What Obesity Causes in Children?

-




Definition:

Obesity is a chronic case of excessive body fat or adiposity that exceeds healthy limits. The most commonly accepted method to screen for excess adiposity is calculation of body mass index (BMI). Abnormal BMI cut-offs in children are determined by age- and gender-specific percentiles based on growth charts, as the amount of body fat changes with age and differs between boys and girls. Globally the definition of overweight and obesity changes; however, a BMI >85th percentile is defined as overweight or at risk for overweight in the US and UK, a BMI ≥95th percentile is variably defined as obesity or overweight, and a BMI >99th percentile is defined as morbid obesity. For paediatric under 2 years of age, BMI percentiles are not available; thus, obesity may be defined as a weight ≥95th percentile for height.

Aetiology:

Obesity in children is multifactorial. Interactions among factors such as genetic predisposition, behavioural and cultural practices, and environmental influences lead to discordant energy balance, with energy intake exceeding energy expenditure, eventually leading to obesity in predisposed people. Many factors typically co-exist in a person, making it difficult to determine the impact of any one factor independently of the others on the development of obesity. Behavioural and environmental changes must play an important role even in genetically predisposed children, as the prevalence of obesity in children has increased dramatically over the last 30 years despite a low likelihood of a rapid change in the genetic makeup of the population.

Pathophysiology:

Several physiological systems control how the body regulates its weight. The arcuate nucleus, located in the hypothalamus, serves as the master centre of weight regulation by integrating hormonal signals that direct the body to adjust its food intake and energy expenditure.

Risk factors:
  • rapid weight gain in infancy
  • weight gain in early childhood
  • sedentary lifestyle
  • maternal gestational diabetes
  • poor dietary choices
  • sleep deprivation
  • sleep deprivation
  • High cholesterol
  • Bone problems
  • Early heart disease

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Treating Obesity can cure Type 2 Diabetic?

-
Image
Obesity and Type 2 diabetes are diseases that can considerably decrease life expectancy, diminish quality of life and increase healthcare costs. The prevalence of obesity and diabetes continues to rise by epidemic proportions. .According to the reports, in 2002 18.2 million people, or 6.3 per cent of the population, had diabetes. Diabetes was the sixth leading cause of death. death certificates in 2000. The direct and indirect cost of diabetes in the U.S. in 2002 was estimated at $132 billion. It has been estimated that the annual cost of overweight and obesity in the U.S. is $122.9 billion. This estimate accounts for $64.1 billion in direct costs and $58.8 billion in indirect costs. What is Diabetes? Diabetes is a disease characterized by high levels of blood glucose resulting from defects in insulin production, insulin action or both. Type 1 diabetes happens when the body's immune system destroys pancreatic beta cells, the only cells in the body that make the hormo...
Read more

Initial Announcement of 3rd Middle East Obesity, Bariatric Surgery and Endocrinology Congress

-
Image
OBESITY AND OVERWEIGHT: Obesity is described as the accumulation of fat in the human body beyond the amount required for the normal body function. This continuous accumulation of fats results weight gain. Obesity has reached wide range in global, with more than 1 billion adults overweight - at least 300 million of them clinically obese - and is a major contributor to the global burden of chronic disease and disability. Often coexisting in developing countries with under-nutrition, obesity is a complex condition, with serious social and psychological dimensions, affecting virtually all ages and socioeconomic groups. Increased utilization of more energy-dense, nutrient poor foods with high levels of sugar and saturated fats, combined with reduced physical activity, have leads to obesity rates that have risen three-fold or more since 1980 in some areas of North America, the United Kingdom, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, the Pacific Islands, and China. The o...
Read more