Posts Tagged ‘Childhood Obesity’

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Child Labor Laws Responsible for Childhood Obesity?

January 28th, 2012

Well, here’s a new one. Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) is suggesting that child labor laws are responsible for the rise in childhood obesity. Grassley was criticizing a Department of Labor regulation that children could only work on farms owned by their parents when he decided to open up this novel line. Political Animal – Leave child-labor laws alone

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Posted in DAILY DOWNEY, Featured, Politics

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New View on the Origins of Our Obesity Predicament

December 24th, 2011

As readers know, there is a certain disconnect about when the obesity    epidemic began. Personally, I am quite persuaded that the historical record for the increase in human weight and height (the two parts of the BMI formula) goes back at least 350 years. (See, The Techno-physiological Revolution). On the other hand, something seemed to happened in the United States around the 1970s to send the rates skyward. There are no end of theories, all of which have some plausibility. So now comes Melinda Sothern, a well-respected and highly published obesity researcher, with a new look at mothers in the 1950’s. (Ouch! That’s a little close to home.) Her thoughts in this article do meet up with current research on genetic and, especially, epigenetic factors influencing the development of obesity. 

Many knowledgeable researchers have avoided going into this territory, not because of the science but because of the fear of being blamed for blaming mothers. This is not an inconsequential factor as parents may defer medical care for fear of being blamed for their child’s weight problems. (See the Cleveland obese boy incident.)

Sothern’s experiences and scientific credibility gives impetus to seriously consider her thoughts on the origin of our current predicament, given in this article in The Republic, ’50s women may have triggered obesity epidemic | The Republic

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Posted in Childhood Obesity, DAILY DOWNEY, Featured, Genetic Basis of Obesity

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Is Foster Care Good for Obese Children?

December 6th, 2011

Dr. David Ludwig, the Harvard pediatric endocrinologist who wants the government to take obese children away from their families like the boy in Cleveland according to an analysis  which, in my opinion, is deeply flawed, should read the Government Accountability Office study of five states. This study, recently presented to Congress, shows that children in foster care receive very high doses of anti-psychotic medications. Foster Kids Given Psychiatric Drugs At Higher Rates : Shots – Health Blog : NPR#more

Many of these medications are known to increase body weight. Weight gain profiles of new anti-psychotics: public… [Obes Rev. 2003] – PubMed – NCBI  On the other hand,  Dr. Ludwig’s assumes that foster care will be good for the obese child, presumably by reducing their body weight. Unfortunately, there is absolutely no – zero – nada- evidence that foster care can produce sustained, significant weight loss in the children seized from their homes. Dr. Ludwig should look at the study that found that weight of children actually increased in foster care. Obesity in looked after children: is f… [Child Care Health Dev. 2008] – PubMed – NCBI

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Posted in Childhood Obesity, DAILY DOWNEY, Featured, Weight Bias

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Are Pediatricians Doing Their Job?

December 6th, 2011

Amid continuing furor over the removal of the 8 year old boy in Cleveland from his family, come two reports. The first, a study just published in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Health showing that only a quarter of parents were told by their pediatricians that their child was overweight. Interestingly, more parents who were minority and low income were told than other groups of parents. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med — Abstract: Parental Recall of Doctor Communication of Weight Status: National Trends From 1999 Through 2008, December 5, 2011, Perrin et al. 0 (2011): archpediatrics.2011.1135v1

Another report has addressed a recurring question in the Cleveland case which is ‘how widespread is the removal of overweight/obese children to foster care?’ There does not appear to a clear picture but there is a picture of the frequency in Great Britain, including the case of a child as young as three. Council ‘put child, 5, into care for being obese’ – Telegraph

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When Doctors Blame the Parents

December 4th, 2011

The case of the 200 lb. boy in Cleveland who was removed from his home and taken into foster care has raised many issues. One of these is what signal does such action and the blame attached to parents by physicians such as David Ludwig have on the medical care of their children. In this post, Dr. Sharma recounts a recent study, albeit a small one, showing that parents of overweight/obese children often delayed medical care because the blame they felt from their primary care physicians. See,  

Why Parents Seldom Seek Professional Help For Their Obese Kids | Dr. Sharma’s Obesity Notes

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Posted in Childhood Obesity, DAILY DOWNEY, Featured, HEALTH & STIGMA, Weight Bias

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Neighbors Support Cleveland Parents

December 2nd, 2011

Cleveland TV Station, WKYC, finds neighbors support boys’ family in custody dispute. County officials have placed the boy in foster care.They indicate both parents are ‘large’ people and boy is active. Boy has been physically active but unable to lose weight even though under court supervision for nearly a year and in a hospital weight loss program. See Neighbors support mother of obese boy taken away | wkyc.com

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Posted in Childhood Obesity, DAILY DOWNEY, Featured, HEALTH & STIGMA, NEWS

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Obesity Rates in Europe Spiral Upwards

November 25th, 2011

Two reports from Europe show pervasive increases in obesity throughout Europe, even though rates of obesity vary significantly within the continent.

The European Union reports that rates varied between 8% and 23.9% for women and 7.6% and 24.7% for men. (The US rates are 26.8% for women and 27.6% for men.) The lowest rates for men and women were in Romania, Italy, Bulgaria and France. The highest rates for women were in the United Kingdom, Malta, Latvia and Estonia; for men, in Malta, the UK, Hungary and the Czech Republic. Rates of obesity increased with age and fell with higher educational levels. See, http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/cache/ITY_PUBLIC/3-24112011-BP/EN/3-24112011-BP-EN.PDF

In the second report, the Organization for the Economic Co-operation and  Development (OECD) looked at obesity among its 34 member countries worldwide.

Looking at their latest surveys, they found more than half of the adult population in the OECD report they are overweight or obese. Where height and weight were measured (as opposed to self-report) the rate was even grater, 55.8%. 19 of the 34 OECD countries had more than 50% of adults who were overweight or obese. Even in countries with low rates, e.g. Japan, Korea, France and Switzerland, rates were increasing. Throughout the OECD, 17% of adults were obese. The report notes, “The rise in obesity has affected all population groups, regardless of sex, age, race, income, or education level, but to varying extents.” http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/docserver/download/fulltext/8111101ec018.pdf?expires=1322264846&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=8D94E5CC3B86E6675810DE2CCB25CA83 

Regarding childhood, the OECD notes “Rates of overweight among boys and girls are increasing across the OECD. In many developed countries, child obesity levels doubled between the 1960s and the 1980s, and have doubled since then. Even in emerging countries, the prevalence of obesity is rising, especially in urban areas where there is more sedentary behavior and a greater access to energy-dense food.” OECD iLibrary: Statistics / Health at a Glance / 2011 / Overweight and obesity among children

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Obesity Explodes in Elementary School

November 25th, 2011

A new study of 4,240 white, 640 black and 1,070 Hispanic children in 1st, 3rd and 5th grades, finds 40% of children started kindergarten with a BMI in the top quartile of growth charts. This proportion increased significantly during the elementary school years and the largest gains were seen between 1st and 3rd grades but there was no further increase during middle school. Increases were greatest among Hispanic and black children. Changes in Body Mass During Elementary and Middle… [Pediatrics. 2011] – PubMed – NCBI

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