Zeitschrift für ernährungswissenschaftliche Forschung

Abstrakt

Childhood obesity 2020: Implication of childhood obesity, nutrition, and inflammation on South Carolinian children In Orangeburg County- Christyan Norman- South Carolina State University

Christyan Norman and Elijah Medina-Bandy

In South Carolina childhood obesity is growing at an alarming rate surpassing the national average Forty percent of children in SC are classified as either overweight or obese. Childhood obesity can lead to numerous health complications in adulthood that includes diabetes, high-cholesterol, chronic joint pain, and cancer. Childhood obesity could be caused by various other factors such as socioeconomic status and poor nutritional choices. In SC, Orangeburg County is located within the I-95 Corridor “Corridor of Shame”, because of issues such as poverty, lack of health care, poor health choices, and obesity due to being severely underfunded and underdeveloped. The purpose of this study is to enroll SC children to determine if obesity and/or high-fat pro-inflammatory diets contribute to increased levels of pro-inflammatory markers. A screening survey, which gives a brief overview of the candidate’s nutritional/physical activity background and demographics was conducted and analyzed in addition to the collection of saliva biospecimens from each participant. The majority of participants enrolled were between 10-13 years old with a family income of less than $20K annually. 42% and 31% were categorized as ideal weight or obese, respectively. Extracted RNA was used to analyze the expression of acute inflammation markers (IL8 and IL6) and chronic inflammation markers (ADP, CRP, Il-1β, and SAA1). Data suggests that irrespective of weight class, expression levels of chronic inflammation markers are correlated with high fat diets. If the preventable risk factor of childhood obesity is targeted, it could play a significant role in reducing chronic inflammation in children. Work funded by USDA/NIFA Grant Number SCX-311-20-16.Our current understanding of factors associated with childhood obesity, including latest prevalence rates, effectiveness of intervention strategies, and risk for concomitant disease later in life. RECENT FINDINGS: Obesity has reached global dimensions, and prevalence of childhood obesity has increased eightfold since 1975. Interventions for obesity prevention have mainly focused on behavioral settings to date, i.e., interventions that have focused on behavioral changes of the individuum such as increasing daily physical exercise or optimizing diet. However, effects have been very limited worldwide and could not stop the increase of obesity prevalence so fare. Thus, community-based/environment-oriented measures are urgently needed, such as promotion of healthy food choices by taxing unhealthy foods, mandatory standards for meals in kindergarten and schools, increase of daily physical activity at kindergartens, and schools as well as ban on unhealthy food advertisement for children. Restructuring obesity interventions towards community-based/environment-oriented measures to counteract an obesogenic environment is mandatory for sustainable success and to stop the obesity epidemy. There is need to move fast, as already moderate overweight before the start of puberty is associated with significantly increased risk for type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease in midlife.

Current prevention strategies for childhood overweight and obesity are insufficient and so far at least partially inadequate in most countries. Community-/environment-based preventive approaches outlined above are necessary. However, they cannot counteract the obesity epidemic alone in our complex obesogenic environment. Implementation of the measures listed above requires healthy living spaces like nearby playgrounds and parks for children and adolescents, freely available drinking fountains in day-care centers and schools, binding quality standards for catering offerings in kindergartens and schools, and other measures of environment-oriented prevention. Given the data for the prevention of obesity compiled above, the pediatrician, general practitioner, and physician in the public health services all have an important role to play along with other professions: The physician (or nurses) is in direct contact with parents and children and thus has the opportunity to monitor (weight) development continuously and analyze possible causes. This access requires that physicians are sufficiently aware of obesity-related issues. Physicians and health professionals should provide families with information and offer support. Staff of pediatric medical care facilities should have knowledge of (better yet information material on) secondary and tertiary prevention offers in the vicinity. Certified offers for tertiary obesity prevention in Germany are listed, for example, on the homepage of the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Adipositas im Kindesalter (AGA).A physician's awareness of obesity provides the vital opportunity to link preventive measures of teachers, nutritional experts, and trainers of physical activities. Authorities responsible for health and health education can also be contacted and involved by the physician, if necessary. Since preventive measures are all the better if implemented early in life, early detection of childhood overweight or obesity by physicians is of the utmost importance. Therefore, obesity and its prevention should be a significant topic in medical education and training. As prevention strategies for overweight and obesity in childhood and adolescence are insufficient in most countries to date and at least partially inadequate, a rethinking and revision of available guidelines and recommendations is mandatory. Community-/environment-based preventive approaches as outlined above are urgently needed. However, they cannot counteract the obesity epidemic alone in our complex obesogenic environment. Implementation of the measures listed above requires healthy living spaces, e.g. nearby playgrounds and parks for children and adolescents, freely available drinking fountains in day-care centers and schools, binding quality standards for catering offerings in kindergartens and schools, and other measures of environment-oriented prevention. The meta-analyses' conclusions make these educational and health policy decisions, and the subsequent resulting activities, absolutely vital. In the prevention of obesity, political decision-makers must be involved in order to establish and finance comprehensive, inter-connected support systems for the behavior-based and community-/environmental based prevention of obesity.