Health Promotion Plan To Treat Obesity
- Rationale for a Health Promotion Plan
Obesity constitutes a serious health problem of all social groups, despite races, genders, and ages. Poverty and belonging to certain social class are also factors that influence obesity. The current report focuses on the risk groups affected by the obesity and reveals causes and possible effects of the obesity as well as ways to prevent the development of obesity. At the moment, obesity has already become a health problem that threatens to the public health. Therefore, this report is focused on presenting rationale for a health promotion plan to treat the obesity among the children.Health Promotion Plan To Treat Obesity
- Obesity among the children
Obesity is a major health problem, but which organs or systems can it affect? According to the studies, the diseases that grow out of it include diabetes, heart disease, arthritis and cancer. (Douglas, 2010) According to Zamosky (2013), obesity represents an enormous problem to the healthcare system, because it is a much harder condition to treat than almost anything else. In addition, obstructive asleep apnea is another consequence of obesity which influences the the quality of sleep and rest, and results in a poor school performance. (Douglas, 2010). Children are at the high risk of obesity because they cannot adequately assess consequences of the health problem and its effects on their life in a long-run perspective.
- The scope of the problem of obesity
According to the information provided by Beck (2014), Australia is the fourth most obese country in the world. The situation with obesity is dangerous in terms of its high rates among the Australian adults; but there are high rates of the overweight children too in the country: Australia is ranked 19th in children obesity (Beck, 2014). Obesity can trigger the development of serious health problems such as cardiovascular diseases, heart attacks, diabetes and other serious health problems and chronic diseases which are among the major causes of death in Australia. Therefore, obesity is one of the major factors contributing to the growing death rate because this health problem undermines the health of patients and can cause other serious health conditions that may be lethal for patients. The share of obese Australians has increased by 47% in 2012 compared to 1995 (Zamosky, 2013). At the moment, Ausralia holds the third place in the prevalence of obesity among English speaking countries following the US, which is ranked first, and New Zealand, which is ranked second (Zamosky, 2013). The distribution of the obese population is basically equal among different parts of Australia with the slight prevalence of obesity among English speaking compared to non-English speaking population of Australia (Zamosky, 2012), although such differences are not very significant.Health Promotion Plan To Treat Obesity
In accordance with the information presented by the NHMRC, there is a steady tendency of obesity rates rising for Australia. (“Obesity and Overweight”, n.a.) The survey handled in 2007 claimed 25% of Australian children to be overweight at the time. (“Obesity and Overweight”, n.a.). The trend to the growth of obesity among children threatens to the public health of Australia because in the future the share of obese population is likely to increase even more but this risk is underestimated so far.
- Target group
Childhood overweight and obesity rates are particularly for some risk groups and there is a certain difference exists across the Australian population. The rates of overweight or obese children in lower socio economic and ethnic communities are higher than average Australian rates: they are up to 36 per cent.. (“Obesity and Overweight”, n.a.). Therefore, the target population that has to be addressed are adolescents at the age of 11-18, who undergo consistent physiological changes and face the high risk of the development of obesity in case of wrong, unhealthy nutrition and poor food culture aggravated by sedative lifestyle and low physical activities. In this regard, the urban adolescents within the determined age group should be the primary concern for policies aiming at the prevention of obesity.
So, the NHMRC data indicate that the most disadvantaged socioeconomic groups are characterised by the high rates of obesity. These groups include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and also citizens of Australia who live in rural and remote areas. (“Obesity and Overweight”, n.a.) Therefore, based on these considerations, the target group of the present health promotion plan are adolescents at the age o 11-18 and their families of the mentioned high risk groups living in urban areas.
- Cost of the problem
Obesity among children causes significant economic burdens not only for their families but for local communities and state. According to Beck (2014), obesity costs the Australian government billions in healthcare funds and reduced productivity rates each year. Taubes (2012) add that governments spend huge sums of money on convincing the citizens to exercise more and eat less. . These are direct costs of the problem for the state. There are also possible indirect costs for the children who suffer from obesity and their families including the reduced quality of life and future expenditures to treat the health problems caused by obesity.Health Promotion Plan To Treat Obesity
The Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle study shows that the direct cost for obesity in 2005 in Australia was $21 billion, while indirect costs consist of $35.6 billion per year. So, the total annual cost imposed by obesity in Australia is $56.6 billion per year. (“Obesity and Overweight”, n.a.)
- Summary of related programs
The federal government has enlisted obesity into the list of national health priorities and focused government and public efforts on the prevention and resolution of the problem of obesity. There are different health promotion programs have been developed to address the target group in general, but there is a need to suggest a specific national health promotion program for the children from ethnic communities with lower socio economic status. The Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing funded the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) to review and update the Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Overweight and Obesity in Adults, Adolescents and Children in Australia People with low economic status tend to choose the high-calorie, high-fat food and that are creates high risk of obesity. Children buy snacks and sugared drinks and they pay less attention to more expensive healthy food. The health promotion plan aims to change the children’s behaviour patterns, because it is one of the effective therapy options in curing obesity. Low calorie food consumption, smaller portions intake and regular exercises are the key forces that will have a great impact on the obesity. (Luthern, n.d.)
- Program goal
The goal of the health promotion plan is a 10% reduction of the obesity levels among children of high risk groups (the most disadvantaged socioeconomic and ethnic groups, children who live in rural and remote areas) by 2017. The goal is to be achieved through the promotion of healthy eating plans among families of the high risk groups, increased physical activity and behavioural modification. The program aims at adolescents at the age of 11-18 living in urban areas and vulnerable to the risk of obesity.Health Promotion Plan To Treat Obesity
- Conclusion
Children’s obesity is a significant health disaster which is associated with heart diseases, arthritis, cancer and possible premature deaths. It imposes substantial economic costs (both direct and indirect) on individuals, families and communities. The problem of obesity is especially critical for the children from high risks groups, who have a limited access to healthy food and more exposed by high-calorie, high-fat food that lead to overweight. This is why the health promotion plan needs to target these children in the first turn. The health promotion plan needs to focus on preventive measures such as a correct nutrition, enough level of physical activity, special strategies for the families whose children are of high risk for obesity. The children’s behaviour patterns need to be changed in order to decrease the levels of obesity. Low calorie food consumption, smaller portions intake and regular exercises are the key forces that will have a great impact on the obesity therapy result. (Luthern, n.d.) Health Promotion Plan To Treat Obesity