Enlisting and Providing Support
•Questions
you have with which your colleagues may be able to provide help and support
The
first question that I would like for someone to answer is childhood obesity has
both immediate and long-term effects on health and well-being. Once we work
with the parents to make sure that they understand the importance of healthy
eating and daily exercise, how can I keep track of the families to make sure
that their child continues to stay healthy? I know that there is only so much
that a teacher can do but I would like to check on that family from time to
time to make sure that they are on the right track. I know that school play a
critical role in promoting the health and safety of children and helping them
establish lifelong healthy behavior but once that child is no longer at the
school what can I do to continue to support the family.
The
next question is if the parent is offended when they are told that their child
is obese or at risk for being obese, what would be the best way to handle the
situation. I know that most parents are sensitive when it comes to their
children and once they are offended what can I say or do to make them
understand that my best interest is their child’s health? How can I turn a
negative situation into a positive one? I have never been in a situation like
this but I have seen parents upset and offended in situation. I would need to
know to handle this or what to say if I get in a situation like this.
•Resources
and information you are seeking
I
am not seeking too much information because I have found so much information
and research, and resources on childhood obesity. But if you would like to
share web-sites, flyers, or anything with me, I would really appreciate it. It
might be information that I have overlooked or haven’t found as of yet.
•Resources
and/or information you have found helpful and insightful
This
web-site talks about how schools can help children and adopt and maintain
healthy eating and physical activity behaviors. It provides evidence-based
guidance for schools on how to implement policies and practices that
effectively promote healthy choices and behaviors among children.
It
tells about how obesity is a serious medical condition that affects children
and adolescents. It occurs when a child is well above the normal weight for his
or her age and height. Childhood obesity is particularly troubling because the
extra pounds often start children on the path to health problems that were once
confined to adults, such as diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
Childhood obesity can also lead to poor self-esteem and depression.
It
gives facts about how adult and childhood obesity have increased substantially
in the last 30 years. It states that currently, 31% of adults and 18% of
children are obese. It says that the vast majority of obesity represents an
imbalance in calories ingested vs. calories expended. It states that other
causes of obesity metabolic, medicines, and other diseases are very rare.
It also describe how is childhood
obesity diagnosed. In order to systematically describe obesity, the concept of
body mass index (BMI) was developed. BMI is the ratio between an individual's
weight to height relative to their gender and age. BMI addresses the following
question: Is the weight of the subject in excess of what is healthy for a given
height? Generally (but not always), BMI correlates with the amount of body fat,
but it is not a measurement of fat. An individual who has more than the average
muscle mass for a given height (for example, weight lifters) will have an
elevated BMI but clearly will not be obese.
References
Kieff,
J. (2009). Informed advocacy in early childhood care and education. Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Pearson
