US initiatives that aim to suppress childhood obesity have been more effective in preventing kids from becoming obese than slimming down those who already have an unhealthy body mass index. Severe obesity in the country continues to climb, and it's showing no signs of slowing down.
More Must Be Done To Combat Childhood Obesity
After studying national health data from 1999 to 2014, researchers at Duke Clinical Research Institute concluded that one-third of American children between ages 2 and 19 is overweight. A quarter is obese while 2 percent were severely obese.
"We don't know what this trend would look like without those initiatives but we're certainly not seeing a reversal," lead researcher Asheley Skinner told Fox News. "There's no one thing we have to do, if we're going to reverse this we're going to have to do a lot of things."
Skinner advised children with severe obesity to have 20 to 30 hours of interaction with a healthcare provider. However, she admitted that barriers like time and school might hinder them from paying much attention to their health.
New Study Draws Opposition
Dr. William Dietz, the director of the Global Center for Prevention and Wellness at George Washington University, doesn't agree with the new study. He claimed that the rate of childhood obesity hasn't increased, but has leveled off in recent years. To him, it's just a matter of perspective.
Dietz explained that kids who are already obese are slowly becoming severely obese. However, other data have shown that fewer kids are becoming obese in the first place. He suggested that the government should enact more policies that prevent obesity at an early age.
"We don't have enough doctors to treat severe obesity in children," said Dietz. "We have to think about what other care and community-based services could have an impact."
