Community Case: Health Promotion: Childhood Obesity
As part of a district-wide initiative, school nurses and other Circle County School District personnel have decided to target childhood nutrition and childhood obesity during the upcoming academic year. The district recently conducted body mass index (BMI) screenings on students to identify the numbers of underweight, normal weight, overweight, and obese children in the district. The BMI scores for Circle County students are higher than the national averages: Approximately 22% of these students have a BMI greater than or equal to 95%, according to the BMI reference standards of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Q1. Using the Public Health Interventions Wheel as your resource, identify two public health-related interventions that could be implemented in the BMI screening activity at Circle County Schools. Provide your rationale.
Q2. Why is BMI screening in childhood important? What chronic illnesses later in life result from increased BMIs?
Q3. How do these rates compare with national averages? How do they compare with Healthy People 2020 goals?