Childhood Obesity: An ‘Epidemic’ With No Easy Solutions

With obesity recognized as a serious health risk across all age groups, researchers analyzed the results of fitness tests among schoolchildren in more than 250 cities in California. One of the findings that stood out was the drastic difference in childhood obesity rates depending on where a child lives.

The California Center for Public Health Advocacy and the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research studied overweight and obesity rates among fifth-, seventh- and ninth-grade students across the state, using results from physical fitness tests conducted in 2010.

Researchers found that 38 percent of children in California are overweight or obese, but “the health of California’s children is all over the map with shocking discrepancies based on locale.” While only 11 percent of children in Manhattan Beach are considered overweight or obese, the number rises to 53 in Huntington Park, the highest in the state.

Poway’s rate is among the lowest in San Diego County, with 26.1 percent of children considered overweight or obese. The county average was 34.5 percent, with National City the highest at 50 percent and Carlsbad the lowest at 16.8 percent.

A report by the researchers said that obesity is the second-most preventable cause of death in the United States, next to smoking. While data shows that the number of overweight children leveled off between 2003 and 2008, the numbers are still much higher than they were in the 1970s.

“Between the early 1970s and 2003-2004, the prevalence of obesity nearly tripled among youth ages 12 to 19, from 6 percent to 17 percent, and more than quadrupled among children ages 6 to 11, rising from 4 percent to 19 percent,” the report stated.

The researchers said childhood obesity is an epidemic that will not be “solved by calling for individual behavior change alone.” They presented nine policy recommendations that address the conditions in schools and communities that contribute to kids becoming overweight.

Among the recommendations are stopping the sale of sugary drinks on school grounds and taxing them on the state and local level; ensuring that schools have quality physical education classes and fitness tests; and adopting “complete streets” policies that make walking and bike riding attractive alternatives to driving everywhere.  

The complete report and recommendations are attached to this article in the PDF section.