Answer To: Source: Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. Healthy People 2020. Retrieved...
Azra S answered on Feb 14 2021
Obesity
Obesity
AN EARLY KILLER
Definition and Incidence
Obesity-
Retention of extra fat in the body
Increased risk to health
Creates health problems like-
Type 2 Diabetes, Cardiovascular diseases, Hypertension etc. (Ananthapavan et al, 2020).
Incidence-
Reached epidemic level in developed countries in 30 years
38.6 percent of adults aged 20 years and over obese- 2013-16. (Healthy people 2030, n.d. a)
17.8 percent of children and adolescents aged 2 to 19 years obese- 2013-16 (Healthy people 2030, n.d., b)
Preventive measures highly effective (Weihrauch-Blüher et al, 2018)
Obesity can be defined as the retention of extra fat in the body leading to an increased risk to individual’s health in general. Obesity can lead to increased health problems including Type 2 Diabetes, Cardiovascular diseases, Hypertension etc. Most of these health problems continue throughout ones life, thereby decreasing the life outcomes of individuals
There has been an epidemic of obesity in the developed countries in the past 30 years. No clear indication of decline is evident so far either (Carvalho et al, 2018).
In American, obesity has been on an unprecedented. Studies showed that about 38.6 percent of adults over 20 years were obese in year 2013 to 2016. Children on the other hand exhibited a rate of 17.8 percent in the same period of time. It can thus be seen that the rates of obesity are alarming and that effective measures need to be taken in order to tackle this issue.
Studies show that taking preventive measures against obesity are very effective in relation to deposition of visceral fat that cause obesity and chronic disease (Weihrauch-Blüher et al, 2018; Naets, Vervoort, Verbeken, & Braet, 2018)
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Causes and Cost
There are several causes for rise in obesity. Most important from these has been the availability of inexpensive highly processed food that contains more saturated fat, starch and sugar, elements that lead to obesity. The younger population is more prone to eating fast food that is high on fat content causing obesity. This results in consumption of such food from a young age and grows up consuming obesogenic food leading to child obesity that is on the rise as well (Brown et al, 2019, Afolabi et al, 2020). In addition to this, there is an increase in sedentary lifestyle that contributes to fat growth in the body with no fat being burned or exerted.
A principal area of concern also, is the economic cost involved with obesity. Studies show that the annual obesity-related hospital costs for children has more than tripled between 1980s and 1990s, increasing from $35 million to $127 million. At the same time medical expenses for obese adults is found to be 36 percent higher than nonobese individuals (Novak, & Brownell, 2012).
It is important here to highlight the issue of child obesity that is a growing concern for the country today. About one third of American children and youth are either obese or at risk of becoming obese. For infants alone, the rate has increased by more than 70 percent in the last 30 years with high rates of increase over the remaining population as well (Novak, & Brownell, 2012).
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Reasons
Availability of inexpensive highly processed food
Cost burden
Annual obesity-related hospital costs for children $127 million
Child Obesity
Rise in child obesity (Brown et al, 2019)
Since childhood
Sedentary lifestyle
Medical expenses for obese adults are 36% higher than nonobese (Novak, & Brownell, 2012)
Overweight infants increased by more than 70 percent between 1980 and 2001
1/3rd of American children and youth are obese or at risk
Government health programs
Clinical Guidelines on the Identification, Evaluation and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults 1998
“Team Nutrition” program,
Safe Routes to School, 2009
The Let's Move! campaign 2010
The Healthy Food Financing Initiative 2010
The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010
Federal menu-labeling legislation 2010
The government has taken many initiatives for controlling the rate of obesity since early on. The “Clinical Guidelines on the Identification, Evaluation and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults” was developed as early as 1998 by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute as a guideline to develop “principles of...