Graduate Research Papers

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Open Access Graduate Research Paper

Abstract

In the past few decades there has been a pandemic, but it is not an infectious or a communicable disease it is childhood obesity. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC (2011 ), the definition of obesity in children is having a Body Mass Index (BMI) equal to or greater than the 95th percentile for age, weight and height. The BMI percentile indicates the relative position of the child's BMI among children of the same sex and age. Other weight categories used with children and teens are underweight, healthy weight, and overweight. Underweight is defined as BMI below the 5th percentile, healthy weight includes the 5th percentile up to less than the 85th percentile, overweight includes the 85th percentile to less than the 95th percentile and obese is the 95th percentile and above for age, weight and height (CDC, 2011). In the United States, childhood obesity has become a common nutritional and lifestyle disorder, with 1 out of every 3 children classified as overweight (Ogden, et al, 2010). According to Ogden, et al. (2002), since 1980 the percentage of overweight children ages 6-11 has more than doubled and the rate for adolescents has tripled. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) show that fifteen percent of children aged six to nineteen are overweight and ten percent of children age two to five are overweight (Ogden, et al, 2002). From 1963 to 2000, the prevalence of overweight children and adolescents aged six to nineteen has increased dramatically from five percent in 1963 to 16.3 percent in 2006 (Ogden, et al, 2008). Data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, reveled that 32 percent of 9 month olds and 34 percent of 2 year olds were at risk of becoming overweight or obese (Moss and Yeaton, 2011). The World Health Organization (WHO), estimated that more than 43 million children under five years of age are overweight, and of those 43 million, 35 million are in developing countries and 8 million are in developed countries (World Health Organization, 2011). Currently, there are around 12.5 million cases of childhood obesity in the United States (Ogden, et al, 2010). Obese children have a greater chance of becoming obese adults. Overweight children tend to remain overweight during follow-up periods of up to 20 years and in general have a 1.5 to 2 fold increased risk of being overweight as adults (Freedman, et al, 1997).

Year of Submission

2013

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Department

School of Health, Physical Education, and Leisure Services

First Advisor

Ripley Marston

Comments

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Date Original

5-2013

Object Description

1 PDF (42 pages)

Language

en

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