Nowadays, childhood overweight and obesity is a serious problem, and the level of this disease increases fast. According to Waters and Baur, overweight and obesity affect 23% of Australia’s children and adolescents, with 6% being obese (2003). The new public health approach is a set of measures that can help to reduce the level of childhood overweight and obesity, using the new methods and developing such measures as health promotion, the public health debates and the new policy formulation and drawing attention to the terrible statistics of childhood overweight and obesity.
The conception of the new public health approach developed in the 1980s is based on the modernization of the traditional approaches within the medical problems (Kickbush). One of the key issues of this approach is the motivation of people to participate in the process of improving the healthcare system in their community. Although this method includes the traditional strategy, it also provides health promotion and orientation on the new approaches, the public health debates and the new policy formulation.
The problem of childhood overweight and obesity requires immediate solutions and the most effective method is the change of the public opinion and focus of the attention on the reoriented way of thinking. Understanding that the level of childhood overweight and obesity is critical should lead to the development of new ways of its overcoming it.
It is terrifying to see that 2-years old children can be already overweight. Children are unable to take care of themselves; therefore, parents should pay more attention to children’s health. Usually, the problem of overweight and obesity is caused by the neglect of food allowance by the parents. Today, children spend more time, playing computer games and sitting in front of the TV, despite playing active games outside with their friends. The new public health approach implies the change of the usual activity of children and the diet.
Globalization and pop culture play a significant role, forming the image of “cool” life and stereotypes of behavior. Children prefer to eat fast-food, different snacks and drinks with soda. As the result, according to the statistics of the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “in a population-based sample of 5- to 17-year-olds, 70% of obese youth had at least one risk factor for cardiovascular disease” (“Childhood Obesity Facts”). Promotion of the healthy way of life as the peculiarity of the new public health approach can change this orientation.
Before developing the measures and adopting the laws, it is necessary to determine and analyze the issue, to investigate all possible solutions, causes and consequences. The new public health approach includes the various theoretical studies and, what is more important, their practical use. Such policy can help reduce the level of childhood overweight and obesity. The transformation of public opinion and behavioral stereotypes can have much more positive effects, than improvement of medical facilities or exploration of the new medicaments.
When parents will pay more attention to the children’s food allowance and the presence of sports activities in children’s lives, there will be significant positive changes. There are many factors such as economic, educational, cultural, environmental and psychological that have a serious influence on the children’ health and cause childhood overweight and obesity. The new public health approach is really important as a helpful measure that helps solve the problems of childhood overweight and obesity.
Works Cited
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. n.d. Childhood Obesity Facts. Web.
Kickbush, Ilona. “The Contribution of the World Health Organization to a New Public Health and Health Promotion.” American Journal of Public Health 93(3) (2003): 383-388. Print.
Waters E. and L. Baur. “Childhood obesity: modernity’s scourge.” MJA 178(9) (2003): 422-423. Print.