Preventing Childhood Obesity


Book Description

Children's health has made tremendous strides over the past century. In general, life expectancy has increased by more than thirty years since 1900 and much of this improvement is due to the reduction of infant and early childhood mortality. Given this trajectory toward a healthier childhood, we begin the 21st-century with a shocking developmentâ€"an epidemic of obesity in children and youth. The increased number of obese children throughout the U.S. during the past 25 years has led policymakers to rank it as one of the most critical public health threats of the 21st-century. Preventing Childhood Obesity provides a broad-based examination of the nature, extent, and consequences of obesity in U.S. children and youth, including the social, environmental, medical, and dietary factors responsible for its increased prevalence. The book also offers a prevention-oriented action plan that identifies the most promising array of short-term and longer-term interventions, as well as recommendations for the roles and responsibilities of numerous stakeholders in various sectors of society to reduce its future occurrence. Preventing Childhood Obesity explores the underlying causes of this serious health problem and the actions needed to initiate, support, and sustain the societal and lifestyle changes that can reverse the trend among our children and youth.




Bright Futures


Book Description

"This essential resource provides key background information and recommendations for 12 health promotion themes, including 3 brand-new topics : promoting lifelong health for families and communities, promoting health for children and youth with special health care needs, and promoting the healthy and safe use of social media. Also included in this essential resource are well-child supervision standards for 31 age-based visits, from newborn through 21 years. The result : more efficient visits, stronger partnerships with children and families, and enhanced ability to keep up with changes in family, communities, and society that affect a child's health."--Page 4 de la couverture.




Obesity in Youth


Book Description

In this thorough and incisive book, the editors have employed a group of researchers to describe trends and discuss their implications for the assessment, treatment, and prevention of obesity in youth.




Local Government Actions to Prevent Childhood Obesity


Book Description

The prevalence of childhood obesity is so high in the United States that it may reduce the life expectancy of today's generation of children. While parents and other adult caregivers play a fundamental role in teaching children about healthy behaviors, even the most positive efforts can be undermined by local environments that are poorly suited to supporting healthy behaviors. For example, many communities lack ready sources of healthy food choices, such as supermarkets and grocery stores. Or they may not provide safe places for children to walk or play. In such communities, even the most motivated child or adolescent may find it difficult to act in healthy ways. Local governments-with jurisdiction over many aspects of land use, food marketing, community planning, transportation, health and nutrition programs, and other community issues-are ideally positioned to promote behaviors that will help children and adolescents reach and maintain healthy weights. Local Government Actions to Prevent Childhood Obesity presents a number of recommendations that touch on the vital role of government actions on all levels-federal, state, and local-in childhood obesity prevention. The book offers healthy eating and physical activity strategies for local governments to consider, making it an excellent resource for mayors, managers, commissioners, council members, county board members, and administrators.




Food Marketing to Children and Youth


Book Description

Creating an environment in which children in the United States grow up healthy should be a high priority for the nation. Yet the prevailing pattern of food and beverage marketing to children in America represents, at best, a missed opportunity, and at worst, a direct threat to the health prospects of the next generation. Children's dietary and related health patterns are shaped by the interplay of many factorsâ€"their biologic affinities, their culture and values, their economic status, their physical and social environments, and their commercial media environmentsâ€"all of which, apart from their genetic predispositions, have undergone significant transformations during the past three decades. Among these environments, none have more rapidly assumed central socializing roles among children and youth than the media. With the growth in the variety and the penetration of the media have come a parallel growth with their use for marketing, including the marketing of food and beverage products. What impact has food and beverage marketing had on the dietary patterns and health status of American children? The answer to this question has the potential to shape a generation and is the focus of Food Marketing to Children and Youth. This book will be of interest to parents, federal and state government agencies, educators and schools, health care professionals, industry companies, industry trade groups, media, and those involved in community and consumer advocacy.




Energy Balance and Obesity


Book Description

Understanding the relationship between energy balance and obesity is essential to develop effective prevention programs and policies. The International Agency for Research on Cancer convened a Working Group of world-leading experts in December 2015 to review the evidence regarding energy balance and obesity, with a focus on low- and middle-income countries, and to consider the following scientific questions: (i) Are the drivers of the obesity epidemic related only to energy excess and/or do specific foods or nutrients play a major role in this epidemic? (ii) What are the factors that modulate these associations? (iii) Which types of data and/or studies will further improve our understanding? This book provides summaries of the evidence from the literature as well as the Working Group's conclusions and recommendations to tackle the global epidemic of obesity.




Preventing Childhood Obesity


Book Description

Obesity is one of the biggest public health challenges in the 21st century. Devising effective policy and practice to combat childhood obesity is a high priority for many governments and health professionals internationally. This book brings together contributors from around the world and showcases the latest evidence-based research on community and policy interventions to prevent unhealthy weight gain and improve the health and well-being of children. The authors highlight from the evidence available what is and what is not effective and provide recommendations on how to implement and evaluate promising interventions for obesity prevention. This book is an essential read for all public health practitioners, early childhood professionals, health care providers and clinicians working to reduce the prevalence of childhood obesity in their communities.




Expanding Waistlines


Book Description

Many health experts agree that childhood obesity is an epidemic in the modern world. In the United States alone, government data suggest that the number of overweight or obese children is nearly triple the number of 1980, and there are no signs that this incidence is decreasing. Information like this cannot be ignored or trivialized because excess weight can prove damaging to general wellness. Indeed, overweight or obese children and youth risk a wide range of medical complications. Extra pounds can also negatively impact their well-being, which can cause long-term mental health problems. In short, if the childhood obesity crisis is left forsaken, an unprecedented generation of youth will have a diminished quality of life. Expanding Waistlines is ideal for child advocates and youth-serving professionals who seek to learn more about childhood obesity. A prominent feature of Expanding Waistlines is that each chapter poses a series of questions relevant to school personnel, such as: • What can I do at my school and in my classroom? • How should I approach my students who are overweight or obese? • What are some key elements I should look for when evaluating a potential program? Specifically, the book explores the factors that contribute to obesity in society and the associated risks of excess weight on children and youth. Subsequent chapters discuss how to promote healthy eating practices and regular physical activity at school and home. The final chapters report on specific resources. Expanding Waistlines also features the latest demographic data, BMI calculations and classifications, recommended guidelines for health, Wellness Policy requirements, and food label information.