Childhood obesity: the consequences

Edited by Dr. Davide Sganzerla

Until recently, complications of childhood obesity were clinically evident only after many years. Clinical studies in obese children have suggested a number of medical conditions for which obese children are at greatest risk. As shown in Table 2, they are few systems that severe obesity does not affect. These conditions are important because they are very common, potentially serious, and responsible for serious consequences for the health and well-being of life.

Among all the consequences of obesity, the most frequent are represented by lung disorders (fatigue of breathing, sleep apnea and asthma), and orthopedic ones.
Breathing disturbances during sleep are very common in overweight children and refer to a "wide range of conditions that include" increased resistance to airflow through the upper airway, resulting in decreased airflow " air and finally the cessation of breathing. (Riley, 1976).
Asthma and its symptoms are a difficult subject to study and the link between excess weight and asthma should not be assumed: children with asthma must reduce the level of physical activity, and the medical treatment of asthma (cortisone therapy) , it can cause weight gain. (Rodriguez, 2002).
Nonetheless, the observation that weight loss can improve lung function in obese adults suggests that the prevention of obesity can decrease asthma, or rather prevent its occurrence (Stenius-Aarniala, 2000).
Complications of the orthopedic type are due to the excessive mechanical load that bones and joints bear. Flat feet, varus and valgus of the lower limbs are the most common paramorphisms. Not only that, excess weight can cause joint pain, reduce mobility and increase the risk of sprains and fractures. (Confalone, 2002).
As for the late consequences, it should be emphasized that childhood obesity is a predictor of obesity in adulthood. In addition to having a greater predisposition to overweight and obesity, the person who was overweight as a child is more exposed to certain diseases, especially of a cardiovascular nature such as arterial hypertension and dyslipidemia (increase in triglycerides and cholesterol in the blood); all this due to the wrong lifestyle typical of the obese. (Must, 1999).
Endocrine consequences are also serious, such as type 2 diabetes (insulin resistant), typical of adults but also frequent among obese and overweight children (Scott, 1997), and "hyperadrenalism, that is, the" hypersecretion of hormones adrenal corticosteroids (Must, 1999).
Menstrual abnormalities, early menarche and ovarian polycystosis represent endocrine responses to excess weight in girls (Rogers, 1956), while overweight or obese boys tend to develop later than their peers in healthy weight (Wang, 2002).
From the gastrointestinal point of view, obesity can cause mild complications, such as simple eating disorders, but also serious consequences, such as cholelithiasis (presence of stones formed by cholesterol inside the biliary tract or gallbladder), hepatic steatosis (degenerative process of the liver tissue due to the massive presence of adipose tissue in the liver), and tumors of the gastrointestinal tract. (Must, 1999).
The psychological consequences, which can drag on and amplify over the years, should not be underestimated. Overweight children can feel uncomfortable and ashamed, up to a real rejection of their physical appearance; they are often ridiculed children, victims of jokes by peers and at risk of losing self-esteem and developing a sense of insecurity that can lead them to isolation: they leave the house less and spend more time in front of the television, creating a vicious circle that it leads them to a "reactive hyperalimentation. (Confalone, 2002).
Finally, we should also mention the economic consequences that obesity in general causes. A real calculation of the costs of childhood obesity is very difficult to carry out. as a methodology would be needed that also takes into account the costs for associated disturbances. However, numerous studies have evaluated the costs incurred by the various health systems of many industrialized countries for obesity in general. As shown in Table 3, these studies suggest that the costs for obesity range between 2 and 7% of health costs. totals of these countries.

Even these data, however, are not totally true, as they do not take into account the costs for diseases and problems related to obesity. For example, fatty liver (linked to obesity) is the third common cause for transplantation of liver in many industrialized countries, and therefore represents a significant medical expense not included in the total costs of obesity.