New programme to tackle childhood obesity
By NOELLE NICOLLS
Tribune Staff Reporter
nnicolls@tribunemedia.net
HEALTH professionals are teaming up to tackle the problem of childhood obesity, which they say is a growing concern in the Bahamas.
Darren Bastian, business development manager at Atlantic Medical Insurance, said insurers and health industry workers are seeing an increase in the number of children with diseases traditionally considered to be adult-specific, such as diabetes.
Atlantic Medical has teamed up with the Nassau chapter of The Links Incorporated, a non-profit organisation, to launch a childhood obesity programme in five pilot schools across the country.
Around 550 grade five students from St Anne's School, St John's College, Oakes Field Primary School, Sadie Curtiss Primary School and Woodcock Primary School will participate in the campaign, which aims to reverse the trend of childhood obesity.
They are being encouraged to participate in the annual Fun Walk fundraiser for the Cancer Society of the Bahamas and the Bahamas Diabetic Association. Last year the event generated $32,000 in donations to fund the two organisations.
"We are confident that over the years, Atlantic Medical Insurance Company Ltd has led the way in sensitising the Bahamian public about the importance of healthy lifestyles. We believe that if our children learn the importance of healthy lifestyles early in life that it becomes a win-win for everyone in the fight against lifestyle diseases such as diabetes and various kinds of cancer," Mr Bastian.
With the growing influence of technology, Mr Bastian said, many children are not as active as those who grew up just a generation ago.
He said local children used to entertain themselves with games that required exercise, such as "bat and ball".
Today, children usually sit in front of a game set with a bag of chips and exercise only their arms - by putting chips in their mouths, he said.
Childhood development is important, because "what is habit today becomes second nature tomorrow", said Mr Bastian.
"If a child develops unhealthy eating habits at a very young age that pattern will likely continue into adulthood," he said.
There is also a "ripple effect" in the system because of the problem of childhood obesity.
Mr Bastian said the healthier a population is, the more favourable insurance rates are. More diseases to treat and related higher the costs lead to higher insurance rates.
The role of a healthy lifestyle in disease prevention is a core focus of the annual fun walk and the school programme.
This is the 13th year of the fun walk and organisers expect to see many "fun walk babies" - children who first participated when they were infants in strollers and are now participating as teenagers, said Mr Bastian.
April 09, 2011
tribune242
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Showing posts with label childhood obesity Bahamas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label childhood obesity Bahamas. Show all posts
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Childhood obesity in The Bahamas
Obesity crisis for Bahamian children
By CELESTE NIXON
Tribune Staff Reporter
cnixon@tribunemedia.net
Nassau, Bahamas
CHILDHOOD obesity is a serious concern in the Bahamas, with more than half the country's children being overweight, according to a local pediatrician.
Although there are no exact statistics available, Dr Jerome Lightbourn said he believes a significant portion of the next generation will not be able to live normal adult lives because of their weight.
Worse still, he said, many already show early signs of developing serious and possibly fatal obesity-related diseases.
The numbers that are available seem less alarming, but Dr Lightbourn is convinced they do not create an accurate picture.
Primary health care monthly reports, and the School Health Services annual report for 2004-2005, revealed that of 3,066 Bahamian 10-year-olds screened, 576 were considered overweight - a number which is still almost double the world average of 10 per cent.
For Dr Lightbourn, obesity as an "imported disease" and we only have to look to what is happening in other places to understand the extent of the danger.
He said: "We have had an influx of the western world, of mass produced foods with steroids, pesticides, hormones and the very popular fast foods."
The source of much of this food is the United States, and according to American Centre for Disease Control, childhood obesity in the US has more than tripled in the past 30 years. The prevalence of obesity among children aged six to 11 increased from 6.5 per cent in 1980 to 19.6 per cent in 2008.
Dr Lightbourn said: "We have grown up on good-tasting foods, for Bahamians that means fried chicken, macaroni and peas and rice, all high fat and high salt."
He said anyone consuming foods with a high salt and carbohydrate content runs the risk of developing diseases such as hypertension, high cholesterol and diabetes.
"It is a cultural and generational problem. We need to address it from a public health perspective just as we address AIDS, cancer and cigarette smoking, obesity is probably killing more people than any of them," said Dr Lightbourn.
Childhood obesity is a serious medical condition which affects children and adolescents. It occurs when a child is well above the normal weight for his or her age and height.
This is called a body mass index (BMI).
When a person's BMI is 25 or greater, they are considered morbidly obese, said Dr Lightbourn.
Childhood obesity is particularly troubling because the extra pounds often start children on the path to health problems which were once confined to adults.
"The issue in the Bahamas, and around the world, is that adult onset life style diseases such as hypertension, diabetes and even cholesterol are now being associated with childhood," said Dr. Lightbourn.
"We are seeing these diseases in younger and younger people. Heart disease in no longer a 70-year-old issue, it is a 30-year-old disease."
Dr Lightbourn, an advisor at the Princess Margaret Hospital, revealed there are at least four children under the age of 12 in the children's ward who are not only obese but diabetic - a condition which can lead to kidney failure, heart disease, or blindness among other illnesses.
He said: "There needs to be a year-long campaign, not just during Heart Month, and should be a united approach by educators, parents and the government."
Dr Lightbourn recommends that children exercise for one hour every day, and that sodas and unhealthy foods be eliminated from cafeterias.
He also stressed the importance of parents and teachers leading by example and making important lifestyle changes themselves.
February 12, 2011
tribune242
By CELESTE NIXON
Tribune Staff Reporter
cnixon@tribunemedia.net
Nassau, Bahamas
CHILDHOOD obesity is a serious concern in the Bahamas, with more than half the country's children being overweight, according to a local pediatrician.
Although there are no exact statistics available, Dr Jerome Lightbourn said he believes a significant portion of the next generation will not be able to live normal adult lives because of their weight.
Worse still, he said, many already show early signs of developing serious and possibly fatal obesity-related diseases.
The numbers that are available seem less alarming, but Dr Lightbourn is convinced they do not create an accurate picture.
Primary health care monthly reports, and the School Health Services annual report for 2004-2005, revealed that of 3,066 Bahamian 10-year-olds screened, 576 were considered overweight - a number which is still almost double the world average of 10 per cent.
For Dr Lightbourn, obesity as an "imported disease" and we only have to look to what is happening in other places to understand the extent of the danger.
He said: "We have had an influx of the western world, of mass produced foods with steroids, pesticides, hormones and the very popular fast foods."
The source of much of this food is the United States, and according to American Centre for Disease Control, childhood obesity in the US has more than tripled in the past 30 years. The prevalence of obesity among children aged six to 11 increased from 6.5 per cent in 1980 to 19.6 per cent in 2008.
Dr Lightbourn said: "We have grown up on good-tasting foods, for Bahamians that means fried chicken, macaroni and peas and rice, all high fat and high salt."
He said anyone consuming foods with a high salt and carbohydrate content runs the risk of developing diseases such as hypertension, high cholesterol and diabetes.
"It is a cultural and generational problem. We need to address it from a public health perspective just as we address AIDS, cancer and cigarette smoking, obesity is probably killing more people than any of them," said Dr Lightbourn.
Childhood obesity is a serious medical condition which affects children and adolescents. It occurs when a child is well above the normal weight for his or her age and height.
This is called a body mass index (BMI).
When a person's BMI is 25 or greater, they are considered morbidly obese, said Dr Lightbourn.
Childhood obesity is particularly troubling because the extra pounds often start children on the path to health problems which were once confined to adults.
"The issue in the Bahamas, and around the world, is that adult onset life style diseases such as hypertension, diabetes and even cholesterol are now being associated with childhood," said Dr. Lightbourn.
"We are seeing these diseases in younger and younger people. Heart disease in no longer a 70-year-old issue, it is a 30-year-old disease."
Dr Lightbourn, an advisor at the Princess Margaret Hospital, revealed there are at least four children under the age of 12 in the children's ward who are not only obese but diabetic - a condition which can lead to kidney failure, heart disease, or blindness among other illnesses.
He said: "There needs to be a year-long campaign, not just during Heart Month, and should be a united approach by educators, parents and the government."
Dr Lightbourn recommends that children exercise for one hour every day, and that sodas and unhealthy foods be eliminated from cafeterias.
He also stressed the importance of parents and teachers leading by example and making important lifestyle changes themselves.
February 12, 2011
tribune242
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