Health Promotion Plan Assignment 2022

Running head: HEALTH PROMOTION PLAN
1
Health Promotion Program
Name
Institution

HEALTH PROMOTION PLAN 2
Health Promotion Program to Combat Childhood and Adolescent Obesity
Introduction
Obesity is a medical condition that is characterized by excessive body fat. It is a health
risk that increases an individual’s chances of developing other conditions such as
diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, and some forms of cancer. According
to Karnik & Kanekar (2012), obesity among children has proven to be one of the most
serious health challenges in the 21st century because of its rapid increase and the
public health risks it possesses. Approximately 25% of children aged between 5 years
and 17 years in Australia are either obese or overweight ("Department of Health |
Overweight and Obesity", 2019). It has become a global problem majorly affecting the
urban setting with an increasing prevalence (Karnik & Kanekar, 2012). If this health
condition is not tackled, then these overweight children risk being obese into their
adulthoods. As a result, they are at a higher risk of developing non-communicable
diseases like heart-related diseases and diabetes (Cote, Harris, Panagiotopoulos,
Sandor & Devlin, 2013). It is important to note that with the appropriate health promotion
program, obesity and overweight among children can be easily prevented.
Childhood and adolescent periods are very fundamental for the introduction of healthy
habits (Gill, Plasqui, Schols & Kok, 2014). It is, however, a challenge to implement
these healthy habits as evidenced by the current number of obese children and
adolescents. Impacting these habits at a young age is important because the children
grow up with them into adulthood (Gill et al., 2014). The World Health Organization in
cooperation with the Institute of Medicine put forward recommendations on
comprehensive interventions to help in combating obesity. This essay analyses the
outcome of the program and the outcome variable. It additionally talks about the
targeted population, risk factors, methodology of the program, and the potential
successes of the program.
The Aim of the Program
The main aim of this program is to evaluate healthy lifestyle initiatives with the hope of
improving the health outcomes of children and adolescents at risk of obesity and

HEALTH PROMOTION PLAN 3
overweight and thus prevent excess weight among the children. The first step in
evaluating healthy lifestyles and reducing the risk of obesity in children is by promoting
healthy eating habits (Liu et al., 2012). This program, however, has not proven tom be
effective among children below the age of 5 years. It is widely agreed that early
childhood prevention of obesity is important, however, no evidence has been presented
to show that this program is effective in pre-school children.
Another aim of this health promotion program is to the levels of physical activities in
children both at home and in school. Most children in Australia do not meet the
recommended levels of physical activity which explains the high prevalence of
overweight and obesity among children and adolescents in Australia. Most children
spend most of their time playing video games and on social media thus rarely engaging
in active behaviours (Liu et al., 2012). It is important to note that children and
adolescents who do not engage in physical activities as recommended are highly likely
to live less healthy lives. It is thus important that they engage in these activities and
sports to help in weight reduction and maintenance thus combating obesity (Liu et al.,
2012).
This health promotion program has some expected outcomes known as outcome
variables that can be realized if the campaign is effective. One of the outcome variables
is the maintenance of a healthy BMI among children and adolescents that are not
diagnosed as obese or overweight. Another outcome variable is the reduction in weight
in obese children and adolescents. These outcome variables depend on the
independent variables that are aimed at achieving the goals of the campaign. Exercising
and healthy eating habits help in maintaining a healthy BMI among non-obese
individuals in addition to reducing the weight of children diagnosed with obesity.
Target Population
This health promotion plan targets children and adolescents who are obese or at risk of
being obese in Australia. According to studies, approximately 25% of children and
adolescents in Australia are obese ("Overweight & obesity Overview - Australian
Institute of Health and Welfare", 2019). The number of obese or overweight children is
even higher among aboriginal Australians (Schultz, 2012). It is important to note that