Childhood Obesity Report 2022

Running head: CHILDHOOD OBESITY
CHILDHOOD OBESITY
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Introduction
This report will focus on the knowledge and understanding of childhood obesity that is
largely affecting the population of Australia. Obesity is defined as the complex illness that includes
accumulation of excess amount of fat within the human body, which also increases the associated risk
of other health problems like high blood pressure, diabetes and heart diseases (World Health
Organization, 2019). Childhood obesity is the condition that affects the child due to excess
accumulation of body fat. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW), 25%
of the population who are affected with obesity are adolescent and children aged 2-17, therefore
stating that 1 in every 4 children, suffer from the condition of obesity in 2017-18 (Aihw.gov.au,
2019).
Causes of Childhood obesity
The total number of obese children has almost doubled in Australia, therefore assuming that
quarter population of the children in Australia are suffering from obesity and overweight that might be
triggered due to various causes that result in additional accumulation of fat within the child. The
causes leading to the condition of childhood obesity are as follows (Betterhealth.vic.gov.au, 2019):
 Food choices- This include high amount of sugar and fat consumption of food that is not
considered as healthy for the development of the child.
 Lack of adequate physical activity- This include complete absence of physical activity like
playing or exercising, which leads to accumulation of fat and obesity.
 Genetics- This includes the role of genetic factors that increases the risk of obesity among the
child also associated with few rare genetic illness that might result in the condition of severe
obesity (Gurnani, Birken & Hamilton, 2015).
 Early life involvement- This includes the factors that might have resulted in the condition of
obesity in the child due to their mother during pregnancy such as poor nutrition, gaining
excess weight and smoking.
 Overweight parents- This includes the eating pattern of the family that has a major impact in
the lifestyle of the child and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. The overweight parents tend to
have an overweight child as they are less concerned about the excess weight of the child
(Williams et al., 2015).
 Sedentary lifestyle- This includes an inactive lifestyle of the child with no physical activity
and the child spend majority of their time watching television, compute or playing electronic
games, which therefore increase the risk of obesity.

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Long-term health implication of obesity
Childhood obesity or overweight is related with enhanced risk of premature disability and
death in adulthood. The child who is suffering from obesity are prone to suffer from both the short-
term and long-term health implications (Hruby et al., 2016). Approximately 2.6 million children die
every year due to obesity or overweight. The long-term health implication obesity on the child are as
follows (Aihw.gov.au, 2019):
 The obese child are under greater risk or threat of obtaining cardiovascular risk factors,
depression, premature mortality, arthritis, diabetes and cancer (Sahoo et al., 2015).
 According to the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC), it is estimated that the
children who are obese from the initial age of their lifecycle are under the threat of persistent
obesity.
 Obesity is associated with different types of cancer namely endometrial, kidney, breast and
colon cancer.
 The obese child are under the risk of developing musculoskeletal disorders due to extra or
additional accumulation of body fat that includes back pain and osteoarthritis.
 A female obese child are more prone to have an affected fertility rate and the chances of
having a caesarean birth increases during their adult phase of life. Obesity also lead to an
intergenerational wellbeing effect for both the baby and mother (Godfrey et al., 2017).
Influencers of childhood obesity
Obesity is defined as the abnormal accumulation of fat. Australia ranks fifth within the
Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) countries in 2017. Body mass
index (BMI) ratio is used to measure the weight of an individual and the BMI exhibiting 35 kg/m2 or
above are under higher risk of developing severe obesity. There are various factors and social
determinants that can increase the condition of obesity, which includes the following (Cdc.gov, 2019):
 Diet and lifestyle- Obesity and overweight is caused due to lack of energy balance within the
body, when the body consume higher amount of fat and energy that is not required by the
body, therefore leading to excess accumulation of fat. Consuming excess amount of sugars or
fats with zero physical activity leads to accumulation of surplus energy therefore resulting in
obesity.
 Social determinants- The children residing in the lower socioeconomic areas are more prone
to develop the condition of obesity as compare to the children residing in higher
socioeconomic areas, as obesity is directly related to the socio-economic status of the
individual (Vichealth.vic.gov.au, 2019).
 Health literacy- The children who are living in lower socioeconomic areas do not receive
proper education and knowledge regarding the adverse effect of obesity and also lack

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knowledge on the factors that can lead to obesity and hence, such child are very prone
towards developing the health condition.
 Vulnerability- The child residing in poor areas of the country lack facility of proper health
and are more vulnerable towards developing obesity, as they are not aware of the amount of
calories or food that should be consumed and are often affected due to environmental,
behavioural and genetic factors that causes obesity.
Public Health Initiative
The Obesity Prevention and Lifestyle (OPAL) initiative was developed and implemented
within Australia specifically South Australia that was aimed to develop the physical and eating pattern
of the children especially those who belong to the low socio-economic area. The community and
family members were also included in the plan, who will focus on improving the general quality of
life of the children and develop partnership with the local councils to enhance the program in
Australia (Sahealth.sa.gov.au, 2019).
This program was implemented for the time period of 5 years among 20 OPAL communities
in South Australia. This program was effective in addressing the health condition of the child who
were suffering from obesity as evaluated by The Flinders University of South Australia. A change in
health-associated quality of life and weight was seen in the population after the implementation of the
program. Therefore, it was established that The Obesity Prevention and Lifestyle (OPAL) initiative
was effective in educating the community and families reading the obesity condition.
Conclusion
From this report, we have gained a detail knowledge on the concept of childhood obesity and
it is defined as the complex illness that includes accumulation of excess amount of fat within the
human body, which also increases the associated risk of other health problems like high blood
pressure, diabetes and heart diseases. The causes, long-term and short-term effects and influencers of
obesity was explained in the report, which helped in understanding all the possible factors that result
in the condition of obesity. The Obesity Prevention and Lifestyle (OPAL) initiative was also
explained that was aimed to develop the physical and eating pattern of the children especially those
who belong to the low socio-economic area.

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References
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Godfrey, K. M., Reynolds, R. M., Prescott, S. L., Nyirenda, M., Jaddoe, V. W., Eriksson, J.
G., & Broekman, B. F. (2017). Influence of maternal obesity on the long-term health
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