Child Obesity and Overweight in the United States Coursework

In the United States, obesity in children is viewed as one of the major health concerns that need to be addressed in the most efficient manner. Today, about 17% of children and adolescents in the United States suffer from overweight and obesity (Styne et al., 2017). An effective health promotion program should be proposed in order to decrease levels of obesity in some American communities (Wang et al., 2015). Thus, it is important to present the mission statement, goals, objectives, strategies, and interventions related to the developed child health promotion program that is oriented to preventing obesity.

Mission Statement

The proposed mission statement should be appropriate to support the developed health promotion program. The mission of this program oriented to promoting the health of children and preventing obesity is to provide community members with knowledge and resources required to address weight gain in children and develop their healthy lifestyle and eating habits. This mission statement can be discussed as effective to reflect the vision of developers of this health program.

Goals and Objectives

The goals of this health promotion and anti-obesity program are to reduce the prevalence of children diagnosed with obesity in the selected community, reduce risks of developing chronic diseases associated with obesity in children, and educate community members regarding healthy eating habits and lifestyles with the focus on the wellness of children and adolescents. The objectives related to the formulated goals are the following ones:

1. By the end of the six-month program, to improve the knowledge of adults in the community regarding healthy eating plans, nutritional products, and healthy eating habits appropriate for their children by 70%.
2. By the end of the six-month program, to increase families’ and children’s interest in physical activities by 50%.
3. By the end of the six-month program, to improve children’s access to healthy fresh products at school by 40%.

Strategies and Interventions

There are three main strategies that should be applied to achieve the set goals: the provision of education for families regarding anti-obesity practices, the cooperation with the community members to organize sports events, and the cooperation with educational authorities and organizations to provide children with access to healthy food at school (Johnston et al., 2013). The associated interventions are developed to guarantee the completion of the set objectives. The interventions include the organization of seminars with nutritionists on the topic of healthy eating habits, the organization of healthy food festivals and sports events, the organization of fitness classes for families, and the realization of school wellness programs in cooperation with the community leaders (Bleich, Segal, Wu, Wilson, & Wang, 2013).

Settings Related to the Program

In order to realize the program goals, it is necessary to refer to such settings as the selected community, educational institutions for children and adolescents, fitness clubs, and centers to promote child health and prevent obesity. These settings are as important to be covered in the context of the program as the cooperation with community members. The collaboration with representatives of the selected community, non-profit organizations, and state health programs is important to provide children in the community with all required resources to address the discussed health problem.

Conclusion

Obesity is a serious health concern that affects many children in the United States. While developing a health promotion program, it is important to propose strategies which are effective to cope with obesity among the American children and adolescents. The appropriate mission statement, goals, and interventions are provided to guarantee the successful realization of the program’s objectives.

References

Bleich, S. N., Segal, J., Wu, Y., Wilson, R., & Wang, Y. (2013). Systematic review of community-based childhood obesity prevention studies. Pediatrics, 132(1), 201-210.

Johnston, C. A., Moreno, J. P., El‐Mubasher, A., Gallagher, M., Tyler, C., & Woehler, D. (2013). Impact of a school‐based pediatric obesity prevention program facilitated by health professionals. Journal of School Health, 83(3), 171-181.

Styne, D. M., Arslanian, S. A., Connor, E. L., Farooqi, I. S., Murad, M. H., Silverstein, J. H., & Yanovski, J. A. (2017). Pediatric obesity – assessment, treatment, and prevention: An Endocrine Society clinical practice guideline. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 102(3), 709-757.

Wang, Y., Cai, L., Wu, Y., Wilson, R. F., Weston, C., Fawole, O.,… Chiu, D. T. (2015). What childhood obesity prevention programmes work? A systematic review and meta‐analysis. Obesity Reviews, 16(7), 547-565.