...Environmental Health Term Paper: Childhood Obesity in Low Socioeconomic Status Communities Jordan Landers Florida State University Abstract Obesity is at an all time high in the Unites States, affecting 35% of adults and 17% of children. Childhood obesity can be very detrimental causing emotional, physical, and social strain on the lives of adolescents. Those that are affected the most are citizens that live in low socioeconomic status communities due to lack of education and lack of resources. There are shortages of grocery stores and markets that offer fresh fruits and vegetables thus communities rely on fast food restaurants and convenient stores for food. Furthermore lack of fresh food coupled with physical inactivity is the main reason for the rise of childhood obesity and obesity in general in the past 30 years. Creating safe places for children to play as well as providing food and resources is the only way to eliminate the ongoing obesity epidemic. Growing up there has always been a certain degree of importance placed on the diet and living a healthy lifestyle to live a long and successful life. As of late there has been a boom in fitness sales, gym memberships, and importance on diet and quality food consumption, yet in the past 30 years the United States has seen a drastic increase in the amount of obese individuals. With social media and so many other health initiatives taking place across the country, why is there still a rise in obesity levels amongst...
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...Poverty and Childhood Obesity Linda Weems English 122 Instructor: Craig Smith October 5, 2012 Poverty and Childhood Obesity Over the past years, more people have become underprivileged. America used to have a strong middle class, but now the middle class is gradually retreating due to many jobs going overseas and local companies closing due to the 2007 economic crash. Because of the state of the economy, people will have to make tough decisions about what to spend their money on. Childhood obesity in America is an increasing ailment that has become an epidemic that has lasting emotional effects, because of the limited access to healthy foods. In more recent months, middle class families have been finding it hard to keep up with the rising cost of food and many of them have turned to the State for public assistance. In Nevada, “The picture of the food stamp spike is framed by the recession: About 145,000 Nevadans were collecting food stamps in fiscal 2007; in March of this year, the government counted almost 354,000 recipients statewide”. (Demirjian, 2012) In my neighborhood, I look around at the kids surrounding me. More than half of these kids are what one would consider “obese”. Childhood obesity is increasing in the United States – and the kids that I see today are a direct result of America’s unawareness to this crisis. The key causes of childhood obesity are a deficiency of exercise and deprived nutrition; these contributors must be conquered...
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...Poverty and Welfare on Childhood Obesity1 Poverty and Welfare on Childhood Obesity Paul D Stasiak Self Study Childhood obesity has become a growing concern in the eyes of many Americans, yet not every parent can identify if their child or one they care for is overweight. Understanding dietary intake for our children is a very important. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014), childhood obesity has more than doubled and young adult obesity has quadrupled in the last 30 years (p. 1). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention define being overweight as having an excess body weight for a given height, specifically as having excess body fat. The number of obese children today is higher than it has been in the past. However, times are changing and the fast food companies are growing more and more popular each and every day. This paper will examine the research which states that a child is more likely to be obese as an adult if they were obese all throughout their adolescent years and poverty’s effect on childhood obesity. According to Feeding America (2013), 45.3 million Americans were living in poverty (p. 1). This number is very high considering the 318.9 million that are living in America. The unemployment rate in January of 2015 was 5.7%. As a result of unemployment or living in poverty conditions, some families have resorted to buying less expensive food options for their children in order to...
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...HCS/465- Health Care Reseach Studies to prove childhood obesity is a disease are conducted often. The studies that are conducted are to help prevent and cure childhood obesity. There are several ways each study is conducted. Throughout this paper one will learn of at least one way a study was conducted, and the results of that particular study. One will learn of the information that was collected as well as the procedure to keep the results and information private. The study that one will learn about throughout this paper on childhood obesity will give one some basic information that was used to show what areas are affected by childhood obesity and will also show one that childhood obesity not only starts at home but carries over into the school life of a child. The data collected in the study of childhood obesity was collected by the use of the telephone; this method is called survey research. This type of research was appropriate for the study because it reached more subjects for the research, and the questions asked in the survey were specific. Since there are many people who believe that childhood obesity is not a real or serious problem, the survey did not require millions of dollars to conduct making the survey important at the same time reducing the amount of funds required to conduct this survey. Also, this survey and research done on childhood obesity did not require children to be seen by a physician or to be studied like guinea pigs and being poked...
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...Global poverty and inequality are problems that affect a large portion of the world’s population. In fact, over half of the world’s population has an income below America’s official poverty standard. To understand this massive gap, one must realize that global poverty is very different from U.S. domestic poverty. The United Nations set a goal to cut global poverty rates in half in 2015. In order for this to occur, nations must reduce extreme poverty through low-income nations having faster GDP growth. This gives greater priority to eliminating the structural, cultural, and legal “inequality traps” that both impede upward mobility for the poor and inhibit economic development. Due to the increasing views on global poverty, there has been a big push regarding ways to alleviate this problem. The main sources to alleviating global poverty are medical assistance, direct aid, education, family planning, and government reform. In society, there are many different effects when it comes to poverty and discrimination. To begin to understand how to alleviate the problem of global poverty, one must understand the effects of poverty and the impact of where one is brought up. Where you grow up and who you grow up around are two of the major elements of poverty and are known as neighborhood effects. The definition of neighborhood effect is the effect of the neighborhood you grew up in on your adult outcomes. One program that the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development came up with...
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...in depth concern of the growing effects on obesity, the initiatives of this paper focused on the impact of obesity for children on all levels of communities. Furthermore, the paper also pointed out the importance of addressing the importance of fight on obesity. This paper identified the statistics of this disease from data gathered from Healthy People 2020 showing that the obesity rate has increased by 57% amongst adults ages 20 and over from 22.8% to 35.7% between 1988-1994 and 2009-2010. Also during the same time frame, children and adolescents obesity rate climbed the charts for ages 2 to 19 by 69% from 10.0% to 16.9%. Health Campaign Part 1 also explored the prevalence to how in the state of Texas the range from 20.5% in Colorado to 34.7% in Louisiana in 2012. This identified that no states had a prevalence of obesity less than 20% (CDC, 2012). In the continuing efforts of addressing the pubic health issues, community organizations, the state and federal governments have implemented a serious role in taking steps to help with the concerning disease of obesity. Local communities and agencies have collectively come together to help with the fight on adult and childhood obesity. The community outreach has involved parents, teachers, and local companies to help spread the awareness of obesity. The state and federal levels have provided statistical information provided as public information to keep the community up to date on the fight to reduce the risk of obesity. Target...
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...The changing family units in Malaysia 3 2. Changes in Early Childhood care providers 4 3. Changes in Early Childhood education in Malaysia 5 4. Government policies 6 5. Social issues: 5.1 Housing 7 5.2 Poverty 8 5.3 Wellness and Healthy Living 9 Conclusion 10 References 11 Introduction Malaysia has over a period of fifty years since its independence developed into a highly urbanized nation due to buoyant economic growth. Along with development comes progress and along the way, changes to a certain degree- a modern family unit. As society progresses, so do methodologies and programs in the teaching of Early Childhood Education. In the United States, early childhood professionals agree that the children’s development is influenced by their environment: their family, teachers, school, town, media, governmental systems, and so on. (Morrison,2011). An important aspect of early childhood education is developing a holistic approach to education itself. Parents who are illiterate are taught to read, write, speak and listen so that in turn, they can be of support to their children in the learning process. In Malaysia, early childhood programs are in line with national and local public policies. The National Education...
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...children in a positive manner will help in the betterment of the world in the future. The organization was established with the purpose of working with others in order to overcome problems faced by social and economic issues like poverty, violence, ill health discrimination among the children based on race, ethnicity etc. I - UNICEF span and work focus The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) takes a large number of measures to provide the best start for a child’s life as a good care in the initial stages of an individual’s life ensures the best foundation for its future. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) encourages education for girls making sure that they at least complete their primary school education in order to learn to read and write. This is applicable to boys as well (David Gorski, 2012). But, the organization stresses more upon the girls’ education as an educated girl can be and help one to be a better thinker, a better citizen and a better parent in the future for their own children. The organization takes necessary measures to keep the children away from the common diseases that are faced during childhood. Extra care is taken with regards to this as it is wrong for a child to suffer lifelong or die on being a victim of a disease that can be easily prevented. In addition to all this, the organization...
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...Questions: Diseases of poverty and the 10/90 Gap. 1. What is the 10/90 gap? This is where 10 per cent of global health research is devoted to conditions that account for 90 per cent of the global disease burden. 2. What are neglected diseases according to this paper? Neglected diseases are diseases such as Leishmaniasis, lymphatic filariasis, Chagas’disease, leprosy, Guinea worm, onchocerciasis and schistosomiasis. 3. According to figure one how many people a year die from childhood disease and diarrheal diseases? Over 9,000 people 4. Can illnesses in third world countries be treated OR avoided? Refer to a specific example. Yes, illnesses can be treated and even prevented form occurring in the first place. The disease include, but are not limited to, tuberculosis, malaria and various childhood diseases. Tuberculosis can be treated/prevented by improving nutrition and can be treated by DOTS therapy. Malaria can aslo be treated or prevented by using insecticide, spraying homes with DDT and using mosquito nets and medicines. Childhood diseases are preventable by the child being vaccinated at a young age. 5. Give an example of a disease for which there is no treatment. Dengue Fever 6. Do non-communicable diseases not occur in low-income countries? No, these diseases have started to occur in low-income countries 7. Are there obese people in lower income countries? Give two specific pieces of evidence to support your answer. Yes. 50% of sub-saharan...
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...California: Assessment of a Diverse Community California, also known as the golden state and a melting pot of the United States because of a diverse culture and a large immigrant population. To some Americans, it is a paradise and an ideal tourist destination because of sunny weather and easy access to oceans, mountains, and deserts. California integrates foods, languages, and traditions all over the world. According to, People of California 2006 census, California has an appraised population of 377,172,015 and is the thirteenth quickly-growing state. The population consists of 61.9% White American, 6% Black or African American, 10.4% Asian American, 18.4% other race, 1.7% American Indian, 2.1% mixed race, 38.5% are Hispanic or Latino, and 40.3% of the population is non-Hispanic Whites. The leading industries of California are agriculture, manufacturing, biotechnology, and tourism. In terms of politics, Californians are more liberal, especially those who live in the inland states. Based on California Political Parties there are six political parties, the American Independent, Democratic, Green, Libertarian, Peace and Freedom, and Republican. California experiences frequent and devastating wildfires. During the last decade in 2003 and 2009, California experienced devastating wildfires that affected countless lives. Thousands of families were left homeless and hundreds of lives were lost. California officials have made strict laws against unsafe practices that may cause accidental...
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...Childhood hunger is an issue that more than 16.2 million children face sometime in their life in the US. This issue affects children in many ways like, weaker immune systems causing kids to become sick, weaker brains causing kids to poorly perform in school, and lower self-esteem. Malnutrition is one of the most common ways kids get sick and/or get life threatening diseases. Just imagine going through a twenty four hour period and only being able to eat one meal. How would you feel after just one day? There are kids in the US that experience this problem everyday of their lives. With malnutrition, these kids tend to develop a weaker immune system, which cause them to be more prone to sicknesses and/or diseases in the future. By just having...
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...Childhood Obesity ENG 122 Childhood Obesity Obesity is a serious medical condition that is defined as an abnormal constant accumulation of excess body fat that are usually twenty percent or more of a persons average body weight, according to PubMed Health (Obesity in Children) September 2011. Children are the biggest targets of this deadly disease of being overweight. In the U.S. childhood obesity has been on an alarming high rate, which has been impacting the health of American people. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2004, childhood obesity is one of the most significant health issues in the American Society and the second leading cause of preventable deaths in the U.S. Childhood obesity is a very serious disease that impacts many children and should not be taken lightly, its time that people put forth the effort to take preventive measures in the cure of the deadly disease. More focus is needed to help prevent childhood obesity from everyone parents, guardians and the government. People need to be aware of the risk and consequences of being obese and overweight in children before it is to late and their children become one of those statistics. Therefore, everyone toward fighting this deadly disease of childhood obesity needs a greater attention to put this to the forefront of government issues. According to PEW Research Centers 2011, children and teenagers are developing diseases that have been linked to adults...
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...citizens services, and community safety services. San Diego also has multiple public services, excellent public schools, state of the art hospitals and clinics, and public transportation which include trains and trolleys (Community Services, n.d.). Sam Diegans can go to a museum, an opera, and attend an NFL game all in the same day. San Diego is an amazing place to live and has a lot to offer its citizens, but steps need to be taken to identify and evaluate disease in the community in order to promote optimal health and ensure the well-being of all San Diegans. Epidemiology is the study of disease in the community and then evaluating the reasons why the disease or condition happened. Evaluating the risks and safeguarding factors of a disease or condition helps identify the driving forces behind health abnormalities ("Epidemiology Program," n.d.). San Diego has many health needs and is at risks for high mortality and morbidity. Malignant neoplasms are the leading cause of death followed by heart disease and Alzheimer’s disease (Leading Causes of Death Among San...
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...no other option but to do so. I have determined that the main cause of an increase in food bank usage in Canada is poverty. Within Canada, poverty has been an ever-present issue for many years. Although Canada is rated eighth on the Human Development Index, there continues to be a growing number of impoverished people. Individuals who are not able to provide themselves with the basic necessities of life are at an incredible disadvantage when it comes to maintaining their health and well-being. They can be exposed to many illnesses and life threats because they are not able to provide themselves with the resources needed to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Things such as food, shelter, and warmth all become optional for an individual living in poverty as they have little opportunity to better their life or living situations. Factors such as housing, education, employment, and environment are all equally important in determining an individuals economic standing. Specific groups such as Aboriginals can be at even more of a disadvantage because of the additional issues they face in regards to government policies in Canada. Throughout my research I found that there are four main factors that are greatly affected when an individual is living in poverty, which leads to the need for Food Banks. These factors are income, housing, nutrition and food security, and early childhood development...
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...Trends in America Surrounding Childhood Obesity In the past 40 years obesity rates for children age 6 to 11 nearly tripled—from 5% to 14%—and more than tripled for adolescents age 12 to 19—from 5% to 17.1% (NCLS.org). There are many reasons behind obesity rates tripling in the past thirty years. One reason is that around 30% of U.S. children do not exercise three or more times a week (NCLS.org). Another reason why childhood obesity has tripled in the past thirty years is that urban and suburban designs discourage walking and other physical activities (acvitvelivingresources.org). This increase in childhood obesity can also lead to adults with heart disease and diabetes. Government Influences on Food Choices and Options The government plays an important role in what we eat and what is sold. For example, all food sold must be approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). They have taxes in place such as the fat tax to help reduce obesity in the U (abcnews.go.com). The government also has basic guidelines to food consumption such as the food pyramid. The government also has control over how food is marketed. For example, USDA, along with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), may start limiting how the food industry markets junk food to kids (news.change.org). Overall, the government plays an important role in what everyone in the United States eats. ...
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