Obesity Among Adolescents

Introduction

Obesity among adolescents is a growing issue in many countries. Obesity can be described as a medical condition that involves accumulation of fats in the human body. The accumulation of fats goes to an extent of posing adverse effects on one’s health. Such effects could cause further negative effects such as increased health problems and eventually reduced life expectancy. Social problems associated with obesity among adolescents could involve lack of self-esteem leading to isolation from other individuals. The isolation and lack of self-confidence could affect important aspects of one’s life such as education among other aspects of social life. This paper looks at obesity among adolescents by establishing the problems associated with the health condition, how it is enhanced, and possible corrective measures. Typically, a person is considered obese when his or her body mass index is more than 30 kilograms per square meter. Body mass index (BMI) is obtained by dividing one’s weight by the square of his/her weight. The units used are kilograms and meters respectively.

Obtaining ones status with respect to obesity is a good decision given that obesity has a number of negative implications. The health condition raises the likelihood of different diseases and health conditions such as heart diseases, obstructive sleep apnea, type 2 diabetes, some types of cancer, as well as osteoarthritis (Haslam & James, 2005). Adolescents have high vulnerability of suffering from obesity thereby gaining a high chance of suffering from other diseases. Controlled eating is necessary at this stage of human life with great enthusiasm on what causes obesity. Obesity is mainly caused by the intake of excessive food energy, lack or inadequacy of physical activities, as well as genetic susceptibility (Haslam & James, 2005). It is also argued that some cases of obesity could be caused by genetic factors, medications, endocrine disorders, or some psychiatric illnesses (Haslam & James, 2005).

Background

Obesity among adolescents has been increasing as a health problem. The problem with obesity does not face adolescents only; childhood obesity is also a major health problem around the world. The World Health Organization has declared the health problem as a global epidemic, which need to be managed effectively. Over the last few years, prevalence of childhood and adolescent obesity has increased drastically (Alpert, 2009). The now global epidemic is becoming serious in terms of public health problems in especially in the West and other developed regions across the globe.

This aspect does not imply that developing nations hardly suffer the fate of obesity among children and adolescents but gives an impression that the kind of lifestyle in developed nations contributes a lot to the health problem (Al-Hazzaa, 2012). In countries like Saudi Arabia, is estimated that over 26 per cent of adolescents are overweight while over 10 per cent of adolescents are obese. Various researches on the same health problem in Saudi Arabia showed that the problem is highly characterized by an increasing trend (Flynn, McNei, & Maloff, 2006). The increasing trend is marked from the last two decades.

It is also evident that obesity among adolescents is increasing in developing countries. The new trend in developing nations is perceived to create a significant health burden to the public health sector. Researches indicate that such developing countries may not have the right medical mechanisms or strategies to deal with the associated health problems facilitated by obesity among adolescents. Diseases like type 2 diabetes as well as early cardiovascular diseases are becoming more pronounced among adolescents in the developing countries (Alpert, 2009).

People are however known to adopt various detection mechanisms. Such mechanisms of detecting obesity among children and adolescents are dictated by the two major types of obesity common to children and adolescents. One could either suffer from overall obesity or abdominal obesity. Using waist to height ratio has been found to be easy and effective in detecting abdominal obesity in children and adolescents. The same measures have been considered effective in predicting cardio metabolic disease risks in both children and adolescents as well as in identifying high BMI (Raj & Kumar, 2010). Such detection techniques are also applied in preventing excessive weight gain.

Problem

The main problem being addressed in this study is the increasing trend of obesity among adolescents. Obesity among adolescents is becoming a global problem. A major issue with this trend is incapability to control the health problems from an individual level. While people know the dangers of obesity and the possible solutions or avoidance mechanisms, many individuals hardly take such measures seriously. The main point to consider in this research is the way adolescents can be informed about the problem, their participation in reducing the current trend, and the use of the right social, physical, and medical strategies to avoid or heal from obesity (Weiss, Morrison, Sherwin, Caprio, Dziura, & Burgert, 2004).

Research Questions

The research questions help in providing guidance on how the research needs to be conducted. The research is based on the following research questions:

What is the current situation of obesity among adolescents in the United States?

What factors promote the current trend in obesity as a global health issue?

What are the possible solutions to the problem?

How can future problems be avoided?

Definition of Terms

BMI (Body Mass Index): This is a measure obtained by dividing one’s weight in kilograms by the square of his/her height in meters.

Summery

Obesity is a global problem but affects adolescents in different countries in varied ways. The health problem seems to rely mainly on living standards and lifestyles whereby young children and adolescents have little to do with physical activities. As technology advances, involvement in physical activities reduces dramatically. Adolescents are also known to change their social behaviors, an aspect that makes them change participation in physical activities. Children in developed countries have nothing to do physically but in contrast to this, they eat lots of energy giving foods. These foods promote an increase in body fats making them overweight. Given that there are little physical activities to do, most of them eventually become obese. Even social activities have reduced since people can now communicate and socialize using social networks. It is therefore important to consider the current trends in the problem, the factors promoting obesity, possible solutions, avoidance of future problems, and the prevailing government efforts in reducing obesity among adolescents.

Method

Section Overview

This section involves a thorough investigation of obesity among adolescents as the research problem. The research method would work by answering the research questions, which are related to the establishment of the prevailing situation of obesity with respect to the target group and the identification of the factors promoting current trends in obesity. The methodology would also make it possible to point out some feasible solutions to the obesity health issue. Through the methodology, it would be easier to establish the position of the respective government in solving the problem and the way future cases of obesity can be reduced or avoided. To do this, the research makes use of secondary data and information from various publications, online publications, journal articles, and websites among other sources. The main aim is to establish a clear solution that can provide meaningful answers to all the research questions. The research looks at obesity situation from both developing countries and developed countries (Videon, 2003). From such cases, it would be easier to analyze the various factors contributing to obesity issues from a broader perspective. It would be possible to establish a conclusion from the basis of lifestyles as depicted by the two cases of national developments and living standard. The study would as well show how national development impacts on obesity among adolescent.

Case 1: Saudi Arabia

The first case on analysis is that of a partially developed country like Saudi Arabia. The study in this case was conducted from schools in three cities in the country. The study used 2906 male participants and 1400 female participants. All the participants in this study ranged from the age of 14 years to the age of 19 years. Sampling was initiated through random selection technique whereby the participants were selected irrespective of their specific age as long as their age ranged from 14 year old to 19 years old (Al-Hazzaa, 2012).

The major variable considered in the study were height, weight, body mass index, waist circumferences, waist to height ratio, screen watching time, physical activities, and dietary habits. These variables interrelate and determine the level of obesity problems among individuals in the sample frame. The dependent variable in the study is obesity and depends on the other factors. Typically, the possibility of the participants to be dedicated to some physical activities is taken by other passive activities such as screen time. Screen time is consumed by passive activities such as television watching, playing of video games, internet activities, and computer use (Al-Hazzaa, 2012). The dietary habits are considered in terms of intake frequency in a week. To establish the relationship among the various factors, the variables were compared through regressive analysis.

Case 2: The United States

In the case of the United States, body mass index is considered the standard measure of obesity and overweight. Individuals with a body mass index of between 25 and 30 are considered as overweight while something greater than 30 depicts obesity. Data and information for case studies in the United States depicts that obesity is highly influenced by factors such as age and sex. This implies that as children approach older age such as adolescence, their body mass index increases. The study in this case used pure girls as the participants (Moses, Banilivy, & Lifshitz, 2003).

The age of participants ranged from 13 years to 18 years of age. 326 girls from a pure girls’ high school in New York participated in the study. The study used questionnaires to collect data and information related to obesity among adolescents. Variables used in this study included the perception of the girls’ current weight, their ideal body weight, idea body height, and dieting characteristics. Dieting factor was broken down into dieting meant to lose weight, dieting meant to gain weight, dieting for maintaining weight, and dieting initiated for medical reasons. The dieting feature also involved the time of dieting, whether ongoing during the study or had been initiated previously (Moses, Banilivy, & Lifshitz, 2003). Disturbed eating habits as well formed a factor of consideration in establishing the factors leading to obesity in adolescent girls in the US and other developed countries.

Section Summary

In the two cases of the United States and Saudi Arabia, different social-economic environments are depicted. The two studies make use of almost similar variables with age being the central factor given that this research studies obesity among adolescents. Saudi Arabia is a developing country, whose social-economic environment is characterized by changing behaviors and physical activities among the country’s adolescent population. On the other hand, the case of the United States represent an adolescent population, which is fully used to the social-economic life erupting in developing nations like Saudi Arabia. It may follow that subjects in the case of the United States are keener about their wellbeing than the subjects used in the case of Saudi Arabia. It follows that moderator factors such as age, gender, social-economic status, and ethnicity affect obesity and its relationship with other medical conditions among adolescents.

Analysis

In the two cases, obesity among adolescent is a major problem. This aspect indicates that age, gender, ethnicity, as well as social-economic factors contribute a lot to obesity. The same factor implies that gender plays a significant role on how adolescents are concerned about their personal health conditions with respect to obesity. Girls are too keen about their body weight such that they could end up becoming underweight. Male adolescents are hardly concerned about being overweight or obese especially in developing nations. Most of the adolescent population is excited by the changes and advancement in technology to a point of neglecting their physical health (Epstein, Roemmich, & Robinson, 2008).

In developing countries, the issue of social economic status largely plays a key role in promoting obesity among the adolescent youth. Most of the males at this stage of life are only concerned on how they can do things better than the rest under the prevailing or new technologies. Advantages associated with good social-economic status only place adolescent individuals to greater risks or becoming obese. Male adolescents spent most of their time in passive activities such as playing video games, watching television or movies, chatting via social media networks, or doing other related activities (Haslam & James, 2005). Besides, the male adolescents are more active in eating than girls, an aspect that make them more subjected to obesity.

Causes of Obesity

Obesity is cause by factors associated with personal lifestyles, social economic factor, and eating habits. Obesity causes are generally complex since the medical problem could even result from genetic, behavioral, cultural, and biological factors. Typically, obesity results from eating more calories such than human body can burn up. Genetic and biological causes of obesity are in such as way that if a parent is obese, the probability of bearing an obese child is very high (Winer, Zern, & Taksali, 2006). Given that such kind of obesity is genet or biological, the child would remain obese throughout childhood and throughout his or her adolescent life.

Studies show that if one of parent in a family is obese, there is a 50 per cent change their children would be obese. The worst happens when both parents are obese since there is over 80 per cent chance that their children would be obese. Some medical disorders also cause obesity among adolescents (Raj & Kumar, 2010). Generally, obesity among adolescents and children are caused by poor eating habits, lack of exercise, overeating, genetic factors, and medical illnesses such as endocrine and neurological problems. Other factors leading to obesity among adolescents are stress, family and peer issues, low self-esteem, depression, and medication such as psychiatric medications and steroids.

Management of Obesity

Obesity among adolescents requires much medical evaluation. Evaluations of obesity problems help in establishing the root cause of the problem for the best action measure. Increased physical activities are the best way of managing obesity problems associated with lack of physical exercise (Weiss, Morrison, Sherwin, Caprio, Dziura, & Burgert, 2004). Obesity problems resulting from biological, genetic, and medical aspects should be solved using medical processes.

Section Summery

From a general analysis, non-obese adolescents are significantly active in vigorous activities and have less favorable habits in their diets depicted by taking less breakfast meals, low intake of milks, and low intake of fruits among other food stuffs. They also show lower intake of sugary foods, sugar sweetened drinks, intake of lower volumes of energy giving and fatty foods, and lower intake of snacks like sweets and chocolates. Most cases of obesity especially the abdominal form of obesity is mainly caused by lack of vigorous activities among adolescents in general. As far as gender is concerned, adolescent girls are likely to be more depressed due to their obesity conditions than their male counterparts. This aspect implies that females are more concerned about their health conditions such as their weight than male adolescents. On the other hand, obesity cases are more pronounces among adolescents from wealthy families in developing nations. This factor hardly brings distinctions in developed nations like the United States where obesity could be caused by other factors, which are hardly associated with social-economic characteristics of families.

Conclusion and Recommendation

Obesity is a global problem, a national problem, or a family problem but it is hardly a personal problem. People live in a collaborative life in which one’s misfortunes affects the lives of many other individuals. It thus follows that obesity problems also affect the wellbeing of other individuals. Obese people are subjected to more health problems. This aspect not only adds problems to the individual health but becomes an economic burden to the family and the nation at large. Obese people face other medical and social problems that render them less productive (Great Britain Parliament House of Commons Health Committee, 2004). The problem of obesity seems to be a major issue to the developing countries. There should be ways of preventing obesity from becoming a health and economic burden to developing countries. One of such ways is to inform the youth, adolescents, and young children about the problems related to obesity and how they can act responsibly to avoid the medical problem and help other solve obesity problems.

I would therefore recommend various measures that people could take to solve obesity problems. Typically, the best and general ways that people should apply in managing obesity among children and adolescents include:

Starting a program for managing weight

Changing eating habits

Planning on meals and making good food selection

Controlling portions and consuming less calories

Increasing physical activity such as walking as well as more active lifestyles

Monitoring one’s children in terms of whatever they eat

Eating meals as a family rather than eating as individual

Limiting the consumption of snacks

Attending support groups

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