RUNNING HEAD: Childhood Obesity
7-1 Final Project
Shea Good
IDS-402
Southern New Hampshire University
RUNNING HEAD: Childhood Obesity
Childhood Obesity
Childhood obesity has become an epidemic that has been on the rise for many
years. Living a life of childhood obesity, you are likely to be in jeopardy of substantial health
risks that will carry on into adult, such as diabetes, heart diseases, increased risk of cancers and
overall lower health quality. With these health risks it has a factor that would increase
home/medical bills, hospital expenses and medication costs. Historically, childhood obesity isn't
a new alert, it dates to the 1970's. Policy makers, parents and schools were more concerned
about under nourishing children than with overfeeding them. Through the humanities lens, some
might believe this is a parent focused issue at hand one can also present the argument that kids
are being targeted that the unhealthy high calorie count food is marketed for children. When
examining the natural science lens, we see that childhood obesity is most impactful to children
from infancy to 2 years of age. Through the natural science lens, there are a few key factors the
contribute to childhood obesity such as diet, family factor/lifestyle habits and lack of exercise.
Additionally, all three of those factors go hand in hand one affecting the other which in turn is
detrimental to obese children. Overall, when we investigate the social science lens, the key
contributing factors to childhood obesity are both environmental, socioeconomics and the
psychological findings of all walks of life.
Childhood obesity has been at the forefront of policy makers and in the public's eyes for
quite some time. Through the historical lens; the increase in childhood obesity is steadily
climbing; in 1933 the Labor Secretary notes that "one-fifth of all preschool and school age
children were showing sign of poor nutrition- practically a mirror image of today's warnings that
more than 18 percent of children in the Unites States are obese" (Flam, 2013). Additionally, in
an issue of The Future of Children they stated, "That since the 1970s the percentage of
RUNNING HEAD: Childhood Obesity
overweight or obese children grew from 15 percent to almost 30 percent. Over the same period
of incidence of childhood obesity increased from 5 percent to 15 percent." (Greifner, L. 2006).
The growing increase seen in these rates over time has also been linked society, the change in
food intake, changes in one's lifestyle and the cost factor involved. Childhood obesity has many
economic factors involved, the biggest being cost of care. It would increase health-care costs for
both the families, the physicians and hospitals. Furthermore, it has been estimated that hospital
costs of treating children for obesity conditions have increased from $35 million to $127 million
from 1979-81 to 1997-99 (Paxons, Donahue, Orleans & Grisso, 2006). Another large factor in
the increase in childhood obesity is the decrease physical activity. One of the most common
being the reduction in kids who would have walked or biked to school; in