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Worldwide, childhood obesity rates are increasing an alarming pace

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Worldwide, childhood obesity rates are increasing an alarming pace. Consequences of obesity include the development of chronic diseases, and more and more we are seeing these problems develop at an earlier age. For this discussion board, please read Controversy 13: Childhood Obesity and Early Chronic Diseases at the end of Chapter 13 in our textbook Nutrition Concepts and Controversies, 15th ed. After reading that section, please discuss the challenges of obesity; the type of chronic diseases it can lead to; what contributes to obesity; and what can be done to address the problem. Use only the information from the textbook to support your statements and be sure to cite the source properly using APA formatting.

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Chapter 13: Life Cycle Nutrition: Mother and Infant: 13-7 Controversy 13: Childhood Obesity and Early Chronic Diseases Book Title: Nutrition: Concepts & Controversies Printed By: Alvard Tsaturyan (alla.tsaturyan1@gmail.com) © 2020 Cengage Learning, Cengage Learning 13-7 Controversy 13: Childhood Obesity and Early Chronic Diseases LO 13.7 Describe the challenges associated with childhood obesity. When most people think of health problems in children and adolescents, they often think of dental caries and acne, not type 2 diabetes and hypertension. Today, however, serious risk factors and “adult diseases” often accompany obesity in children. Chapter 13: Life Cycle Nutrition: Mother and Infant: 13-7 Controversy 13: Childhood Obesity and Early Chronic Diseases Book Title: Nutrition: Concepts & Controversies Printed By: Alvard Tsaturyan (alla.tsaturyan1@gmail.com) © 2020 Cengage Learning, Cengage Learning © 2021 Cengage Learning Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this work may by reproduced or used in any form or by any means graphic, electronic, or mechanical, or in any other manner - without the written permission of the copyright holder. Chapter 13: Life Cycle Nutrition: Mother and Infant: 13-7a Trends in Childhood Obesity Book Title: Nutrition: Concepts & Controversies Printed By: Alvard Tsaturyan (alla.tsaturyan1@gmail.com) © 2020 Cengage Learning, Cengage Learning 13-7a Trends in Childhood Obesity Childhood obesity numbers are high and getting higher, not only in the United States but all around the globe. Globally, childhood obesity has risen tenfold in the past four decades. In this country today, one of every six children aged 2 to 19 years is clinically obese, and one of every three is overweight. All types of children are affected, but obesity most commonly occurs among children who are male, older, physically inactive, and who have parents who are obese, have less education, or are unmarried. Many are of African American or Hispanic descent. Additionally, low family income predicts obesity among Caucasian, Hispanic, and Asian children. Chapter 13: Life Cycle Nutrition: Mother and Infant: 13-7a Trends in Childhood Obesity Book Title: Nutrition: Concepts & Controversies Printed By: Alvard Tsaturyan (alla.tsaturyan1@gmail.com) © 2020 Cengage Learning, Cengage Learning © 2021 Cengage Learning Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this work may by reproduced or used in any form or by any means graphic, electronic, or mechanical, or in any other manner - without the written permission of the copyright holder. Chapter 13: Life Cycle Nutrition: Mother and Infant: 13-7b The Challenge of Childhood Obesity Book Title: Nutrition: Concepts & Controversies Printed By: Alvard Tsaturyan (alla.tsaturyan1@gmail.com) © 2020 Cengage Learning, Cengage Learning 13-7b The Challenge of Childhood Obesity Most parents do not recognize the development of obesity in their own children, let alone the associated health risks it poses. A professional evaluation eliminates guesswork. Physical and Emotional Perils Excessive body weight in the young is more than just a cosmetic problem. Table C13–1 summarizes the physical complications that can accompany obesity in children. Table C13–1 Physical Complications of Obesity during Childhood These conditions increase a child’s risks for chronic diseases now and into adulthood. Abnormal blood lipid profile High total cholesterol High triglycerides High LDL cholesterol High blood pressure High fasting insulin Structural changes to the heart Asthma Breathing difficulties (sleep apnea) Fatty liver Sources: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, Screening for obesity in children and adolescents: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement, 2017; L. Hurt and coauthors, Diagnosis and screening for obesity-related conditions among children and teens receiving Medicaid—Maryland, 2005–2010, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 63 (2014): 305–308. Obese children frequently also suffer psychologically. Adults discriminate against them, and peers make thoughtless comments or reject them based on their physical appearance. An obese child is likely to develop a poor self-image, a sense of failure, and a passive approach to life. The emotional penalties of childhood obesity are often amplified by the media. More than 75 percent of popular children’s movies denigrate or stigmatize fat people as social misfits. Social media also abound with negative judgments of overweight children, particularly girls. Unfortunately, children have few defenses against these unfair portrayals and readily internalize negative self-images. Children with obesity often develop type 2 diabetes, among other illnesses. The Star-Ledger/Saed Hindash/The Image Works Identifying Childhood Obesity How can you tell if a child is overweight or just stocky and healthy? Certainly not by just looking: guesswork can produce wrong conclusions. It takes a trained professional using the right tools to make the correct assessment. A physician or registered dietitian nutritionist can accurately calculate a child’s BMI and interpret it using a growth chart, as shown in Figure C13–1. Because body fat differs between boys and girls and changes with age, BMI-for-age percentiles are calculated for children and teens using gender-specific growth charts. Children and adolescents from the 85th to the 94th percentile on growth charts are considered overweight; those at the 95th percentile and above are considered obese. Figure C13–1 Assessing Body Fatness in Children: An Example Growth charts reflect population-wide data for children’s BMI values as they age. Gabby is female, so this chart is for girls; a chart for boys is offered on the Body Mass Index (BMI). Darla and Gabby Eight-year-old Gabriella and her worried mother Darla tell a typical story of childhood obesity, and they model some appropriate responses. Recently, a note from the school nurse explained that during a routine screening, Gabby’s BMI-for-age percentile was found to be too high. The nurse is suggesting further tests for risk factors of chronic diseases because Gabby’s BMI of 22 places her in the obese weight category (the green dot in Figure C13–1). With Gabby’s health in danger, Darla’s concern grows: “I didn’t know that a little baby fat at Gabby’s age could be a threat. Both my father and his father died of diabetes-related conditions, so I’m worried.” Chapter 13: Life Cycle Nutrition: Mother and Infant: 13-7b The Challenge of Childhood Obesity Book Title: Nutrition: Concepts & Controversies Printed By: Alvard Tsaturyan (alla.tsaturyan1@gmail.com) © 2020 Cengage Learning, Cengage Learning © 2021 Cengage Learning Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this work may by reproduced or used in any form or by any means graphic, electronic, or mechanical, or in any other manner - without the written permission of the copyright holder. Chapter 13: Life Cycle Nutrition: Mother and Infant: 13-7c Development of Type 2 Diabetes Book Title: Nutrition: Concepts & Controversies Printed By: Alvard Tsaturyan (alla.tsaturyan1@gmail.com) © 2020 Cengage Learning, Cengage Learning 13-7c Development of Type 2 Diabetes An estimated 85 percent of children with type 2 diabetes are obese. Diabetes is most often diagnosed around the age of puberty, but type 2 diabetes is rapidly encroaching on younger age groups as children grow fatter. Ethnicity (being Native American or of African, Asian, or Hispanic descent) increases the risk, as does having a family history of type 2 diabetes. Chapter 11 described the risks associated with type 2 diabetes and revealed its connections with cardiovascular disease (CVD). Determining exactly how many children suffer from type 2 diabetes is tricky. A child with type 2 diabetes may lack telltale symptoms, such as glucose in the urine, ketones in the blood, weight loss, or excessive thirst and urination, so diabetes often advances undetected. Without treatment, children with diabetes are left undefended against its ravages. Chapter 13: Life Cycle Nutrition: Mother and Infant: 13-7c Development of Type 2 Diabetes Book Title: Nutrition: Concepts & Controversies Printed By: Alvard Tsaturyan (alla.tsaturyan1@gmail.com) © 2020 Cengage Learning, Cengage Learning © 2021 Cengage Learning Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this work may by reproduced or used in any form or by any means graphic, electronic, or mechanical, or in any other manner - without the written permission of the copyright holder. Chapter 13: Life Cycle Nutrition: Mother and Infant: 13-7d Development of Heart Disease Book Title: Nutrition: Concepts & Controversies Printed By: Alvard Tsaturyan (alla.tsaturyan1@gmail.com) © 2020 Cengage Learning, Cengage Learning 13-7d Development of Heart Disease Atherosclerosis, first apparent as heart disease in adulthood, begins in youth. By adolescence, most children have formed fatty streaks in their coronary arteries. By early adulthood, the arterial lesions that make heart attacks and strokes likely have formed. An estimated 70 percent of obese children and adolescents have at least one risk factor for CVD, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, or an abnormal lipid profile. These risks are directly related with the degree of obesity—the greater the BMI, the greater the risks. In addition, adolescents who take up smoking greatly compound their risks. High childhood BMI alone does not always predict inescapable adult heart disease. Overweight and obese youth who grow up to become normal-weight adults have average risks, and may escape that fate altogether. The note from Gabby’s school nurse prompted medical testing, including a family history, a fasting blood glucose test, a blood lipid profile, and a blood pressure test. Luckily, the results for both glucose and blood pressure are normal. High Blood Cholesterol Gabby’s blood lipid results, however, confirm her mother’s fears: her LDL cholesterol is 135 —too high for optimal health. Cholesterol standards for children and adolescents are shown in Table C13–2. Table C13–2 Cholesterol Standards, Ages 2 to 18 Years Total Disease Risk Cholesterol LDL Cholesterol (mg/dL) (mg/dL) Acceptable