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Evidence-guided approaches to addressing child obesity: what approaches can dietitians use in their everyday practice?

Article Excerpt
Child obesity was described by the World Health Organisation in 1998 as one of the most pressing public health issues of our time that requires an urgent and informed response. (1) Unfortunately, despite much attention and efforts, the juggernaut that is the child obesity epidemic shows no sign of slowing down.

The most recent representative data from Australia report that around 25% of school-aged children and adolescents (2) and 20% of preschool children (3) are overweight or obese, and that this figure continues to increase, even accelerate, among boys.

The immediate health consequences of child obesity are well known and affect most body systems. (4) From a psychosocial perspective, obese children have poorer quality of life (5) and commonly experience peer prejudice. (6) Because obese children are more likely than their lean counterparts to become obese adults and suffer the associated adverse health outcomes, obese children have an increased risk of mortality and chronic adult health conditions, such as heart disease, diabetes and some cancers. (7)

Clearly, strategies are needed at all levels of society and by all stakeholders if there is to be any hope of turning this problem around. The National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia recommends that simple, well-designed interventions incorporating conventional weight-management strategies and which can be translated into practice are urgently needed in Australia. (8) This seems like a natural and sensible response.

The...