Obesity in Children and Adolescents
Justification for Selected Health Issue and Priority Population
While obesity issues among the younger age groups deserve focus as an essential health matter, the condition remains one that can follow people into adulthood, too, if left unaddressed early. Those who face obesity from childhood are prone to carry it with them through their whole lives and develop lasting illnesses later, like heart problems and diabetes. By working with children and teenagers, there is a chance to establish good habits and prevent disease before it begins through education during the formative years. Interceding sooner rather than later offers a way to curb weight-related sicknesses before they start. Schools provide a direct line to children for presenting healthy eating and physical activity programs in a structured way. And habits built during youth around nutrition and exercise tend to stick better than changing ingrained behaviors later in life. Promoting healthy weights and lifestyles with children and teens now can pay dividends for decades to come.
Recommended Intervention from The Community Guide
Based on a review of interventions recommended by The Community Guide for the health issue of obesity, I would select the intervention of enhanced school-based physical education. This involves increasing the amount of time devoted to PE, as well as the frequency per week and intensity level of activities. The goal is to get kids more active through elongated classes, more weekly classes, and moderate-to-vigorous exercise versus just standard practice. Enhanced PE utilizes existing school infrastructure to increase activity levels among a large student population. It provides supervised, structured physical activity incorporating health education and skill building. Enhanced PE directly addresses childhood obesity through exercise while instilling lifelong healthy habits. The Community Guide found strong evidence that improved PE increases activity levels and cardiovascular fitness in youth, making it a promising intervention for obesity reduction and prevention.
Justification for Selected Intervention for Priority Population
Enhanced school-based physical education is an appropriate intervention for addressing obesity in children and adolescents first and foremost because schools provide direct and convenient access to reach this priority population. Schools are a central part of children’s lives, where they spend up to 8 hours daily and have mandated attendance. Implementing enhanced PE takes advantage of the existing school structure and system already integrated into children’s schedules and routines. Rather than trying to access children separately for health interventions, delivering an enhanced PE program through schools allows for utilizing the facilities, equipment, staff, and class time already devoted to physical education. The curriculum, policies, and budget in schools are set up to support PE programming so that enhanced PE can build on these foundations. Existing personnel like PE teachers, nurses, counselors, cafeteria staff, and administrators can all contribute to and reinforce the enhanced PE objectives. The time and resources needed to coordinate schedules, transportation, and parental permissions outside of school become nonissues when enhanced PE is implemented through the education system children are already immersed in. This makes schools an extremely efficient delivery channel for reaching large numbers of children sustainably to provide health promotion like enhanced physical education targeting obesity and inactivity.
Additionally, enhanced physical education classes allow for improved quantity and quality of exercise for students. Having longer or more frequent PE classes exposes children to more physical activity and trains them to integrate it into regular routines. But enhanced programming also incorporates active lessons, activity breaks, and moderate-to-vigorous exercise that increase activity levels meaningfully. More exercise time plus higher intensity exercise leads to more significant calorie expenditure. This supports the weight management goals for obese or overweight students. Furthermore, exercise has numerous health benefits, like improved cardiovascular fitness, strength, coordination, and cognitive function. So, enhanced PE provides overall gains beyond just obesity reduction.
Moreover, how enhanced physical education is implemented can help children develop long-term healthy habits. Variety, choice, and fun new activities make PE more enjoyable than a boring chore. This can lead to improved participation and engagement in the classes themselves. But it can also translate to kids seeking out more activity in recess, play, sports, and exercise outside of school. Making training a rewarding experience rather than punishment helps cement habits that support lifelong fitness and obesity prevention. Enhanced PE teaches children to move from extrinsic to intrinsic motivation regarding physical activity. This sustains the benefits over time better than a punitive or cookie-cutter program.
In addition, enhanced physical education provides health promotion through a positive, supportive environment. Rather than body shaming or extreme exercise, which can build resentment, enhanced PE focuses on celebrating progress and making fitness fun. This creates a safe space to learn active living skills. Children gain confidence in their physical abilities when appropriately encouraged. And they can share these experiences with peers, building camaraderie. This positive atmosphere leads to better mental health as well.
Finally, starting healthy behaviors early through enhanced school PE helps prevent complications of childhood obesity from an early age. Obese kids are more likely to become obese adults, setting them up for lifelong chronic conditions like heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and osteoarthritis. Intervening with enhanced PE helps avoid or delay these consequences. It benefits population health by instilling habits that will carry forward into adulthood. And because other interventions for already obese adults have limited success, prevention is critical. Reaching kids at school is an opportunity to shape health trajectories for life.
In summary, enhanced school-based PE leverages the school setting to instill healthy habits in children in an efficient, positive way. It directly addresses obesity through improved quantity and quality of exercise. And the benefits can last a lifetime if done effectively. That is why it is an appropriate intervention for addressing obesity in the priority population of children and adolescents.
References
Enhanced Physical Education in Illinois: Improving health and reducing chronic disease. The Community Guide. (2023, June 7). https://www.thecommunityguide.org/stories/enhanced-physical-education-illinois-improving-health-and-reducing-chronic-disease.html
Jebeile, H., Kelly, A. S., O’Malley, G., & Baur, L. A. (2022). Obesity in children and adolescents: epidemiology, causes, assessment, and management. The lancet Diabetes & endocrinology.
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