clinical practice
Childhood obesity
More than a quarter of
Australian children are
overweight or obese. What
can we do about it?
By Suzie Harte
D
espite abundant opportunities to engage in a healthy
lifestyle, Australian adults are experiencing critical levels of
overweight and obesity (63 per cent in total). So too are our
children, with 20 per cent overweight and 7 per cent obese.
These statistics go hand in hand with the fact that only 4 per cent
of children aged 2–18 years consume their recommended daily
intake of vegetables, and only a third eat the recommended two
serves of fruit daily.
It is crucial to promote healthy eating, through a number of
channels, in the early years. Childhood obesity directly relates to
adult obesity prevalence and impaired cognitive, physical (growth
and motor skills) and social development, correlating to poor
education, health and economic outcomes in adulthood.
Furthermore, poor health and economic outcomes are directly
associated with reduced quality of life, reduced productivity and, to
society, an increase in the cost of providing health services.
These adverse outcomes may also have an intergenerational
component – a repeating pattern of poor health and economic
outcome experienced within generations of the same family.
By improving nutrition across the life cycle, the potential exists
for a healthier, more productive population with less reliance
on health services. A life-course approach acknowledges the
importance of time and cumulative experiences in an individual’s
life in the context of overall health and chronic disease risk.
By focusing on improving the eating habits of young children,
a healthy start in life will contribute to lifelong health outcomes
and the alleviation of the burden of disease by promoting optimal
growth and development, and potentially reducing the prevalence
of obesity and other chronic diseases.
A unique opportunity presents itself in the early years of life
when it is possible to influence children to develop health-
promoting behaviours related to food choice that may be
beneficial throughout the course of life. In combination with
healthy dietary behaviours and other lifestyle factors, the potential
therefore exists to maintain functional capacity throughout
adulthood and to prevent disability and maintain independence
in older life.
As there are inherent biological, behavioural and psychosocial
processes occurring during different life stages, there are
opportunities at sensitive, developmental times to alter the
trajectory of health and lifestyle outcomes for individuals and
possibly future generations. These opportunities present themselves
through health promotion and include harnessing the skills and
expertise of community health providers, educators and primary
health providers.
A recent systematic review suggests the complex and
multifactorial nature of childhood obesity necessitates programs
with multiple approaches, and greater success was found where
programs included both school and community settings. Through
daily activities, nurses have regular interactions and sustained
relationships with patients and members of the community with
opportunities for health-related discussi