Childhood Obesity

Being a really complex condition, childhood obesity has a lot of factors causing it. The symptoms are not simply based on how children look and can be within a family's ability to change including:

• Eating habits

• Inadequate movement

• Mental health factors

• Certain medicines

Some other factors may be out of a parent's ability to control such as:

• Family factors (such as coming from a family who tend to gain weight easily, genes, hormones, social and economic factors)

As a result, childhood obesity often causes health concerns and conditions called complications, affecting a child's physical, social and mental well-being. Physical complications of childhood obesity include:

• Type 2 diabetes

• High cholesterol and high blood pressure

• Joint pain

• Breathing condition (e.g. Asthma and obstructive sleep apnoea)

• Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (fatty deposit build-up in liver)

In terms of social and mental health complications, children who have obesity may experience the following:

• Getting teased or bullied and lose self-esteem

• Higher risk of depression, anxiety and eating disorders (Mayo Clinic, 2025)

  
  

Malnutrition

Malnutrition is a condition that happens when the body is not getting enough vitamins, minerals and other nutrients which is needed to keep tissues healthy and working organs. It can happen to people who are either:

• Undernourished: Individuals who do not get enough important nutrients or when they are excreted more rapidly than replaced.

• Overnutrition: Individuals who eat too much, eat the wrong things, do not exercise enough or take too many vitamins or repeatedly eating a specific set of foods or a particular diet

Because of this, malnourished children may be short for their age, thin or bloated, not have enough energy and weakened immune systems (John Hopkins Medicine, 2025).

Dietary Deficiencies

The following include micronutrients at significant risk of deficiency during the first 1000 days and their causes are reported below (Panzeri et al., 2024):

Micronutrients at Risk During the First 1000 days and Their Causes (Penzeri et al., 2024)

References (3)

John Hopkins Medicine 2025, Malnutrition, John Hopkins Medicine, Accessed 15 July 2025, Malnutrition | Johns Hopkins Medicine

Mayo Clinic 2025, Child obesity, Mayo Clinic, Accessed 14 July 2025, Childhood obesity - Symptoms and causes - Mayo Clinic

Panzeri, C., Pecoraro, L., Dainin, A., Sboarina, A., Arnone, O.C., Piacentini, G. and Pietrobelli, A. 2024, Potential Micronutrient Deficiencies in the First 1000 Days of Life: The Pediatrician on the Side of the Weakest, PubMed Central, Accessed 15 July 2025, Potential Micronutrient Deficiencies in the First 1000 Days of Life: The Pediatrician on the Side of the Weakest - PMC