Childhood Obesity: A Multifaceted Disease,a Multifaceted Approach

摘要

Unfortunately, it is no longer alarming news that the obesity epidemic continues to worsen and that the prevalence of overweight and obese children and adolescents is following the same trend. In 2010, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that 43 million children under the age of 5 years were overweight or obese.1 While obesity has typically been considered a disease of western societies, it is perhaps surprising then that the absolute number of overweight and obese children in developing countries is four times greater than in developed countries. There are an estimated 8 million children in developed countries that are considered overweight or obese, while in developing countries, the number is estimated to be 35 million.1