Childhood Obesity: A Case Study

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Introduction

In the past three decades, rates of childhood obesity have increased precipitously. Between the years and 1980 and 2000, the prevalence of obesity has increased from 6.5% to 19.6% among 6 to 11 year old children and 5.0% to 18.1% among 12 to 19 year old adolescents x(National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, 2010). This condition is accompanied by many physical and psychological consequences for these children. There are two common postions in the debate about the causes of this condition. One belief of the cause of childhood obesity is that it is a question of “personal responsibility” or in the case of children, of “parental responsibility.” That is, increasing rates of obesity are due to parents’ failure to limit their children’s access to “junk food” and to tell them to go play outside. An example of this lack of authority of parents’ over their children’s eating habits is a Kayla, a 4-year-old child who weighs 104 pounds. In this situation, her mother has been unable to control the frequency and quantity of her child’s eating habits (ABC News, 2008; Kofman, 2008; Yellin, & Simons, 2007). The following is a brief overview detailing the model that places the blame of childhood obesity on parents’, and a case study describing the condition of Kayla and how it should be dealt with.

Cause of Obesity

There are many factions who believe that parents are liable for the epidemic of childhood obesity. Some researchers believe that parents may unintentionally encourage inappropriate weight gain in their children by utilizing improper child-feeding manners (Clark, Goyder, Bissell, Blank, & Peters, 2007). Additionally, children may model their parents’ behavior and therefore develop improper ...

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...MFMER). (2010a). Childhood obesity: Make weight loss a family affair. Retrieved from http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/childhood-obesity/FL00058#

Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research (MFMER). (2010b). Childhood obesity: Treatments and drugs. Retrieved from http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/childhood-obesity/DS00698/DSECTION=treatments-and-drugs

National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. (2010). Childhood obesity. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/HealthyYouth/obesity/

Pillitteri, A. (2009). Maternal and child health nursing: Care of the childbearing and childrearing family (6th ed.). Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Yellin, J. & Simons, L. (2007). Obesity reaches preschool: Four-year-old Kayla’s battle with her weight. Retrieved from http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/Diet/story?id=2863420&page=1

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