Research Health Project Report

This research report investigates the link between healthy eating and childhood obesity in the UK. It begins with an abstract outlining the problem of rising childhood obesity and its health consequences. The introduction emphasizes the importance of healthy eating habits. A comprehensive literature review examines existing research on the causes of childhood obesity, including unhealthy diets, lack of exercise, genetic factors, and environmental influences. The report then details the research methodology, including a descriptive research design, sampling strategies (random sampling), and data collection methods (questionnaires). The results are presented through thematic interpretations of the questionnaire data, analyzing student awareness of health issues, prevalent health problems, the role of fast food, school health programs, food preferences, and parental influence. The discussion section analyzes the findings, highlighting the roles of parents and schools in addressing the issue. The conclusion summarizes the key findings, reinforcing the importance of healthy eating and physical activity in preventing childhood obesity and offering recommendations for interventions. The report includes appendices with the questionnaire used in the study and supporting illustrations.

RESEARCH HEALTH
PROJECT

Table of Contents
TITLE : Healthy Eating Reduces Obesity in Children in UK.........................................................3
ABSTRACT.....................................................................................................................................3
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
LITERATURE REVIEW................................................................................................................4
RESEARCH QUESTIONS, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES............................................................10
METHODS....................................................................................................................................11
DISCUSSION................................................................................................................................20
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................20
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................21

TITLE : Healthy Eating Reduces Obesity in Children in UK
ABSTRACT
Obesity in childrens are characterised as abnoral conditions or excessive consumption of
food that affects the health of children's. It is a medical condition that affects the health of
children and the teenagers. Everyone has a capacity in their body according to which they can
store fats in their body. Overweight and obesity is becoming a major issue in UK. The children
in UK are mostly affected by this disease and their number is increasing on a regular basis. The
main objective is to prevent the obesity from the children in UK by making them aware about the
effects of not consuming healthy food.Excess consumption of fast food can lead to opposite
reaction in our body and this can lead to store fats in the body parts and that will give rise to
many problems and the body will become unhealthy. The methods which can be helpful in
reducing child obesity includes the following aspects:
Encourage healthy eating habits among the children this small step can improve the
healthy to much greater extent. Childrens should be encouraged to consume healthy foods as
these food helps in keeping the body fit and healthy.
INTRODUCTION
It is a popular saying that you are what you eat. Your eating habits reflects on your body.
Taking a healthy diet provides number of nutrients and these are available in vegetables, they are
low in fat and neither have cholesterol nor calories (Bieringand et. al 2012). Eating healthy food
reduces so many diseases that a person invites when they eat junk food. The diseases such as
heart strokes, obesity, prevents from cancer, blood pressure remains in control, diabetes etc. the
childhood obesity has been a major issue in UK these days. It has become a global issue. This
needs to be controlled as soon as possible. For this everybody has to be aware because obesity
itself is a disease that invites various problems. So to get rid of it and have a healthy body is the
utmost objective. The report contains the study about the perception about the eating habits of
the children of UK and what are the harmful benefits that they are facing because of obesity. In
this report various methods will be discussed along with the literature review and accordingly
recommendations are given.

LITERATURE REVIEW
Literature Review are the text which includes the present knowledge about the findings
and contribution towards the particular topic. They are the base for conducting any research in
any field according to the chosen topic. They are the secondary sources and does not study any
work which is first hand or originally done. Narrow scope literatures reviews are considered as
the part of peer revised journals. Literature reviews also contains the study of persons who are
doing graduation or post graduation which includes their work in context to the related research
topic. The thesis students have prepared in evaluation of research also plays an important role in
research study.
According to Corsino and et. al., (2012) The children residing in UK has been suffering
from overweight issues and obesity problems. According to Deloriand et. al., (2012) the children
after 1991 are mostly overweight and after 1998 are obese. They are children who are obese
from the starting and some become obese while growing up. The world health organisation has
marked obesity in a serious category of disease and it is as severe as other chronic diseases and
diseases occurring from drinking polluted water.
According to Mermond and et. al., (2012) The reason for obesity is unhealthy diet and the
cause of this is that the parents and schools does not give attention to the health issues of
children. They both have a very strong influence on the life of a child. It is their responsibility to
indulge them in activities that involve physical exertion and make them habitual to exercise.
They should teach them to eat healthy from the starting.
According to DeLuca and et. al., (2012) it is a psychological issue that influence the
person, it also depends on superiority of children. The awareness factor of eating healthy is also
a big issue. Another important factor is motivation. The obesity issues have been given priority
and they must be treated asap. The influential factor here are parents and after them schools.
Parent be the guiding force to the children as they can inculcate any habit in them when they are
at their learning phase. Say for instance breastfeeding their children for the first six months is
very essential and it also prevents them to be overweight. And it gives so many healthy
advantages to a child but still some parents does not follow this advice and give their child
outside food which make them ill and invite to various health related problems.
From the view point of Donnelly and et. al., (2013) the possible reasons of obesity that
occur in the life of a person are parental obesity, time duration of their sleep, weight at their birth

time, excess duration of viewing television, gaining weight at the time of infancy, early life size,
or may be their body mass index is rebound or catch up growth etc.
BMI (kg/m2) = mass (kg) / height (m)2
According to view point of Wang, (2013) obesity occurs because of the increase in fat
cells, it happens because during the period of growth their is an incremental in the number of fat
cells that results in the increase of size that happens when they absorb energy. Obesity is the
stage where the weight of an individual is higher than the ideal weight. The ideal weight is
calculated by the measure of body mass index. It measures the relationship between the height
and weight of a person. The weight of a person must be in proportion to its height. The obesity
in children is often described to identify the persons who are at risk of getting obese. The

children's should be prevented then and there. It refers to excess body fat than the normal. Excess
facts is This happens generally due to unhealthy practices and not doing exercise. The children
who suffer from obesity often has problems related to bones, they are prone to orthopaedic
issues. They suffer from type two diabetes that was initially take place in adults only but now a
days it has been seen in obese children.
From the view point of Driscoll and et. al., (2012) The confidence level of obese
children's are very low and they does not have a high self esteem. Most of the obese kids feel
inferior. They do stress eating and have eating disorders. They are usually dissatisfied with their
bodies. Because of this they face adverse situations.
Causes of obesity
There are various causes of obesity Ellsworth 2014 has find out three reasons and these
are lack of exercise, overeating, hereditary.
Genetics: This is the cause of obesity but it is very less in percentage. Very less people
are obese because of there hereditary issues. This happens because of hormonal dis balance. It an
be curd and children can make their weight in proportion to their height by following proper and
healthy diet and they can control their excess weight by doing exercise.
Lack of exercise: this happens because the child is not moving his body as required to
burn the calories that he has undertaken. It happens this has been the important fact6or that is
increasing the obesity in children. As there is no physical activity involved in the lives of
children,. These days they are occupied in the social media and in their phones an laptops. They
don't play outdoor games, don't socialise as they spend their entire time on phones, laptops
televisions. Involvement in physical activity helps the child to reduce the risk of obesity by 26%
to 48% as identified by (Englberger and et.al., 2010). Children these days does not play with
their friends, does not ride bicycles , no jumping no skipping nothing. All this has been replaced
by video games, computers etc.
Overeating: this is the main cause of obesity. Children are eating whatever they are
getting. In this the biggest defaulter is their parents and the school. The schools are offering them
food which are delicious in taste but ridiculous in nutrients content. They are providing them a
with junk food and they have installed candy machines and children are eating all those junk and
getting g obese. The fruits and vegetables have been replaced by pizzas and burgers. The intake
of fats and calories are increasing and nutrient are not going in the bodies of children. This is

very serious issue and appropriate measures must be taken in this case. It is damaging the
children and the society as a whole (Fine and et.al 2011) .The biggest problem is that children
cant quit eating junk food as they don't have other choices. In school and colleges only junk food
is available. So how they will control and what they will eat of they are not eating junk food. The
schools should have food which contain the nutrients required for the child . Children should be
motivated to make healthy choices everyday. There are some other factors that are responsible
for the growing fat of children and if not stopped here it will convert into obesity.
The sedentary lifestyle is playing an important role in obesity Finlayson 2014 . Watching
television for very long hours , playing video games and spending more time on television .
While watching television they does not think before eating and they just eat and eat . They
consume heavy food and they keep on sitting and it does not digests leading to excess weight.
The factors that influence the children is advertisements on televisions. They promote junk food
and targeted children only. 90% of advertisements involve children they attract them by showing
attractive food and instigate them to make unhealthy choices.
Environmental forces: These are the factors in which the child is surrounded(Fleurant
and et.al., 2011). These includes home and school. And it directly influence their eating habits
and their physical activities. They both play a very important role in the loves of a child and they
are the force behind their motivation. Schools can encourage them to do exercises and can
involve various physical activity that help them to loose calories and loss weight, they should
even conduct a daily one hour session of exercise. this will bring regularity in them and they will
develop a habit of exercise.
Breast feeding: it is the first experience of nutrition an individual and if it is not proper
then it may lad to various chronic disease in the child, including obesity. It affects the protein
content in the child as the children who are not breast feed suffers fro lack of proteins and have
hormonal dis balance and lead to obesity(Frisbee and et.al, 2010 ). The children who have been
breast feeded for the period of six months they are not likely to become obese.
Energy intake
Energy intake must be balanced otherwise it will increase the risk of being obese .the
energy that is in taking result in fat sometimes.
Family: The other factor that instigate obesity is the family (Honikman and et.al, 2012).
It has been found out that the family who is more active and do exercise regularly there children

are also active and exercise. In contrary the parents who does not involve in physical activities
there children are also not active in exercise. This happens because children take dietary intake
from the parents and if they provide proper nutrition diet to their wards they will be healthy and
will lead a fit life.
Measuring obesity:
The percentage of body weight changes as the children grows. The re is difference in the
BMI of girls and boys as there bodies are different . Body mass index is calculated and compared
with the ideal weight that must be according to the height age and gender if the children.
Effects:
There are lots of adverse causes that occur with the obesity and these relate to unbalanced
blood pressure. Type two diabetes , low self confidence, depression (Johnson 2014),
dissatisfaction etc. obese kids often suffer from discrimination. They are treated as objects for
making fun of. They usually result in overweight adults.
INTERVENTIONS
It is necessary to have a check on the children and finding out the affects which are
causing obesity in children. These affects must be monitored regularly and they are to be cured
this includes investigation of the issues that causes obesity. It includes genetic problems,
investigating their dietary plans, their activity level. In this their psychology related to their food
intake is assessed. It is clear that there are various factors that contribute in the obesity of a child
and it must be prevented. According to Kimme (2011) diet of a child plays a very crucial role in
the life of a child. he has suggested a numb er of approaches to control diet and that the diet must
be not more than 1200-1400 calories per day . And if this is followed than the child will not be
obese. Levine and et. al., 2012 suggested that a person who is taking a balanced diet of high
protein, low carbohydrates is more suitable than the diet of unbalanced low calorie diet. The
intake of dietary fibre is recommended for children of the growing age. They should be allowed
to have colourful diet like lots of fruits and vegetables. Once a while they must be allowed to eat
whatever they want but after that proper exercise should be done and those extra calories must be
burned.
Community based interventions
the role of the community in the life of a child is huge and it comprises of various factors that are
related to demographic factors, geographical factors, and the socio-economic status. The

community has the power to influence the people and they can do this by floating the messages
for health and prosperity
(Limaye Deka and Mwaikambo 2015), they can encourage them in imparting healthy lifestyle.
They play a very important role in motivating the people. They can along with parents promote
the intake of nutrition and can conduct the lectures on healthy diets. This report comprises of the
perception of healthy eating to reduce child obesity. The parents should take care of their child's
diet and indulge them in the physical activity from the very starting so that it will be in their
routine. The importance of healthy eating should be taught to them and the benefits that people
get by eating healthy are:
Balanced diet provides vital nutrients, minerals and vitamins to the body. These are
essential for the body to maintain cells, organs and tissues for the proper functioning of the body.
If the diet is not proper than the child suffers from various problems like low on energy,
tiredness, sleep disorders, not only this but it can lead to high functional disorders such as failure
of vital organs, malnutritions, improper growth etc. (Lipshultzand et.al 2012). The body
functions properly when it gets the proper and required nutrition . One should not eat packet
foods as the nutrient value is lost in them. The calorie proportion must be proper to maintain a
healthy life . The diet depends on person to person. Metabolism of every person is different and
they must take diet according to that only. The diet should include all the essential nutrients,
mineral, vitamin, fats in some proportion is also necessary I the body so proper diet must be
taken as this will help in reducing the excess weight and help in gaining fit body. Eating healthy
also means to eat three to four times a day but in small proportion.
Children need the nutrients and vitamins in there body without that they can not be
survive in the environment. These vitamins and nutrients are taken in a way of food. So there are
foods which can harms the children life so they should take healthy diet the several benefits of
the children healthy diet are as follows:
 Healthy smile and face: When the children is taking the healthy food then there nutrients
and vitamins well give affect on there face (Kimme-Hea, 2011). That they well be getting
glowing face and good smile. This is the major thin that can motivate any body and they
also get motivate by there smile and face.
 Less stress: When children is taking the healthy foods then they well always manage his
stress in there life. The baby well get smiling nature in his life.

 Active body: To days baby are gating fatty and by that they are not active in the day to
day life so they need healthy diet to get active and reduce there weight. So they well get
active in there day to day life.
 Healthy mind: If the baby well get is not getting the healthy food then it well show the
impact on there mind. The children can become the dam. It is important to give them a
healthy food by that they well get the sharp mind.
 Improve mood: There are two type of moods of the baby. First one is that baby how
always cries they do not like any body in there life and second one enjoy there life for
second one mother have to give healthy diet to them.
 Increase knowledge: The healthy food give more nutrients and vitamins to childes. If they
get these there learning power well get increase and there knowledge well also increase.
In the life of children they like food that is tasty but most of the testy food are not good
for them. So mothers of them have to take of them and give healthy food to them. Mother have
to take care of them and make hose made foods. Every body need the healthy foods in there life
the child age and the old age (Martey and et.al., 2013). These both ages need same healthy food
and safety. The healthy diet provide the energy and it well give them activeness in these in there
life. In the life of chi dens they have to be active in every activity like games, study,
management, etc. These need the healthy foods. Children are the age of the growing so they have
need high level of vitamins and nutrients to grow.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
AIM : To inculcate healthy eating habits in children
Objectives:
 To identify the major reasons of increase in obesity problems in children
 To study about the number of teenagers who are mainly affected by the problem.
 To identify number of children's involved in physical activity
 To identify the diet plan of children.
METHODS
Research Methodology

This is one of the most critical part in the research project where the researcher required
to select appropriate research methodologies. There are various approaches which can be used in
a research report such as qualitative and quantitative. In the context of current study, this is a
descriptive research and qualitative methods is to be used in order to analyses data and interpret
them in an effective manner. Data collection methods is also significant in a research report.
There are two types of data primary and secondary are to be used. In the primary data
questionnaire survey approach is used and the sample size is 25 student. In the secondary data
news articles, magazines, and other secondary information are using in order to solve research
problems.
Research Design
The research design involves the overall study that are used to integrate the different
components that are used in the study in a logical way and thus ensuring the effectiveness of the
research(Peykariand et.al 2013). It also contains the blueprint of the different methods of data
collection, the measurement techniques and the analysis of the data.
The descriptive research design involves the individuals to know something about the groups of
the people. The design mainly depicts the participants that are involved in the research in an
accurate way. The descriptive research in the simple way is describing about the people who
takes part in the study. The descriptive research design can be done with the help of observations
that involves the method that is used for viewing and recording the habits of the participants that
are involved in the research process. The case study defines the depth study of the individuals or
the group of the individuals that are involved in the research (Raineand et.al 2011). The survey
gives a brief about the methods that were used in the research process, brief about the process of
interview and decisions with the group or individual on a specific topic. In a qualitative study
findings are found while interpreting the perceptions of the children about their food and food
habits. The study is conducted for understanding the relationship between healthy eating and
obesity. Data is gathered from 25 children and their age was between 9-14 years. Teenagers were
selected for the research as they were mostly affected by obesity. At this age children are
consuming fast food in huge quantity and thus the questionnaire was filled by them to know their
opinion. The questionnaire has been designed keeping in mind the sensitivity of the issue and the
thought that harsh questions might hurt the sentiments of the children. They are taught that they
should eat those things that they need.

Sampling Strategies
The research was conducted to see how many children were suffering from the disease
obesity. The research were done on the children's of the employees who were working in the
organisation. The sample size of the research was 25 means the questionnaire was filled from 25
children to know about the type of food they were consuming. The sampling strategies that were
used in the research are:
Random Sampling: In random sampling technique the samples are collected on random
basis and each unit of population has an equal chance of being selected. The sampling technique
is a good technique to remove bias from the sampling process and thus it produces results that
are used in obtaining results of the representative samples(Rawal Rawal and Pandit 2015). In
random sampling the size of the group is proportional to the sample size of the data.
Stratified Random Sampling: Like the random sampling technique stratified sampling
techniques are used in those situations where the data has to viewed with the help of the graphs
or batch data
This sampling is used when there are different groups of people and the analyst wants to make
sure that the groups are fairly dealing in the questions that are asked in the samples. In stratified
sampling independent samples are taken out from each group and the size of each independent
sample is proportional to the size of the group.
Systematic Sampling: The systematic sampling is used in the process of sampling
where the data is used in the real time basis during the process of operations. Like the sampling
technique the sample size must also be selected in the systematic sampling. The data can also be
used for the study of the population if the frequency is not biased(Secker,and et.al 2010) . The
systematic sampling involves the systematic rules that is every forth or every fifth unit is selected
for the sample and it continuous in the same way. The systematic sampling has an error that the
systematic rules that are followed may match with the underlying structure and thus biasses in
the samples.
Rational Sub grouping: It is the process that determines that the data should be put into
meaningful groups so that the data is better understood in the research and the sources of the
variances can be easily calculated(Shin Kim and Lee 2010). This sampling technique is used in
the typically used in the process sampling were the data is collected in real time situation.