revolution
HESC 410
Nkemdilim Anyakpor - Maricel Nano - Samantha Schindler - Siena Morgan
Nkemdilim Anyakpor - Maricel Nano - Samantha Schindler - Siena Morgan
10/21/2016 1 Comment New Research - Article, "Perspectives on Intervening on Physical Inactivity and Diet" In the article, Perspectives on Intervening on Physical Inactivity and Diet, it is addressed that nearly 43 million children younger than five years of age are considered to be overweight (Beaver, 2012). Becoming overweight is primarily due to poor diet and lack of physical activity and the risk of acquiring chronic diseases are substantial when overweight. It is questioned whether childhood obesity is due to environmental and behavioral factors or could it be hereditary? For example, whether or not a child walks to school or gets a ride, or if their school offers any school-based interventions may contribute to a child’s weight. Children spend most of their time at school and it is very important that school districts take this into account when implementing programs. Having a garden on school property that allows kids to play a part in growing them and then being able to reap the benefits as a healthy snack is teaching them to actively enjoy healthy eating. When studying childhood obesity it is essential to study their environment because I believe the behaviors children are taught will stay with them as they age. Furthermore, it is important to step in and see if anything can be done to halt the growing number of obese children.
10/21/2016 0 Comments Adolescent Eating Habits Part of the increase of adolescent obesity could be attributed to missing meals according to Demissie, Eaton, Lowry, Nihiser, and Foltz (2010), whose study focused on the prevalence of missed meals by high school students and examines the correlation of overweight and obesity. The study found that breakfast was the most frequently missed meal. Additionally, those more likely to miss meals were more likely to be overweight or obese. This raises a couple important issues pertaining to adolescent health. For one, missed meals could be detrimental to adolescent development. Secondly, the correlation of missed meals to overweight and obese adolescents suggest that further research should be included focusing on the eating habits of overweight and obese adolescents. Studies focusing on this may find more information on the effect of irregular eating patterns in adolescents.
Adolescent obesity is a huge concern across the nation. There are many factors that influence a child's health; however, eating habits are a huge aspect and can make a huge impact. Many children start growing eating habits at a young age, so it is important to incorporate healthy eating habits early on. After looking at various studies, research shows that adolescents typically gain their habits from their parents. According to O’Dea (2005), “Recent research suggests that parents are still considered by children and adolescents to be the gatekeepers of the family food supply and that parents act as important role models for children’s eating behaviors” (p. 67). Therefore, it is important to not only focus on educating children but the parents as well. By teaching children how to have healthier eating habits at a young age it can help prevent obesity and many chronic diseases. 10/21/2016 0 Comments Intro: Adolescent ObesityAdolescence is a significant time in an individuals life where many changes happen at a young age. During this time puberty changes are being experienced and exploration of independence and experimentation is taking place. Adolescent obesity in the United States has many important effects for both the health and well-being of the individual and society. Specific negative impacts of obesity on health include increased susceptibility to a host of diseases, chronic health disorders, psychological disorders, and premature death, which in turn add billions of dollars in health care costs each year (Flegal, Graubard, Williamson, Gail, & Mitchell, 2006). Excess medical costs due to overweight adolescents are estimated at more than $14 billion per year (Trasande & Chatterjee, 2009. Moreover, adolescent obesity affects our nation’s ability to protect itself; more than a quarter of 17- to 24-year-olds are not fit to enroll in the military due to their weight. Adolescence is a crucial period for establishing healthy behaviors. Many of the habits formed during this developmental stage will be carried on to adulthood. Obesity and poor nutrition – combined with mental health disorders and emotional problems, violence and unintentional injury, substance use, and reproductive health problems – form part of a complex web of potential challenges to adolescents’ healthy emotional and physical development. The adolescent population in America is growing more ethnically diverse with Hispanic and Asian American youth at a rapid increase. With the rise in ethically diverse adolescent population cultural responsiveness to health care needs is required. Also, it is important for health care educators and professionals to take a closer look at the disparate health outcomes. Behaviors of youth, “are influenced at the individual, peer, family, school, community, and societal levels” (ODPHP, 2016). The United States is growing and becoming more diverse everyday which impacts the cultural disparities among different subgroups. Adolescents is a critical time in an individuals life where they grow and adapt habits that can follow them through ought their lives. This article clearly shows that socioeconomic status, culture, and environment can greatly impact ones health. Adolescents who are educated at a young age about healthier lifestyles can improve their overall future health. An additional important aspect of adolescent health is parental health behaviors. If one’s parents are exercising regularly their children are less likely to be inactive. In a study done in 2003, adolescents whose parents reported exercising heavily in the last month were more likely to exercise six to eleven times a week compared to children who reported there parents did not exercise heavily (Aufseeser, 2006). Furthermore, eating meals with family members could have an affect on children’s health and lifestyle. It was reported that adolescents that eat meals with their parents were more likely to eat fruits and vegetables (Aufseeser, 2006). They were less likely to skip breakfast, the most important meal of the day! I know from experience with my younger brother who is now 16, if my mom or I was not around he would choose to eat macaroni and cheese, hot dogs and chips everyday. With my influence, I’m able to get him to eat grapes, strawberries, carrots, broccoli and a few other healthy yummy foods. As parents or older siblings it is our job to look after the younger children and teach them healthy eating habits. Without an adult or someone to look up to some adolescents may lack in healthy eating and exercising habits.
We came across another idea that may influence unhealthy habits of adolescents. Through an article about the health of American Indian and Alaska native children, and they did a study on amount of television watched and weight. Students in grades 9-12 of 45% of American Indian decent watched more than three hours of television on a school day, while only about 30 percent of white peers did so. This study found a positive correlation between hours of television watched and obesity (RWIJ, 2010). If some children do not have any activities planned out for them they might resort to spending time watching television and snacking. Families with more time and money may be able to enroll children in after school recreational activities. The United States is known to be a very diverse and multicultural country. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) over one third of the adolescent population are considered obese. However, among certain ethnic groups the risk for childhood obesity and chronic diseases is a lot higher especially during adolescent years. African Americans, Native Americans, Asian Americans, and Hispanic/Latino commonly face more barriers in attaining a healthy lifestyle. For example among Hispanic/Latino groups 30.4 percent of children are considered obese (CDC). Also, African American youths have more limitations to getting proper amounts of physical activity due to inherited chronic diseases such as obesity and diabetes. Furthermore, genetic conditions known to be associated with predilection for obesity include Prader-Willi syndrome, Bardet-Biedl syndrome, and Cohen syndrome. Obesity clearly demonstrates a familial tendency. The Avon Longitudinal Study demonstrated that children aged 7 become obese if the father, mother or both had obesity. Before 3 yearsr of age, parental obesity is a stronger predictor of obesity in adulthood than the child’s weight status. According to Hasson, E. R., Adam, C. T., Pearson, J., Davis, N. J., Spruijt-Metz, D., & Goran, I. M (2013) among Hispanic/Latino and African American cultures poverty rates are higher. These results showed that there is a relationship between socioeconomic status and obesity. Because of these disparities among these cultural subgroups it can lead to prediabetes, diabetes, and obesity among adolescent minority children. Unfortunately, these disparities can sometimes prevent these individuals from getting proper health care, education, proper physical activity and nutrition. Among Hispanic/Latino populations things like income, family, and language barriers get in the way of getting in the proper amount of physical activity. With further research, we found what are preventing adolescents from attaining a healthy lifestyle. Lastly, we have included socioeconomic, cultural, and environmental barriers that may prevent an adolescent from getting a healthy lifestyle.
Some research suggests that the increased trend of adolescent obesity is reaching or is currently at a plateau. Frederick, Snellman, and Putnam (2014) suggest that such studies have disregarded the obesity status of certain subgroups and have paid major attention to adolescents with families of higher socioeconomic status. At the very least, health science scholars know that a higher socioeconomic status is associated with better physical health. Although obesity is an epidemic across America, those with higher socioeconomic status, given the general SES to health association or trend, are more likely to show improvements in decreasing obesity among their population or at the very least put the obesity trend at a plateau. Given this presumption however, there is still no general agreement on how much social disparities affect rates of obesity. In their study, Frederick, Snellman, and Putnam’s (2014) goal to investigate the gap in obesity trends between higher socioeconomic groups and lower socioeconomic groups. They found that in a target population of adolescents 12 to 17 years old while the trend of obesity started to decrease, the obesity trend for those of lower socioeconomic status have continued to increase. Additionally, they attempted to identify disparities among ethnic groups, however their sample size of nonwhites was too small to collect or find any statistically significant data. This article points to extremely important gaps in examining the obesity trend in America. For one, more information is needed in examining the disparities among ethnic groups of significant size. What we know, for example, is that African Americans are more prone to cardiovascular disease. What we want know more of is whether obesity trends within the African American subgroups are disproportionately higher than in other subgroups. The same should be identified for all other ethnic subgroups. A part of examining obesity trends within the lower SES subgroup and within ethnic subgroups is investigating and identifying why such obesity trends may or may not exist. It is especially important to target adolescents and children due to its preventative influence. Adolescents who understand this research and learn alternative lifestyles that protect themselves from obesity will lead to a healthier America. 10/21/2016 2 Comments ReferencesAdolescent Health. (2016, September 14). Retrieved September 16, 2016, from
https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/topics-objectives/topic/Adolescent-Health Aufseeser D, Jekielek S, & Brown B. (2006). The Family Environment and Adolescent Well-Being: Exposure to Positive and Negative Family Influences. Washington, D.C.: Child Trends; and San Francisco, CA: National Adolescent Health Information Center, University of California, San Francisco Beaver, K. , Flores, T. , Boutwell, B. , & Gibson, C. (2012). Genetic influences on adolescent eating habits. Health Education & Behavior, 39(2), 142-151. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2012). Childhood Obesity Facts. Retrieved From: https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/obesity/facts.htm Demissie, Z., Eaton, D. K., Lowry, R., Nihiser, A. J., and Foltz, J. L. (2010). Prevalence and correlates of missing meals among high school students. American Journal of Health Promotion, 1-7. DOI: 10.1177/0890117116667348 O'Dea, Jennifer A. "Improving adolescent eating habits and prevention of child obesity: Are we neglecting the crucial role of parents?." Nutrition & Dietetics 62.2‐3 (2005): 66-68. Flegal, Katherine M.; Graubard, Barry I.; Williamson, David F.; Gail, Mitchell H. 2006. Excess Deaths Associated with Underweight, Overweight, and Obesity. Journal of the American Medical Association 293(15): 1861-1867. Frederick, C. B., Snellman, K., and Putnam, R. D. (2014). Increasing socioeconomic disparities in adolescent obesity. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 111(4), 1338-1342. Hasson, E. R., Adam, C. T., Pearson, J., Davis, N. J., Spruijt-Metz, D., & Goran, I. M. (2013). Sociocultural and socioeconomic influences on type 2 diabetes risk in overweight/obese African-american and latino-american children and adolescents. Journal of Obesity, 13. O'Dea, Jennifer A. "Improving adolescent eating habits and prevention of child obesity: Are we neglecting the crucial role of parents?." Nutrition & Dietetics 62.2‐3 (2005): 66-68. Overweight and Obesity Among American Indian and Alaska Native Youths. (2010, May).Retrieved:September16,2016 http://www.rwjf.org/content/dam/farm/reports/issue_briefs/2010/rwjf59625 Trasande, Leonardo; Chatterjee, Samprit. 2009. The Impact of Obesity on Health Service Utilization and Costs in Childhood. Obesity (Silver Spring) 17(9): 1749-1754. |
REVOLUTION 410The reason why we called our blog "Revolution" is because we are a group who would like to start a revolution of sharing, addressing, and advocating the health of adolescents today. |