healthcare facilities can play an important role in improving the health of its children by promoting health lifestyle choices. Effective strategies for reducing childhood obesity, should be focused on environment in communities, schools, homes, and health care providers. Creating certain strategies with the right tools is key for keeping children at a lately weight. References 8 Beeline, L. (2006, August 20). The school lunch test. The New York Times.