Childhood Obesity: National Health Priorities and Nursing Approaches

This essay analyzes childhood obesity as a significant public health issue in Australia, exploring its impact on individuals, families, and the broader community. It delves into the relationship between childhood obesity and Australia's National Health Priority Area (NHPA) for cardiovascular health, highlighting the direct threat that an obese childhood population poses to this priority. Furthermore, the essay examines the connections between childhood obesity and three key social determinants of health (SDH): education, social inequality, and residential environment, illustrating how these factors contribute to the prevalence of obesity. The essay also proposes an upstream nursing approach, emphasizing the role of nurses in educating mothers and children, promoting healthy food choices, and advocating for policy changes to combat obesity. By addressing these multifaceted aspects, the essay underscores the need for comprehensive intervention strategies to mitigate the adverse effects of childhood obesity and improve public health outcomes.

Childhood Obesity
CHILDHOOD OBESITY
Student’s Name
Course
Professor’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Date

Childhood Obesity
Childhood Obesity
Introduction
Australia has experienced significant changes in diet and physical activities in the recent
past, which have translated to high rates of overweight and childhood obesity among its
upcoming generation. The Australian Government Department of Health (2019) defines an
obese child as one having excess weight above the normal due to excessive storage of fats in the
body. The major concern with childhood obesity is that it progresses with the person to
adulthood and can be a major cause of age-related conditions such as cardiovascular diseases.
This creates a need for an early intervention at the childhood level to avoid having an obese
nation. According to Australia’s Institute of Health and welfare (IHW), 24.5% of cardiovascular
diseases in children are linked to overweight and obesity. Prevalence of this condition affects the
child as an individual, the community, and the national health priorities. This paper analyzes
childhood obesity as an issue of concern for the Australian community and nation as a whole.
Childhood Obesity and its Significance on the Individual, Family, and the Community
Childhood obesity affects the child as a person, but the consequences of an overweight
and obese child trickle to the community and the nation as a whole. At the individual level, the
child is at risk of carrying the condition to adulthood and this increases the chances of
developing cardiovascular diseases. Children who are obese are likely to stay unhealthy and this
could attract untreated stress and depression. According to Avsa, Ham, and Tanous (2017),
obesity does not go away automatically. Children who are obese are likely to be victims of
bullying and low self-esteem compared to their counterparts in the same age group. Children
who are obese are also likely to feel lonely as their colleagues in classrooms avoid them. They

Childhood Obesity
may struggle to fit into groups when others fill comfortable to associate and make friends in
social environments.
Prevalence of childhood obesity poses significant impact to the community of the child
and the nation at large. Obesity has been linked to high chances of cardiovascular diseases and
diabetes which attracts significant amount of medical costs from the national government and the
community. High expenditures on health sector affect taxpayers in terms of resources and
financial burdens. According to Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, the family of the
child incurs medical expenses in diagnosis and treatment of diseases linked to obesity. The
national and local governments spend financial resources that could be channeled to other
national development programs. This stresses the health department and the community as a
whole in terms of financial resources and human resource in healthcare setting.
The Relationship between Childhood Obesity and Australia’s National Health Priority
Area (NHPA) Cardiovascular Health
The National Health Priority Areas (NHPA) has goals to achieve for its community.
However, prevalence of childhood obesity poses significant challenge to NHPA. This is because
obesity works directly against the goals of NHPA. Currently, NHPA faces significant challenges
of combating cardiovascular diseases and addressing the increasing costs of expenditures in the
healthcare sector. A higher rate of children who are obese is a direct threat to NHPA. This is due
to the fact that having an obese childhood population increases the chances of developing
cardiovascular diseases which NHPA is determined to fight. According to Brown, Smith,
Bhopal, Kasim, and Summerbell (2015), cardiovascular diseases account to many deaths and
medical costs in Australia compared to any other disease or injury in the country’s population.
The primary concern is that an obese population of children is likely to develop into an obese of

Childhood Obesity
adults when proper interventions are not made at the childhood level. NHPA has to focus on
taming the condition among children in order to avoid the potential costs linked to medications
and management of cardiovascular diseases.
The Relationship between Childhood Obesity and Three Social Determinants of Health
(SDH)
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2019) defines determinants of health as factors
that determine the likelihood of a person staying health or becoming ill. Many of these factors
emanate from the environment that one is born, where one works, and the social environment
that one interacts with. The factors can be social r environmental. Access to these factors is likely
to promote health welfare and reduce the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases. Obesity is a
disease and increases the chances of a person suffering from cardiovascular diseases and
diabetes. SDH factors promote or undermine the health status of an individual. According to
Lakeveld and Markenbanch (2017), the health status of any individual is mostly linked to the
choices that the individual makes in life. These choices impact the health of the individual in
positive or negative manner. An analysis of obesity in terms of some of SDH reveals how the
condition can be addressed.
One of the SDH is education. Education empowers people and creates awareness on
leading an active life, making healthy diet decisions, and promoting the welfare of the child.
According to Mihrshahi, Drayton, Bauman, and Hard (2017), pregnant poor dietary habits are
linked to high chances of developing obesity. Parents that are not educated are likely to
contribute to prevalence of obesity among children. Educated mothers are likely to make
informed food choices when they are pregnant. They are also likely to educate their children and
community at large on the need to stay physically active to avoid cardiovascular diseases. On the

Childhood Obesity
other hand, lack of education is a setback to the health of a given community as parents cannot
understand their role in combatting obesity.
Social inequality is another SDH that contributes to prevalence of obesity in the
Australian community. Social inequalities arise when some populations are advantaged over the
others (Phillips, Fisher, Baum, MacDougall, Newman, & McDermott, 2016). For people to stay
healthy and physically active, they have to eat balanced diet and avoid cheap and processed
foods. However, poverty is one of the contributing factors when it comes to childhood obesity.
Children from poor families do not have diet options. Their parents opt for cheap and processed
foods which are rich in fats and lipids. This undermines the fight against obesity and places poor
families at higher risk of raising obese children. Similarly, higher levels of physical activities are
linked to low chances of developing obesity among children. According to Hruby, Manson, Qi,
Malik, Rimm, Sun, and Hu (2016), obesity rates have been linked to sedentary lifestyle choices.
Children from upper class families spend a lot of time playing games on mobile devices and
watching television. The high level of physical inactivity increases chances of developing
obesity as fats accumulate in the body.
Residential environment as an SDH has a significant impact on the prevalence of
childhood obesity in Australia. Considering that SDH factors work together to impact the health
of individuals, creating a healthy community depends on the residential environment of a child.
Children growing in low income families do not have options on dietary choices. Similarly,
pregnant mothers in low-income families do not have access to nutritional foods that are likely to
reduce chances of giving birth to children with normal weight. Pregnant mothers from poor
families are misinformed about their role in raising healthy children. Some of them blame their
children for becoming obese, failing to understand that the parental choices could have

Childhood Obesity
contributed to obesity. Children from urban areas are also disadvantaged and are at higher risk of
becoming obese due to lack of physical activities. Some of them are driven to and from school in
morning and evenings, denying them a chance to participate in active physical exercises. This
undermines the effort of combating obesity in urban areas.
The Relationship between Childhood Obesity and Upstreaming Approach in Nursing
In spite of significant challenges discussed above, scholars have proposed that upstream
nursing approach could play a significant role in taming obesity and creating a healthy
community. Brown et al. (2015) defines upstream interventions as those interventions meant to
change mechanisms, take a population approach, and support the current systems and policies
that could yield to positive impact in terms of social care and health. Generally, the nurse is an
active partner in the lifetime of any individual and is present from the point of conception to
adulthood. As a result, the nurse is the first person to help intervene and address the prevalence
and impact of obesity among populations. According to Musich et al. (2016), nurses can play an
active role in educating mothers and women at large on how to combat obesity. One of the
recommended possible interventions is to educate mothers on food choices during prenatal and
postnatal sessions. It is important that women learn how diet intake affects the health of the
inborn.
Most of the affected children are also in the school-going age. School nurses can
intervene by being present during physical education. They can participate in teaching children
on importance of physical exercises and the need to avoid fatty and sugary foods. Children are
the most social and active group. Considering that children are in the learning stage of life,
equipping them with proper knowledge on food choices and dietary can help prevent the
prevalence of overweight and obesity. Additionally, when children learn from nurses that food

Childhood Obesity
habits contribute to obesity, they will inform their parents and help and help disseminate
information about healthy food habits. School nurses can also help in making sure that foods that
children consume in schools do not have a lot of fats. Sugary and fatty foods have been linked to
overweight and obesity. When nurses learn their role in providing upstream measures, the
prevalence of childhood obesity and its impact on populations will decline.
Conclusion
Obesity poses a serious health threat to the Australian population. Obese children are at
risk of developing cardiovascular diseases. These diseases are expensive to manage and treat.
Considering that obesity progresses throughout the lifetime, intervention strategies should focus
on children as a population. Nurses can provide upstream services to combat obesity and help in
taming the cost of obesity on the healthcare system and the national health priority area of
combating cardiovascular diseases.

Childhood Obesity

Childhood Obesity
References
Australian Government Department of Health (2019). Overweight and obesity. [Online].
Available at: http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/Overweight-and-
Obesity (Accessed 13 April 2019)
Australian Government : Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2019). Overweight and
obesity.: An overview [Online]. Available at: https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports-data/behaviours-
risk-factors/overweight-obesity/overview (Accessed 13 April 2019)
Avsar, G., Ham, R., and Tannous, W. K. (2017). Factors influencing the incidence of obesity in
Australia: a generalized ordered probit model. International journal of environmental research
and public health, 14(2), 177. doi:10.3390/ijerph14020177. [Online]. Available at:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5334731/ (Accessed 13 April 2019)
Brown, T., Smith, S., Bhopal, R., Kasim, A., and Summerbell, C. (2015). Diet and physical
activity interventions to prevent or treat obesity in South Asian children and adults: a systematic
review and meta-analysis. International journal of environmental research and public health,
12(1), 566–594. doi:10.3390/ijerph120100566. [Online]. Available at:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4306880/ (Accessed 13 April 2019)
Hruby, Manson, Qi, Malik, Rimm, Sun, and Hu (2016). Determinants and Consequences of
Obesity. American journal of public health, 106(9), 1656–1662.
doi:10.2105/AJPH.2016.303326. Online]. Available at:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4981805/ (Accessed 13 April 2019)
Lakerveld, J., and Mackenbach, J. (2017). The Upstream Determinants of Adult Obesity. Obesity
facts, 10(3), 216–222. doi:10.1159/000471489. [Online]. Available at:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5644962/ (Accessed 13 April 2019)

Childhood Obesity
Mihrshahi, S., Drayton, B. A., Bauman, A. E., and Hardy, L. L. (2017). Associations between
childhood overweight, obesity, abdominal obesity and obesogenic behaviors and practices in
Australian homes. BMC public health, 18(1), 44. doi:10.1186/s12889-017-4595-y. [Online].
Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5521098/ (Accessed 13 April
2019)
Musich, S., MacLeod, S., Bhattarai, G. R., Wang, S. S., Hawkins, K., Bottone, F. G., Jr, and
Yeh, C. S. (2016). The impact of obesity on health care utilization and expenditures in a
medicare supplement population. Gerontology & geriatric medicine, 2, 2333721415622004.
doi:10.1177/2333721415622004. [Online]. Available at:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5119873/ (Accessed 13 April 2019)
Phillips, C., Fisher, M., Baum, F., MacDougall, C., Newman, L., and McDermott, D. (2016). To
what extent do Australian child and youth health policies address the social determinants of
health and health equity? A document analysis study. BMC public health, 16, 512.
doi:10.1186/s12889-016-3187-6 [Online]. Available at:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4908806/ (Accessed 13 April 2019)