Running Head: FINAL DRAFT 1

Signature Final Draft

Chelsea Johnston & Ruby Padilla

Arizona State University

PPE 310: Healthy Learning Communities

Jennifer Houston

L7: Assignment - Final Draft

27 November 2017
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Signature Final Draft

Introduction

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Young Americans should eliminate regular consumption of unhealthy food and

participate in regular exercise because a poor lifestyle can lead to preventable and expensive

health problems like childhood obesity. Obesity is a medical condition in which excess fat is

built up and leads to health risks. Childhood obesity has been a serious problem in America for

over a decade. According to The Center of Disease Control and Prevention, about one in five

school-aged children (ages 619) suffer from obesity (Centers of Disease Control and

Prevention, 2017). These results are truly devastating and puts the future of American children at

an extreme risk.

Obesity can be categorized into different levels and is measured by Body Mass

Index(BMI). The BMI is calculated by dividing the individuals weight(kg) by the square

height(meters) (Phillips, 14). An individual is classified as being severely obese when their body

mass is greater than 40, or they are 100 pounds over their ideal weight. When an individual is

considered severely obese, conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes,

stroke, heart disease, and many more become serious risks. These physical risks can also lead to

psychological problems such as low self-esteem and depression.

The effects of childhood obesity are extremely detrimental; however, by a healthy

balanced diet, and exercising daily, children can reduce their risk of becoming obese. Society can

slow down the growing issue by focusing on the causes and preventing childhood obesity. If

parents reinforce a healthy life style at home then many obesity problems could be avoided.
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Literature Review

Nemours is a nonprofit pediatric health system who conducted a project in Delaware, in

2013, to address childhood obesity in early care and education setting. Their focus was to

implement the strategies of understanding what works to prevent childhood obesity by spread,

scale and sustain childhood prevention methods (Chang, Gertel-Rosenberg, Snyder, 2014).

Through interventions, Nemours made an effort to improve child health by preventing the issue

at a population level. They included child care, schools, community organizations and social

marketing strategies to encourage children to eat less sugar, exercise more, and spend less time

in front of a screen. Numerous partnered with National investors and began the National Early

Care and Education Learning Collaborative in 2012 to help prevent childhood obesity. The

intervention geared to help train staff in school to have more knowledge of healthy living,

design a childhood obesity prevention program called Empower, and improve government and

private funding to multiple states to help Schools implement the intervention.

The focusing on spread, scale, and sustainability in education and early care proved to be

useful to preventing childhood obesity. However, the case study proved to have minimal effects

on the overall issue. Numerous plans to evolve and improve through time with hopes of having a

bigger effect on preventing childhood obesity with infrastructure and financing structures for

future generations.

Communities for Healthy Living (CHL) gathered to discover the effects that childhood

obesity prevention can have when involving parents in the study. Their focus was to involve the

parents throughout the whole study using the Community-Based Participatory Research

approach. Parents participation in preventing childhood obesity is important because they know

most about their family needs and resources. With their involvement, they can help to create and
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promote a healthy lifestyle for their children. Low income parents were selected from a Head

Start program in Rensselaer County, New York. Potential partners were interviewed to help with

funding. Parents and people in the community were recruited to help expand the projects

success. Meetings were held where agendas were made, discussions arose, and data was

collected. They discussed factors that influenced children to become overweight and how they

could help. As more meetings took place, more involvement and participation were involved.

Parents were educated about health and ways to promote a healthy lifestyle. Both administration

and parents participated in seminars that were focused on healthy living. Childcare was provided

during meetings and seminars which made it easy for parents to attend. The program used a grant

to reward parents who joined the project to $25 gift cards, thanking them for their effort and

time. However, as time passed, parents participation started to decrease (Jurkowski, Mills,

Lawson, Bovenzi, Quartimon, Davison, 2013).

Overall, involving the parents throughout the entire research process, proved to be very

beneficial. Parents learned valuable information that they were able to apply into their life.

Administrators also received proper training and contributed valuable information to the project.

There were surveys given to parents at the end of the project. In these surveys, it was discovered

that parents made relationships with one another which was encouraged them to collaborate with

one another in the future. Parents learned skills and information that benefited them in their

future.

More than one-third of adults and 17% of youth in the United States are obese. To

understand and analyze the trends of childhood obesity between 2003 and 2012, Cynthia Ogden,

Margaret Carroll, and Brian Kit investigated the obesity trend among various ages of U.S.

citizens. The investigation had over 9100 participants and they were nationally representative.
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Each age group was divided and set to different measures to ensure an accurate reading. They

were split from ages birth-2, 2-19, and 19-older. Each group was based on growth and length

percentiles as set by the Center of Disease Control (CDC) and the suggest Body Mass Index

(BMI).

The results demonstrate that 8.1% of infants and toddlers had high weight for recumbent

length, 16.9% of the children participants between 2-19 were obese and 34.9% of adults

participants were obese. In comparison to results from 2003-2004, there is no significant change

in weight or obesity of all participants. Overall, there have been no significant changes in obesity

prevalence in youth or adults between 2003-2004 and 2011-2012. Obesity prevalence remains

high and thus it is important to continue surveillance.

The focus of obesity, especially childhood obesity is the main focus of most public health

efforts in the United States. Although the prevalence of obesity in the U.S. is high, it has

appeared to level off between 2003-2010. With the high focus of public health, obesity concerns

still remain high under surveillance (Ogden, Carroll, & Kit, 2014).

Childhood obesity is a major health problem in the United States. Currently, the average

child between 6 and 11 is in the 95th percentile or higher, as defined by the CDC. Reported

national evidence has reported that of childhood obesity to date have pertained only to

adolescents transitioning to adulthood. This means that since most obese cases are indicating that

they are happening early in life, the focus should be on children and childhood obesity.

The data collected consisted of 7738 participants and was compared from years 1998-

1999 all the way to 2007; ages varying from kindergarten to eighth grade. The data included an

extensive collection from caregivers, school staff, teachers, and children, along with various

means of measurement. The variables that they considered through the different measurements
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were based on age, height, weight, sex, gender, parent-reported age, socioeconomic status, and

birth weight.

When evaluating the data, they calculated the prevalence of obesity as the proportion of

all children in each group who were obese. It was also calculated that the incidence of obesity on

the basis of the follow-up data for 6807 children who were not already obese in kindergarten and

thus were at risk for incident obesity. Overall, there was a clear difference in the obesity rate

among the different groups. Among all children, the greatest increase in the prevalence of

obesity was between first and third grades. Between kindergarten and eighth grade, the

prevalence of obesity increased by 65% among non-Hispanic white children, 50% among

Hispanic children, nearly 120% among non-Hispanic black children, and more than 40% among

children of other races. Children from the wealthiest 20% of families had a lower prevalence of

obesity in kindergarten than did those in all the other socioeconomic quintiles. At all ages, the

prevalence of obesity was highest among children in the next-to-poorest quintile. There were no

significant differences in the prevalence of obesity between kindergartners with a low birth

weight but there was a significantly higher prevalence at all ages among children who had a high

birth weight. In a nutshell, by the time they enter kindergarten, about 13% of American children

are already obese, and almost 15% are overweight. Nearly half the obesity incidence from

kindergarten through eighth grade occurs among children who were overweight as

kindergartners.

Synthesis of Information

These studies prove that researchers are trying multiple methods when it comes to

preventing childhood obesity. Nemours focused on understanding what works in preventing

childhood obesity by scale, spread, and sustainability which in the end, showed minimal effect.
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Communities for Healthy Living focused on the involvement of parents throughout the whole

research project. This seemed to be very beneficial for the parents. The survey in the end proved

that parents felt that they gained an immense amount of knowledge to help them provide a

healthier lifestyle for their children.

The second two studies prove that there is not a huge increase of obesity in the overall

population in the United States over the last ten years; however, there is a high correlation

between those who become obese in kindergarten and those who suffer from obesity for the rest

of childhood and even into adulthood. What this data insinuates is that young children need to be

taught healthy eating patterns and regular exercise for these set the stage in their quality of

life. Educating children on a healthy lifestyle can never come too early and should be taken

more seriously.

Practical Implications

PowerKids is a fitness program that is designed for children who want to focus on fitness

and overall health. This program offers a safe, fun, and comfortable environment where kids can

learn about proper nutrition and workout while having fun playing games, sports, and

participating in many different types of workouts. This program also focuses on building

confidence and self-esteem. Students who are involved in this program have a fun and healthy

way to spend their time after school. Teachers and parents are finding this program to be very

helpful in promoting health and fitness to many young children.

Marketing

The PowerKids program will be marketed in various ways. This program will begin at a

school level. There will be posters promoting the program on classroom doors, school bulletins,

the library, cafeteria, restrooms, and outside near parent pick-up. The poster will show kids
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participating in fun workouts. It will give a brief overview of the programs objective, the date of

sign up, when classes begin, and a number to call if people have any questions (Appendix A).

Teachers will be talking to the students about the program class ends. They will be

encouraged to join listing all the benefits and outcomes that they could gain by participating in

the program. They will send the students off with a fresh insight on the program and a

newsletter that will be handed out to all students to take home to their parents. Their parents will

also receive an email with an attachment of the newsletter (Appendix B).

Administration

Administration will be given a full lesson on what the program will consist of. Meetings

will be held with administration and program leaders. They will discuss the schedules,

objectives, activities, and involvement that will be used in the program. They will have a full

understanding of the benefits that their students can benefit from by participating in the

PowerKids program and will be asked to encourage their students to join and promote the

program to them. They will also be asked to talk to parents about the program and recommend

that students join.

Funding

As budget cuts have been a huge problem in recent years, it has been a reason to cut

programs that are geared to physical activity. This unfortunate problem means that in order to

make the PowerKids program successful, funding must be sought. Therefore, in order to fund

this program, we need to get everyone on board. In PTA, and administration meetings we will

collaborate to find local fitness companies to provide sponsorships to provide training for staff in

our program. We will also ask for donations from the community to help enhance our programs

activities.
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Recognition

Recognition of the program will ensure attendance and promote funding. Through the

newsletter and numerous posters posted throughout the school (APPENDIX A), the program will

earn respect and gain recognition. Local boys and girls clubs, like the YMCA, can promote

health and nutrition awareness through offering information about PowerKids. Children who

attend The PowerKids program will receive a free t-shirt with their participation, this will aid in

the marketing and recognition of the program (APPENDIX C). Teachers who support The

PowerKids program can also include the information through their classroom website and

weekly news reports to the parents. Approved videos of participation can be posted on the school

website.

Educational Components

Incorporating educational components in The PowerKids program will ensure that young

learners gain the most from it. There will be standards at which children are held accountable, for

example, completing a timed goal of at least 30 minutes of exercise per day. Parent involvement

will be essential to make sure this program works, they will need to help in ensuring proper

nutritional choices in their diet. Technology can also be incorporated through items like Fitbit

that measure ones activeness throughout the day and trackers like MyPlate to help ensure

healthy eating. Through all strived goals and activities, this program will guarantee a safe and

well-disciplined and caring environment.

Engagement

Young learners enjoy learning by games and other physical activities; they prefer to learn

by experiencing. They become easily engaged with the lesson when it is presented in a fun,

welcoming environment. The program will discuss the importance of nutrition and exercise. This
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lecture will be open for discussion and consequences of being unhealthy will be shared. Young

learners will be shown pictures and stats on diseases and death from being unhealthy. After

sharing the facts, I will show them how much fun exercising can be! It will be carefully

explained that exercise doesn't mean dreadful workouts, but simply being active! Learners will

be inspired by the activities we participate in the PowerKids program. They will also give

healthy snacks and shown that just because it's healthy doesn't mean it's gross. Recipes will be

shared with children and their parents. The PowerKids program offers many different approaches

to ensure the importance reaches each child/family.

Conclusion

The rate of child obesity has risen over the years. However, there are ways to prevent the

extent of this epidemic from growing. Young Americans should eliminate regular consumption

of unhealthy food and participate in regular exercise because a poor lifestyle can lead to

preventable and expensive health problems like childhood obesity. Through nutritional and

physical education, children can not only learn the value of a healthy lifestyle but learn/gain new

habits that will carry over into adulthood.

The hopes of the Power Kids program are to impact the lives of children, by preventing

and overcoming obesity. In one year, our program will have engaged students and families who

want to make a healthy lifestyle change in their lives. After five years, we hope to be impacting

so many childrens lives that families see the benefits of enrolling their children in this program.

We hope to expand this program in five years from now, and hope to encourage programs

similar to this, around the country. Our goal is to ensure the quality of a healthy lifestyle into

childrens lives. By working together as a community, we can help lessen the rate of childhood

obesity. The groundwork of all happiness is good health (Hunt, 2017).

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Appendix A
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Appendix B
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Appendix C
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References

Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. (2017, October). Childhood Obesity Facts. Retrieved

from Centers of Disease Control and Prevention:

https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/obesity/facts.htm

Chang, D., Gertel-Rosenberg, A., & Snyder, K. (2014). CASE STUDY: Accelerating Efforts to

Prevent Childhood Obesity: Spreading, Scaling, And Sustaining Healthy Eating and Physical

Activity. Health Affairs, 33(12), 2207-2213.

Ebbeling, C. B., Pawlak, D. B., & Ludwig, D. S. (2002). Childhood obesity: public-health crisis,

common sense cure. The Lancet Volume 360, Issue 9331, 473-482.

Flynn, M. A., McNeil, D. A., Maloff, B., Mutasingwa, D., Wu, M., Ford, C., & Tough, S. (2006).

Reducing obesity and related chronic disease risk in children and youth: a synthesis of evidence

with best practice recommendations. Obesity Reviews, 7-66.

Gmez-Pinilla, F. (2017, October 30). Brain foods: the effects of nutrients on brain function.

Retrieved from US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2805706/

Hunt, L. (2017, October).

Jurkowski, J., Green Mills, M., Lawson, L., Bovenzi, L., Quartimon, H., & Davison, A. (2013).

Engaging Low-Income Parents in Childhood Obesity Prevention from Start to Finish: A Case

Study. Journal of Community Health, 38(1), 1-11.

Phillips, Frankie. Facing Up to Childhood Obesity. Practice Nurse 42.11 (2012):14-17. Business

Source Complete.

Veugelers, P. J., & Fitzgerald, A. L. (2005). Prevalence of and risk factors for childhood overweight

and obesity. CMAJ, 607-613.