OBESE POPULATION

Specialized Population- Obesity

Specialized Population- Obesity

Statistics

Obesity is a major influence on the development of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and affects physical and social functioning and quality of life. The proportion of adults and children who are obese has reached epidemic proportions, moving steadily away from the Healthy People 2010 goals of 15% prevalence of obesity in adults and 5% prevalence in children. (http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/hea_obe-health-obesity)

The obesity epidemic is a major concern for the health of populations in the United States and many other nations. Based on data from the 2003-2004 US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), approximately 66 million American adults (30 million men and 36 million women) are obese and an additional 74 million (42 million men and 32 million women) are overweight. Among American children 6 to 11 years of age, an estimated 4.2 million (2.3 million boys and 1.9 million girls) are overweight; among American adolescents 12 to 19 years of age, 5.7 million (3.1 million boys and 2.6 million girls) are overweight. Assuming that the same trends continue, by 2015 2 in every 5 adults and 1 in every 4 children in the United States will be obese. Obesity prevalence is also rising in countries throughout the world, reaching 20% to 30% in some European countries and 70% in Polynesia (International Obesity Task Force). According to the World Health Organization, the number of overweight and obese people worldwide will increase to 1.5 billion by 2015 if current trends continue. Clearly, overweight and obesity place a large public health burden on society.

The path-physiology behind this disease, condition & injury. How did this come to be? What is happening in the body with this specialized population group?

The prevalence of obesity has increased dramatically in the past three decades and is a serious concern in the United States. According to the National Center for Health Statistics in 1999, 61% of American adults were classified as overweight or obese. The prevalence is even higher among African Americans and Hispanics; nearly two thirds of African Americans are overweight or obese. In addition, the number of overweight children has increased dramatically. (Ebbeling, 2002) Between 1963 and 1980, childhood obesity increased by 98% among 6- to 11-year-olds. Prevalence in children is estimated to be 14% to 22% (Strauss, 2002). Excessive weight is associated with a number of health problems and ultimately mortality. Being overweight also brings with it a number of psychological and social consequences.

When the energy a person consumes exceeds energy expenditure, weight gain results. One is considered to be obese when the body contains an excess of body fat (normally accounting for 25% of weight in women and 18% in men). Because body fat is difficult to measure, other indices have been developed to define obesity. Body mass index (BMI) is a commonly used metric in epidemiological studies for defining body weight and has a high correlation with direct measures of body fat. It is computed as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters ...