Analysis of Health Messages Regarding Childhood Obesity: Essay

This academic essay critically analyzes various health messages focused on childhood obesity. The essay begins with a compilation of six different health messages from diverse sources, including websites and online publications, addressing topics such as healthy eating, physical activity, and policy interventions. The analysis then narrows to three selected messages, evaluating their unique characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses. The essay examines messages that promote school-based interventions, family intervention programs, and the importance of play and movement. It assesses the target audience, message delivery methods, and the overall impact of each message, drawing on supporting research and evidence. The essay highlights the effectiveness of different approaches to tackling childhood obesity, emphasizing the importance of a multifaceted strategy that considers diet, exercise, and the broader environment in which children grow and develop.

Running head: ACADEMIC ESSAY
Academic essay
Name of the student:
Name of the University:
Author’s note

1ACADEMIC ESSAY
Part 1: Data collection
Health
message
s
What is the message? Source of message and
date
Creator of the message
1. ‘Fit, Fast and Skinny’’ Questi.com, a trusted
online library and
published on November
2008
Lisette Burrows, New
Zealand physical
educator
2. Fighting obesity in the public schools Published in brookings
website on March 1,
2006
Christina Paxson,
Elisabet Donahue and
Ron Haskins
3. Life changing obesity course offers
children and families hope for change
Published in New
Zealand’s health
website stuff.co.nz on
November 18, 2017
Cate Broughton
4. 10 strategies to help a child maintain a
healthy weight
Greeatschools.org
website and published
on October 28, 2016
Sarah Henry
5 Junk food advertising ban best way to
fight childhood obesity
Health website and
published on July 3,
2015
Kim Knight
6 Tackling childhood obesity is more
about than just diet and exercise
Online news paper
Independent dated 23rd
October 2017
David Morley,
Professor of youth sport
and physical activity

2ACADEMIC ESSAY
Part 2: Critical analysis of health messages
a. Explanation of kind of health messages:
Childhood obesity and maintaining health of obese children is the main theme of all the
selected health messages. Out of the six types of health messages, there are about four messages
which discusses mainly about ways to maintain healthy eating and physical activity in children.
However, the article by Knight (2015) targeted food advertisement ban to fight childhood
obesity. Morley (2017) also had a different message that apart from focusing on diet and
exercise, increasing children’s participation in sports and play is also crucial for child
development and overall health. There were some health message which gave strong points to
tackle and deal with childhood obesity, however there were some which had no scientific
backing or visuals to convince the reader to change their habits.
For example, Burrows (2008) gave discussion on how New Zealand’s children are
articulating their own body and interpreting health indicators to understand the parameters
needed for health and well-being. This was based on the author’s assumption that different
formal and informal messages related to how children should eat, exercise and how much
televisions they should watch can definitely have an impact on health behavior of children. The
author’s viewpoint was backed up by results obtained from a health questionnaire. Another
health message was found in a non-profit organization, the Brookings and Paxson, Donahue &
Haskins (2006) mainly recognized the role of policy makers and public health practitioners to
strong action against childhood obesity. It supported the role of schools in fight obesity, however
the policy brief also suggested that schools should take more aggressive steps to reduce
availability of junk food and make meals nutritious for students. Broughton, C. (2017). gave

3ACADEMIC ESSAY
idea about effectiveness of intervention programmes for children and their family members in
New Zealand by developing documentaries on the family of obesity who received life changing
intervention. Another help message obtained from a website gave simple messages to support
children to maintain a healthy weight (Henry 2016). On the whole, it can be said that childhood
obesity was the main theme in all types of health messages, however the articles targeted
different groups like children and families, schools, advertisement or government agencies to
provide the right education and environment for children to adapt healthy lifestyle.
b. Analysis of three health messages:
From a collection of six types of health message, three health messages by Paxson, Donahue
& Haskins (2006), Broughton (2017) and Morley (2017) has been selected for analysis. The
analysis for each type of health messages are as follows:
I. Health message: Fighting obesity in the public schools
i. The uniqueness of this health message is that it gives health message in the form of
policy briefing and message flow in a systematic way starting from background
information on obesity, reasons for public intervention in the area and the reason for
schools to focus on health improvement of obese children. In this way, the message
started from a broad perspective and moves to a narrow perspective as per the goal of
the health message. It also used scientific evidence to increase the value of health
message. However, the weakness of the health message is that it does not use any
enticing tactics like visual appeal or graphical information to easily pass on the
message. However, I find the message to have useful impact because it targeted
schools to improve eating habits of children and this is necessary because school is

4ACADEMIC ESSAY
the place where children spend the maximum time. Adab et al. (2015) also gives
evidence regarding the effectiveness of children obesity prevention programme
delivered through school on preventing obesity in children. Hence, food lunch and
breakfast programs can have a positive impact on child health.
ii. The message is targeted for children and this is understood from the background
information regarding the need to reduce childhood obesity.
iii. Although the message is descriptive and gives valid points to address national
problem of childhood obesity, however the health message is not suitable for
common public. For example, an immigrant or a person who is busy may not utilize
the information as it is too long and does not have any section or short briefing which
transfers the message in short time.
iv. The message is based on the value of health eating and physical activity to reduce
childhood obesity. However, implementing change in food menu in school lunch
programs can be difficult due to different regulations for types of foods available in
schools.
II. Health message: ‘Life changing’ obesity courses offer children and families hope
for change
i. Broughton (2017) tries to persuade audience to join family intervention programs by
providing video documentaries on feelings of parents who entered new healthy
lifestyle programme. This is the most enticing tactics to attract audience and transmit
messages to target audience because video documentaries are convincing source that
can have strong impacts on perception of a reader. By reading the health message, I
found that children and families struggling with obesity developed renewed

5ACADEMIC ESSAY
confidence to lead a healthy lifestyle. Some families attended intensive version of
Triple P where parents could directly discuss with staffs regarding eating habits of
their children and issues they face in modifying lifestyle of their children. The article
gave idea about different activities which empowered children and families with
obesity to lead a positive lifestyle. I found the message to be inspiring, motivation and
convincing enough to make a large impact on target audience. Community based
family intervention program are effective in inculcating positive attitudes about
healthy behavior in families and reducing other health risk because of obesity too
(Ziebarth et al., 2012).
ii. The message is targeted at obese children and parents and this is understood from the
introductory line and description of the intervention program.
iii. The message is inspiring and has good visual appeal as it provides various videos
about parents and children whose life changed after joining the school program. This
message can be easily interpreted by all age group of audience such as an aged person
or a teenagers and another advantage is that the health message is brief and to the
point.
iv. The video represents the value of family bonding and family engagement to
positively influence life of obese children and family in New Zealand (Broughton,
2017).
III. Health message: Tackling childhood obesity is more about than just diet and
exercise
i. Unlike other health messages, Morley (2017) gave a very different viewpoint that just
diet and exercise is not enough to tackle childhood obesity. Instead, it emphasized

6ACADEMIC ESSAY
that giving the right space for play and movement is more important for children as
currently they are restricted to one place by looking at screen technology and mobile
screens only. The message has been developed by giving evidence regarding the
prevalence of obesity according to WHO report. Certain points are also highlighted in
red indicating that the author wants reader to take not of certain point. I agree with the
health message given as providing children the opportunity for effective movement is
crucial for their early development and development of appropriate movement skills
to participate in sports activity in later life (Moore, 2017).
ii. The message is for children as Morley (2017) discussed about the needs to enhance
active lifestyle in children
iii. The author used the tactic of simple message, videos and highlighted text to pass on
his message to reader. The message can be easily interpreted by all types of audience.
iv. It represents the spirit of active lifestyle and movement in children to promote health
and reduce obesity.

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Reference:
Adab, P., Pallan, M. J., Lancashire, E. R., Hemming, K., Frew, E., Griffin, T., ... & Deeks, J.
(2015). A cluster-randomised controlled trial to assess the effectiveness and cost-
effectiveness of a childhood obesity prevention programme delivered through schools,
targeting 6–7 year old children: the WAVES study protocol. BMC Public Health, 15(1),
488.
Broughton, C. (2017). Life changing obesity course offers children and families hope for change.
Retrieved from: https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/98432825/obesity-courses-offer-
children-and-families-hope-for-change
Burrows, L. (2008). " Fit, Fast, and skinny": New Zealand school students' talk'about
health. New Zealand physical educator, 41(3), 26.
Henry, S. (2016). 10 strategies to help a child maintain a healthy weight. Retrieved from:
https://www.greatschools.org/gk/articles/maintain-healthy-weight-strategies/
Knight, K. (2015). Junk food advertising ban best way to fight childhood obesity. Retrieved
from: https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/well-good/69901032/junk-food-advertising-ban-
best-way-to-fight-childhood-obesity
Moore, R. C. (2017). Childhood's domain: Play and place in child development (Vol. 6).
Routledge.
Morley, D. (2017). Tackling childhood obesity is more about than just diet and exercise.
Retreived from: https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/childhood-obesity-diet-exercise-
apps-a8015741.html

8ACADEMIC ESSAY
Paxson, C., Donahue, E., & Haskins, R., (2006). Fighting obesity in the public schools.
Retrieved from: https://www.brookings.edu/research/fighting-obesity-in-the-public-
schools/
Ziebarth, D., Healy-Haney, N., Gnadt, B., Cronin, L., Jones, B., Jensen, E., & Viscuso, M.
(2012). A community-based family intervention program to improve obesity in Hispanic
families. WMJ, 111(6), 261-6.