Obesity is a serious disease among children of Chicago. It is characterized by a high degree of overweight that is usually caused by a considerable excessive fat storage. As a rule, it is measured by the use of a Body Mass Index (BMI). In spite of the existing limitations, it has a low cost and defines health risks inherent to the disease. If the conditions under which childhood obesity can be controlled are not satisfactory, there is a risk for children to suffer from type 2 diabetes or get some heart problems. In addition, obese children may suffer from numerous stresses and depression.
Children, who live in Chicago, demonstrate high rates of obesity (twice higher than a national average). Though the data is changing considerably during the last five years, this topic turns out to be urgent. This is why the government usually supports a number of obesity prevention programs: the “5-4-3-2-1 Go!” campaign aims at involving parents in their children’s lives and informing them about the main aspects of health behavior (Evans, Christoffel, Necheles, & Becker, 2012) or the Illinois surveillance system based on the information gathered through child health examination forms (Longjohn, Sheon, Card-Higginson, Nader, & Mason, 2010).
Reference
Evans, W.D., Christoffel, K.K., Necheles, J.W., & Becker, A.B. (2012). Social marketing as a childhood obesity prevention strategy. Obesity: A Research Journal, 18(S1), 23-26.
Longjohn, M., Sheon, A., Card-Higginson, P., Nader, P.R., & Mason, M. (2010). Learning from state surveillance of childhood obesity. Health Affairs, 29(3), 463-472.