1. Childhood Obesity Scholarly Paper
Childhood Obesity Scholarly PaperResources & Requirements for Strategy Plan/ Scholarly
Paper.Each student will select a nursing area of interest in which to develop a project that
will lead to improved health outcomes. The student will utilize evidenced-based practice to
support his/her stated project and submit a scholarly paper as validation of meeting the
achieved competency. Grading Rubric provided.Your Strategy Plan Development should
contain the following labeled sections: Nursing Area of Interest: A brief description of the
"nursing area of interest" and why you consider that additional research is needed to
improve health outcomes. Childhood Obesity Scholarly PaperResearch overview: Provide
an overview of what research currently exists in the "nursing area of interest" and whether
or not that information is translated into current clinical practice.Dissemination of Findings:
Discuss what research or practice methods you would use to help disseminate relevant
information regarding the "nursing area of interest".Conclusion: Provide a conclusion
summary that addresses beneficial effects that would occur in professional practice settings
if you were able to institute your Strategy Plan.Essay format:Maximum of 6 pagesTitle page
and APA reference page do not count towards required page count.Minimum of 10
references, one of which must be your course textbook.A statement included in the
introduction of the paper that identifies databases and credible websites used to obtain
references. The statement must include key terms and filters identifying a minimum: dates
and peer review process. Childhood Obesity Scholarly PaperIntroductionFor the purpose of
this assignment, an initial search using the EBSCOHost search engine in the scientific
databases of Medline, PubMed, Cochrane and CINAHL was conducted. The search included
full text articles published within the past 5 years whose subject was on preventing
childhood obesity and used the following keywords: childhood obesity, lifestyle change, diet
modification, parental education and physical activity. Data and information from the World
Health Organization and the Centers for Control and Disease Prevention website was also
used. Nursing Area of InterestChildhood obesity has become a global epidemic in developed
and developing nations and it continues to make prominent footprints in the lives of most
families in the US today. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (n.d.)
1 in every 5 school going children aged 6-19 years in the US has obesity. Besides, childhood
obesity is the 5th leading global risk factor for mortality among children. The CDC also
highlights that the US is undergoing a rapid transition in nutrition that is primarily
characterized by recurrent nutritional deficiencies which can be attributed to increased
consumerism and a significant increase in processed foods. At the same time, there is a

2. continuous rise in the incidence and prevalence of diabetes, childhood obesity and other
chronic conditions related to nutrition such as cardiovascular diseases and other forms of
cancer (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, n.d.). Childhood Obesity Scholarly
PaperThe CDC defines obesity as having excess body fat as characterized by an individual’s
BMI. Childhood obesity usually tracks to adulthood and escalates the overall lifetime risk of
metabolic conditions, respiratory conditions, cardiovascular diseases, gastrointestinal and
orthopedic conditions (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, n.d.). In the United
States, childhood obesity impacts the community, individual health, and finances and is the
major reason that it has attracted attention for health plans development and scientific
research (Skinner et al., 2018). In the past decades, several guidelines on identifying and
managing obese children have been published. These guidelines mostly emphasize on
secondary prevention as an effective approach of reducing the burden of disability and
chronic diseases in adulthood. However, as recommended by Lobstein et al., (2015), it is
important to also observe primordial and primary prevention as they have proven to result
in better health outcomes. Childhood Obesity Scholarly PaperSince the management of
childhood obesity is complex as the diagnosis may be associated with social stigma and
difficult to discuss with families, interventions tend to be also complex as compared to
regular medication doses or surgery. Besides, relevant evidence on how effective some of
the currently available interventions are is still limited. It is for this reason that it is
essential that additional individual and population-based prevention programmes and
novel interventions for managing childhood obesity are adopted in clinical settings. Nurse
Practitioners have a vital role in the diagnosis, management, and education of obese
children since they comprise the first point of contact in the healthcare system.Research
OverviewAccording to Pandita et al., (2016), the most effective prevention levels in
childhood obesity are: primary prevention whose purpose is to prevent children who are
overweight from being obese, primordial prevention which purposes to keep a healthy
weight and normal BMI in the entire period of childhood to teenage and lastly secondary
prevention which focuses on treating obesity to reduce the associated comorbidities and
reverse an obese or overweight state. In combination, these strategies can be incorporated
into practice from the perinatal period to adolescence. Childhood Obesity Scholarly
PaperORDER A PLAGIARISM- FREE PAPER NOW In the perinatal period, prenatal
nutrition and maternal weight gain should be adequate and mothers who are diabetic
should maintain optimum blood glucose control. During infancy, exclusive breastfeeding
for 6 months should be initiated early and thereafter solid foods should be included. The
solid foods should provide a balanced diet by avoiding calorie-rich snacks which are
unhealthy (Herring et al., 2016) and infants’ weight gain should be closely monitored. For
preschoolers, adequate nutritional education should be given to both children and
parents to ensure that they develop healthy eating practices, they should also be provided
with healthy food preferences through early experiences of various flavors and foods and
the rate of weight gain should be closely observed to prevent early adiposity (Benjamin et
al., 2016). Childhood Obesity Scholarly PaperAccording to the recommendations provided
by the American Academy of Pediatrics, simply educating parents and children on the
health risks associated with obesity, physical activity and nutrition are not enough. The best

3. counseling technique is that which uses a behavior change model as follows. A child or
parent should self-monitor target behaviors and maintain a log of activity and foods as this
will help to recognize the behaviors contributing to weight gain (Brown et al., 2015). This
can be essential in evaluating stimulus control to reduce environmental cues which
contribute to unhealthy behaviors such as removing specific food categories from the house
or a TV from the bedroom. Alternatively, one can put in efforts to establish new and
healthier routines.According to Skinner, Perrin & Skelton (2016), contracting a particular
activity or nutrition goal where an agreement to reward a child when a particular goal is
attained has also proven to be effective since children tend to particular behaviors and
provide incentives and structures to their process of setting goals. As suggested by Lobstein
et al., (2015), parents should also understand the significance of positive reinforcement of
target behaviors which can be in the form of rewards for attaining particular goals or praise
for behaviors that are healthy. It is important that rewards are negotiated by both the child
and the parent and facilitated by a health provider to ensure that they are appropriate. It is
also advisable that rewards be in the form of privileges or activities that a child can actively
engage in more often as compared to toys or monetary incentives (Lobstein et al., 2015).
Childhood Obesity Scholarly PaperIn order to promote physical activity, parents and
families are urged to monitor current media use before setting goals to reduce. The most
essential recommendations that should be observed include: not having a television in a
child’s bedroom, not watching TV during meals, limiting the maximum time for media and
TV viewing to 2 hours and children less than 2 years of age shouldn’t be allowed to view the
media (Gurnani, Birken & Hamilton, 2015). In order to accomplish the aforementioned
goals, entertainment and healthier behaviors should be substituted. Among young children,
active games such as hula hoops and tag can be substituted for media viewing. Pandita et al.,
(2016) alternatively suggests that non-media activities which are quite such as playing
board games and aloud reading can also be substituted since they help to establish family
interaction patterns which can ultimately result to active play. Childhood Obesity Scholarly
PaperDissemination of FindingsThe findings of this research will be disseminated to the
target audience: clinicians, parents, and children through the use of posters, flyers,
brochures and research briefs. The choice of these methods is supported by the fact that
they provide a visually-appealing and concise way that relevant information can be
disseminated to huge audiences (Kielhofner, Fossey & Taylor, 2017). More specifically,
flyers and brochures will be given to parents and children during routine wellness checkups
a well, those enrolled in obesity prevention programmes and those in community settings.
Posters will be strategically placed within the care setting and in community settings with
relevant information regarding behavior change, dietary and lifestyle modification
(Kielhofner, Fossey & Taylor, 2017). Research briefs will also be used to disseminate the
findings amongst nurses, children, and parents and will include appropriate care tips
discussed in this paper that should be observed by children and parents. Childhood Obesity
Scholarly PaperConclusion Childhood obesity is undeniably a public health issue in the
21st century that affects low, middle and high-income nations, more so in urban settings. Its
prevalence has increased in a rate that is very alarming. In the year 2018, the total number
of children who were overweight aged 5 years and younger was estimated at 42 million.

4. The best management approaches are those that combine primordial, primary and
secondary prevention approaches and focus on the behavior change model as discussed
earlier. Should this strategy plan be implemented in clinical practice settings, the quality of
life of most obese children will be improved. Apart from being healthy, children will have
more energy to perform activities of daily life with very minimal or no assistance. For
children whose self-worth and self-image had been destroyed, it will be improved. Children
will also develop confidence in other areas of life such as education and their risk to chronic
illnesses later in life will reduce significantly. Childhood Obesity Scholarly
PaperReferencesBenjamin Neelon, S. E., Østbye, T., Hales, D., Vaughn, A., & Ward, D. S.
(2016). Preventing childhood obesity in early care and education settings: Lessons from
two intervention studies. Child: care, health, and development, 42(3), 351-358.Brown, C. L.,
Halvorson, E. E., Cohen, G. M., Lazorick, S., & Skelton, J. A. (2015). Addressing childhood
obesity: opportunities for prevention. Pediatric Clinics, 62(5), 1241-1261.Center for Control
and Disease Prevention (n.d.). Childhood Obesity Facts. Available at
https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/obesity/facts.htmGurnani, M., Birken, C., & Hamilton,
J. (2015). Childhood obesity: causes, consequences, and management. Pediatric
Clinics, 62(4), 821-840.Herring, S. J., Cruice, J. F., Bennett, G. G., Rose, M. Z., Davey, A., &
Foster, G. D. (2016). Preventing excessive gestational weight gain among African American
women: a randomized clinical trial. Obesity, 24(1), 30-36.Kielhofner, G., Fossey, E., & Taylor,
R. R. (2017). Disseminating Research: Presenting, Writing, and Publishing. Kielhofner's
Research in Occupational Therapy: Methods of Inquiry for Enhancing Practice,
447.Lobstein, T., Jackson-Leach, R., Moodie, M. L., Hall, K. D., Gortmaker, S. L., Swinburn, B.
A., & McPherson, K. (2015). Child and adolescent obesity: part of a bigger picture. The
Lancet, 385(9986), 2510-2520.Pandita, A., Sharma, D., Pandita, D., Pawar, S., Tariq, M., &
Kaul, A. (2016). Childhood obesity: prevention is better than cure. Diabetes, metabolic
syndrome, and obesity: targets and therapy, 9, 83.Skinner, A. C., Perrin, E. M., & Skelton, J. A.
(2016). Prevalence of obesity and severe obesity in US children, 1999‐2014. Obesity, 24(5),
1116-1123.Skinner, A. C., Ravanbakht, S. N., Skelton, J. A., Perrin, E. M., & Armstrong, S. C.
(2018). Prevalence of obesity and severe obesity in US children, 1999–
2016. Pediatrics, 141(3), e20173459. Childhood Obesity Scholarly Paper