Childhood Obesity

Abstract

Clinical summary Childhood obesity has important consequences for health and wellbeing both during childhood and also in later adult life. The rising prevalence of childhood obesity poses a major public health challenge in both developed and developing countries by increasing the burden of chronic non-communicable diseases. Despite the urgent need for effective preventative strategies, there remains disagreement over its definition due to a lack of evidence on the optimal cut-offs linking childhood BMI to disease risks, and limited evidence on the most effective components of interventions to prevent childhood obesity. This article reviews the trends in childhood obesity, its genetic, nutritional and other risk factors, and preventative and treatment strategies. Particular emphasis is given to early-onset obesity in pre-school children, which, as a precursor to later childhood and adult obesity, provides insights into the developmental and genetic origins of obesity and also offers the potential for early preventative approaches with long-lasting benefits.

Childhood Obesity Incidence in the United States: A Systematic Review

“…1 In the United States, obesity prevalence among children ages 6-11 years more than tripled from 4.2%-15.3% between 1963-1965 and 1999-2000. 1 Although recent studies have reported decreased obesity prevalence among younger children, in 2011-2012, 16.9% of children in the United States were classified as obese, with prevalence being highest at ages 12-19 and lowest at ages 2-5 years.…”

“…1 In the United States, obesity prevalence among children ages 6-11 years more than tripled from 4.2%-15.3% between 1963-1965 and 1999-2000. 1 Although recent studies have reported decreased obesity prevalence among younger children, in 2011-2012, 16.9% of children in the United States were classified as obese, with prevalence being highest at ages 12-19 and lowest at ages 2-5 years. 2 In the past three decades, increases in obesity prevalence have been observed among children of all ages, 2,3 though differences in obesity prevalence have been documented by age, 2 race and ethnicity, 1 gender, 2 and geographic region.…”

“…1 Although recent studies have reported decreased obesity prevalence among younger children, in 2011-2012, 16.9% of children in the United States were classified as obese, with prevalence being highest at ages 12-19 and lowest at ages 2-5 years. 2 In the past three decades, increases in obesity prevalence have been observed among children of all ages, 2,3 though differences in obesity prevalence have been documented by age, 2 race and ethnicity, 1 gender, 2 and geographic region. 4 Obesity in childhood has been associated with subsequent obesity in adulthood, other chronic diseases, and high medical costs, [5][6][7][8][9] so understanding the emergence of obesity in childhood may offer opportunities to improve health at all ages.…”

Nutritional Value and Consumer Acceptance of New Cereal Bars Offered to Children

“…Increases in obesity levels have been observed even in very young preschool children, which is very alarming [Lakshman et al, 2012]. A current survey in the USA has reported that among children who became obese between the ages of 5 and 14 years, nearly half had been overweight and 75% had been above the 70th percentile for body mass index at the baseline [Cunningham et al, 2014].…”

Síndrome metabólico, secreción de insulina y resistencia a la insulina en adolescentes con sobrepeso y obesidad

“…El sobrepeso y la obesidad en adolescentes se asocian con una amplia gama de complicaciones graves para la salud y un mayor riesgo de aparición prematura de enfermedades, que incluyen diabetes mellitus tipo 2 (DM2) y enfermedades cardiovasculares 1 , las cuales constituyen las dos principales causas de mortalidad en la población general, además de otras patologías como dislipidemia, hipertensión, enfermedades musculoesqueléticas y ciertos tipos de cáncer 2,3 . De hecho, la acumulación de grasa que caracteriza el sobrepeso y la obesidad ha sido asociada con el síndrome metabólico (SM) 4 , un conjunto de elementos patológicos que comprende la obesidad abdominal, alteraciones en el metabolismo de la glucosa y los lípidos, así como una presión arterial elevada 5 .…”