Adolescents Obesity and Intervention Strategy Adolescents Obesity Intervention and Prevention Strategy According to Schwarz and Peterson (2010) “adolescents’ obesity in the United States has many important implications for both the health and well-being of the individual and society.” The negative health consequences of obesity include many diseases, chronic health disorders, psychological disorders, and early death. This contributes to billions of dollars of health care costs each year. The healthcare costs due to the adolescent obesity rate are estimated at more than $14 billion per year. The direct and indirect cost totals more than $140 billion dollars annually. The United States spends six to 10 percent of healthcare on costs caused by obesity compared to 2 to 3.5 percent in other western countries (Schwarz & Peterson, 2010).
The prevalence of obesity among adolescents aged 12 to 19 years increased from 5.0% to 18.1%” (Childhood Obesity). To some it may not sound very serious, but children that are obese have a very large risk to suffer from many other health problems. “Obese youth are more likely to have risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as high cholesterol or high blood pressure. Also children and adolescents who are obese are also at a greater risk for bone and joint problems, sleep apnea, and social and psychological problems such as stigmatization and poor self-esteem”(Childhood Obesity). Not only does it put them at risk when they are younger, obese children also tend to become obese when they are adults, causing them to have the same, if not more serious health problems.
In addition, overweight and obese people are portrayed in a negative way in the media, including television and movies. Sociocultural influences on body image can lead to eating disorders, such as anorexia, bulimia and even obesity if an overweight viewer does not feel that she or he are living up to the culturally desirable image. The end result is a serious psychological as well as health issue. While obesity among adults has doubled since 1980, overweight among adolescents has tripled. The United States Office of the Surgeon General (2001)
This is because we are eating too many foods that are high in saturated fats which are available in many different ways from fast foods and sweets. We also have one of the highest rates of diabetes with 1.6 million sufferers, data shows by 2025 4 million people will be diabetic. This illness is caused when a diet does not include enough high-fibre, starchy carbohydrate foods and if we eat too many sugary and sweet foods. Other health issues include coronary heart disease which is caused if a diet is high in saturated fats, osteoporosis which is when bones become less dense and become very fragile. This happens if there is a lack of calcium in the diet and a lack of vitamin D and constipation, bowel cancer or diverticular disease which is caused if you don’t eat enough fibre in the diet(fruit and vegetables).
People who are obese are more likely to have health problems such as: high blood pressure, raised cholesterol high insulin levels, impaired glucose tolerance, type two diabetes, heart attacks, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, kidney problems and polycystic ovary syndrome. Not all children will have these health problems but doctors are finding these problems in children and the children are getting younger. As a whole childhood obesity puts children in harm’s way and the future of America. And that is why the cycle must be reversed. We owe to the country and the kids who live
Thomas 1 Elton Thomas Ryan Shiroma Engl 60 25 April 2012 Obesity In America. “During the last 20 years in America, there have been dramatic increases in obesity and, unfortunately, those rates continue to stay high. Obesity means having too much body fat, which is commonly confused with being overweight” (Adult Obesity Facts par. 5). A person can be overweight but still be healthy.
However, there is research to suggest that the media’s image of beauty is absolutely unrealistic and could cause harm to men and women’s confidence. Eating disorders have become more common than ever before. Weight loss plans and dieting schemes have become a part of almost everyone’s lives. This is because magazine, television shows, and movies portray beauty as “thin and underfed” in the word of Jennifer Lawrence. The Global Foundation of Eating Disorders states the fact that “eating disorders affect more than three times as many people as Type 1 Diabetes and nearly as many people as asthma” and that “one in ten people will suffer from an eating disorder at some point in their lives” (GFED 6).
Genes and behavior may both be needed for a person to be overweight. In some cases multiple genes may increase one’s susceptibility for obesity and require outside factors; such as abundant food supply or little physical activity. It is now well established that overweight and the different forms of obesity are conditions tending to concentrate within a family. Obesity risk is two to eight times higher for a person with a family history as opposed to a person with no family history of obesity, and an even higher risk is observed in cases of severe obesity. Beside these rare cases, many individuals have a genetic predisposition that may lead to obesity.
Type two diabetes, is a condition which is more common in the world today and is also known as hyperglycemia. This condition is a condition in the human body in which your glucose (sugar) levels rise higher than normal. This condition can be caused by our poor eating habits, being overweight, not enough exercise. Type two diabetes; I feel is more common do to the obesity rate in the world today. I have numerous family members that suffer from this disease and all of them are
corticoids and antidepressants.Previously considered as an aesthetic problem, obesity is now regarded as a real illness. Being severely overweight and obesity are responsible for a certain number of problems e.g. Premature death – according to international obesity task force (IOTF) obese women run three times more risk of being affected by a cerebral vascular illness than thin women. There is a high risk of thromboembolic diseases (angina pectoris, phlebitis and pulmonary embolism).Arterial Hypertension - is linked to obesity in 30-60% of cases, notably in western adults under the age of 40. Type 2 Diabetes – this diabetes which appears in adults, and where insulin, which reduces blood sugar levels, is no longer effective is closely linked with being overweight.