Building Healthy Habits for a Lifetime: Lifestyle Medicine in the Prevention, Early Intervention, and Treatment of Obesity

摘要

Importance: Childhood obesity is a national epidemic. Oklahoma ranks 5th highest in the nation for obesity among children aged 10-to-17 years. Nearly one in five Oklahoma children is obese. Lifestyle habits, such as sugary beverage intake and physical activity, are important contributors, The aim of this narrative review is to provide physicians with an overview of evidence-based obesity prevention and treatment strategies for implementation in clinical settings. Observations: National studies suggest that pediatricians frequently miss opportunities to diagnose and address pediatric obesity during routine practice. The American Academy for Pediatrics endorses universal obesity screening and counseling using the 5-2-1-0 Behavioral Screening Tool, which is designed for youths aged two years and older. Providers are encouraged to counsel patients to eat five servings of fruits and vegetables daily, limit daily screen time to two hours, engage in at least one hour of physical activity daily, and avoid all sugar-sweetened beverages. As a complement to this narrative review, we also report results of our secondary analysis of weighted data from Oklahoma's Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS), which found that few adolescents achieve daily 5-2-1-0 goals. We identified racial, ethnic, and gender differences in goal attainment for each of the lifestyle areas. Conclusions and Relevance: All Oklahoma pediatricians and family medicine providers can play a role in stopping the state's childhood obesity epidemic through small changes in their routine daily practice and targeted advocacy efforts. Providers should work with community stakeholders to tailor interventions to meet the needs of populations served.