Almost 20% children in America are affected by childhood obesity. This makes the problem not just pretty big but pretty serious too. In terms of economics, this costs USA a whopping $150 billion every year in healthcare spending.
Paediatricians in USA express their inability to tackle the growing problem. A study conducted six years ago showed the problem was stabilising, and even decreased in those aged 2 to 5. But latest studies show the trend is nothing but an illusion.
Efforts to help can backfire. It’s seen that people on diet often gain weight. Individual studies have pointed out interventions and solutions, these are yet to be translated into actual improvements. Flawed research also could play an important role.
A recent paper in Paediatric Obesity gave five guidelines on how to fair better. One, when things look better, ask ‘compared to what?’. Two, don’t change the analysis plan. Three, be careful while designing studies and picking outcomes. Four, not significant is not significant. And fifth, don’t assume that intervention is better than nothing.