Over 19% of children in US are obese. Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous children and adolescents have even higher rates of obesity, at 24.2%, 25.6%, and 29.7%, respectively. A study published in Pediatric Obesity argues that despite efforts to combat the obesity epidemic, it remains a major concern for minority children and racism plays a vital role in its propagation.
Nancy Brown, PhD, and colleagues conducted a review study to assess how racism impacts obesity in children and adolescents. Researchers looked at weight by age and race data from 1971 to 2018. This data indicates that loss of a parent, severe economic difficulties, and adverse childhood experiences can be predictive of childhood obesity and minority children were more likely to experience all three.
The authors argue that obesity is a complex condition that is affected by biological as well as environmental factors. There factors are: biological and genetic influence, development, effects of toxic stress, physical and environmental factors such as what foods are available, and lastly, the influence of the biased healthcare system. Specifically to the healthcare system, minority children have less access to healthcare, poor insurance coverage and encounter more bias from providers which greatly reduces the quality of care that they receive.
The authors conclude that the damaging effects of racism are lifelong and urge that practices are put into place that are not simply non-racist but actively anti-racist. Pediatric providers are advised to practice trauma informed care with their young patients. Healthcare providers can also make an impact in the effort to eradicate structural racism through research, education, and policy development.
Source:
Browne, N. T., Hodges, E. A., Small, L., Snethen, J. A., Frenn, M., Irving, S. Y., Gance-Cleveland, B., & Greenberg, C. S. (2022). Childhood obesity within the lens of racism. Pediatric obesity, 17(5), e12878. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijpo.12878
