It takes a village to raise a child – including education about balanced diets and healthy lifestyles. But what if all fails and parents struggle with an obese offspring?
Obesity is a disease – to professionals, this might seem like a simple statement, but most patients didn’t get the memo. A fresh outlook now fills the gap: The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) published its first clinical practice guideline on treating childhood obesity. These new recommendations replace standards that were last updated in 2007 and underline the importance of a holistic approach. This includes examining individual risk factors and comorbidities, as well as implementing treatment options that involve the whole family.
Apart from confronting bias and stigma around childhood obesity, the AAP guideline recommends four treatment options:
The authors stress that obesity is a chronic and complex disease that needs a multifaceted approach. Treatment should start as early as possible and successful strategies often reduce the harmful impact of comorbidities, such as ending organ damage. Pediatricians should familiarize themselves with behavioral and lifestyle interventions and provide them for children aged 6 and older. But interventions might start earlier, at ages 2–5.
In addition to basic changes regarding lifestyle, physical activity and nutrition, four anti-obesity medications are available for treating adolescents. There are orlistat, liraglutide, phentermine/topiramate ER and semaglutide (age 12 and older) as well as phentermine (older than age 16). Another drug, imcivree, has recently been approved for children (age 6 and older) living with Barde-Biedl syndrome.
The authors deem bariatric and metabolic surgery safe and effective surgical interventions in adolescents. They stress that these procedures should be taken into account as well, especially in cases of severe comorbidities and considering the affected children’s increased risk of adult obesity and associated diseases.
“Obesity is a chronic disease that has its roots in a child’s physiology and the interaction with their environment. None of this is a matter of choice. However, families can cope with the challenges they face, if they have access to skilled and empathetic medical care,” said Ted Kyle, RPh, MBA, policy advisor to The Obesity Society.
Image source: Patrick Fore, unsplash
