Obesity and Its Policy Guidelines Essay

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Policy Guidelines

Obesity has grown into a worldwide pandemic, with obesity rates constantly increasing. The WHO (World Health Organization) reports that over forty million children and 1.4 billion adult individuals may be categorized as ‘overweight’, while over 10 percent of individuals across the world may be categorized as ‘obese’. Children with BMI (body mass index) ?95% of others their age are regarded as obese. Though, at one time, obesity was thought to only plague industrialized nations, the issue has been on the rise in developing nations as well, particularly among affluent urban populations. Intrinsic hormonal differences render females more prone to becoming obese than males (Sahoo, et al, 187).

Among the gravest public health issues experienced in this era is childhood obesity. It is a universal issue, increasing alarmingly and steadily impacting several underdeveloped and developing nations (especially the urban areas of these nations). In the year 2010, the global figure for overweight children aged below 5 years was reported as more than 42 million, with nearly 35 million residing in developing nations (Sahoo, et al, 187).

Children suffering from obesity are at greater risk, when compared with their normally weighing counterparts, of developing several other health issues in their teens and young adulthood, including insulin resistance related orthopedic issues, gallbladder disease, polycystic ovarian syndrome, and sleep apnea. Additionally, obese children face peer ostracism and criticism for being ‘fat’, sometimes even from the kindergarten age. A research into obese boys revealed their fourfold greater likelihood of experiencing depression in comparison to their normally weighing counterparts. Such emotional problems adversely impact the quality of life (QoL) of obese children; the extent of impairment of their QoL was comparable with the negative impacts on QoL of cancer-diagnosed children (Woolford 89).

Childhood obesity represents a major adulthood obesity risk factor. In fact, toddlerhood obesity has been linked to teenage as well as adulthood obesity. Obese boys and girls between 10 and 13 years of age depict 6:1 and 18:1 adulthood obesity risk, respectively. Further, obese children aged 4 display a twenty-percent likelihood of adulthood obesity. Chances of children with both overweight parents becoming obese is thrice that of children with both normal-weight parents. Such linkages are evident among natural as well as adoptive children, confirming the crucial part played by environment. If the childhood/teenage obesity pandemic isn’t curbed, next-gen adults will already start experiencing multiple medical issues owing to their childhood obesity history, increasing their premature mortality and morbidity risks. The reason for this is, perhaps, the positive link between years since obesity development and risk of obesity-connected diseases development. Hence, obese children display greater likelihood of developing adulthood comorbidities (Woolford 89).

Preventing obesity or delaying its onset calls for efforts on the part of several sectors, in the area of improving related practices and policies.

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Collaboration between institutions, households, communities and initiatives may facilitate promotion and maintenance of a healthy atmosphere for youngsters. Newborns, older babies, and preschool-age children depend on their parents’ and other adults’ actions; consequently, they need to receive care which fosters their healthy development, wellbeing and growth all through the day. Policies impacting children’s internal as well as external environments ought to ensure healthy choices are choices that are easy to make for parents and other adults who take care of or deal with children (Burns, et al 7).

In the last ten years, European nations and the US have adopted a number of policies showing the potential to prevent childhood obesity; these include school-level policies (e.g., vending machine regulation within schools); food and beverages industry- level policies (e.g., value sizing and putting calorie labels on food items); community-level policies (e.g., zoning for restricting junk food outlets); and broader societal-level policies (e.g., regulation of food and beverages advertising to youngsters) (Zhang, et al 171).

Regional and national level governmental food policy formulation and adoption is influenced by various factors like tradition, culture, political systems, and different societal stakeholders’ support. Effective behavioral modifications may be accomplished via policy interoperability and synergistic interactions among diverse constituents. The optimal policy design across all levels ought to create a smooth platform which targets individual behavior. Policy planning ought to alter the context wherein undesirable diet patterns occur (in other words, the everyday food environment confronted by individuals). Efforts towards altering the everyday food environment need to tackle the current food system that requires overhauling and reengineering for creating a nutritious food environment. For sustaining the required behavioral modification, ongoing training and education has to be offered for ensuing people have the requisite skills and information for adapting to the novel environment. Achievement of synergy between these policies and factors necessitates enforcement measure establishment and administrative supervision at the national and local governmental levels (Zhang, et al 173).

Nutrition education proves vital to facilitating desired health behavior alterations and fostering a healthy diet, including a diet targeted at obesity prevention. Dietary guidelines raise public awareness when it comes to nutritional requirements, besides facilitating nutrition education within diverse settings and at several levels. Currently, over sixty developing and industrialized nations in all continents have come up with their personal dietary guidelines for the nation. For instance, America’s agriculture department and the HHS (Health and Human Services) department have formulated and issued Dietary Guidelines for Americans in the year 1980, revised once in five years; the latest edition (7th edition), which came out in the year 2010, placed fresh emphasis on healthy weight maintenance….....

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