Resources: 2008
Recommended Reading
Expert Committee Recommendations on the Assessment, Prevention, and Treatment of Child and Adolescent Overweight and Obesity: June 6, 2007. Latest recommendations from the Expert Committee, made up of representatives of 15 professional organizations. These are the most current guidelines based on evidence and professional opinions to be used by medical professionals caring for the overweight and obese child and adolescent.
Online at: www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/11759.html
Expert Committee Recommendations Regarding the Prevention, Assessment, and Treatment of Child and Adolescent Overweight and Obesity: Summary Report (from the American Academy of Pediatrics), Sarah Barlow, MD, MPH, and the Expert Committee. Excellent summary of the recommendations, with practical implementation strategies for any practitioner caring for pediatric patients.
Online at: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/120/Supplement_4/S164
F as in Fat: How Obesity Policies Are Failing in America, 2008 Report. Outstanding annual report that gives the latest statistics, trends, and updates on every aspect of state and federal policies and outcomes concerning childhood obesity in America. Practical recommendations are made for all stakeholders involved in this major public health epidemic.
Online at: http://healthyamericans.org/reports/obesity2008/Obesity2008Report.pdf
Preventing Childhood Obesity: Health in the Balance: Institute of Medicine 2005. Provides a broad-based examination of the nature, extent, and consequences of obesity in U.S. children and youth, including the social, environmental, and dietary factors responsible for its increased prevalence.
Order online at: http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11015
Progress in Preventing Childhood Obesity: How Do We Measure Up? (2007). Addressing the childhood obesity epidemic is a collective responsibility involving multiple stakeholders and sectors of our communities and country. These volumes give a comprehensive message of what we must do and how we are doing in curbing this overwhelming epidemic.
Order online at: http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11722
Pediatric Obesity: Prevention, Intervention, and Treatment Strategies for Primary Care, S. Hassink, MD, FAAP, 2007. Offers the pediatric practitioner the latest practice recommendations and ready-to-use tools needed to tackle childhood obesity.
Pediatric Nutrition Handbook: American Academy of Pediatrics, 2004. Essential resource for all nutrition issues of childhood and adolescence.
Eating Behaviors of the Young Child: Prenatal and Postnatal Influences on Healthy Eating, W. Dietz, MD, PhD, and Leann Birch, PhD, 2008. This handy resource provides educational tools for parents and caregivers to help children develop healthier eating behaviors during their early years of life.
Order all three (6, 7, and 8) online at: www.aap.org/bookstore
Blood Pressure Management: The Fourth Report on the Diagnosis, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure in Children and Adolescents. Pediatrics. 2004;114(2):555-576.
Online at: www.pediatrics.org/cgi/content/full/114/2/S2/555
Lipid Screening and Cardiovascular Health in Childhood―2008. Pediatrics. 2008;122(1):198-208. The latest guidelines for screening lipids in childhood.
Online at: www.pediatrics.org/cgi/content/full/122/1/198
Texas Public School Nutrition Policy at a Glance (Present School Year). Comprehensive school nutrition policy establishing nutrition standards for all snacks, competitive foods, and meals prepared by the Texas Department of Agriculture for local schools for years 2004-2012. Every pediatric care provider should become familiar with these regulations.
Online at: http://www.squaremeals.org/vgn/tda/files/2348/23745_Policy%20brochure%20bi-fold%2008-09.pdf
Let’s Go! A Childhood Obesity Toolkit for Healthcare Professionals. Excellent downloadable Toolkit used in a community-based initiative to promote healthy lifestyle choices in children, youth, and families in 12 Greater Portland ME communities.
Downloadable PDF at: www.letsgo.org/For_You/Healthcare_Professionals.php
Keep ME Healthy Program. Another outstanding toolkit developed by the Maine Youth Overweight Collaborative to help caregivers and improve outcomes for overweight and obese youth.
Downloadable resources at: www.mcph.org/Major_Activities/keepmehealthy.htm
Patient Education Materials
FIT KIDS: A Practical Guide to Raising Healthy and Active Children―From Birth to Teens. M.L. Gavin, S.A. Dowshen, N. Ezenberg, eds. An excellent book from the editors of KidsHealth website (http://www.kidshealth.org/), with practical information for all ages of children and their parents about healthy lifestyle issues, including nutrition, exercise, and behavior change.
Available at: http://www.amazon.com/
A Parent’s Guide to Childhood Obesity: A Road Map to Health, Sandra Hassink, MD, FAAP, 2006.
Buy at: www.aap.org/bookstore
Super-Sized Kids: How to Rescue Your Child From the Obesity Threat. W. Larimore, MD, and Sherri Flynt, MPH, RD, LD, 2005.
Buy at: http://www.amazon.com/
Trim Kids: The Proven 12-Week Plan That Has Helped Thousands of Children Achieve a Healthier Weight. Melinda Sothern, PhD, MEd, CEP, T. Kristian von Almen, PhD, and Heidi Shumacher, RD, LDN, CDE.
Buy at: http://www.amazon.com/
The American Dietetic Association’s Guide to Healthy Eating for Kids: How Your Children Can Eat Smart From 5 to 12. Jodie Shield, Med, RD, and Mary Catherine Mullen, MS, RD, 2002.
Buy at: http://www.eatright.org/
Healthy Habits for Healthy Kids: A Nutrition and Activity Guide for Parents (available in English and Spanish). Parent education pamphlet for teaching about healthy behaviors for children. Simple language for everyone.
Download at: www.wellpoint.com/healthy_parenting/index.html
The Portion Teller: Smartsize Your Way to Permanent Weight Loss, Lisa R. Young, PhD, RD. This book teaches you how to understand portion sizes so that you can lose weight and stop dieting. Very helpful to teach the whole family portion sizes using common objects in our world.
Buy at: http://www.amazon.com/
BlubberBusters: Overweight in Childhood Internet Intervention Program. An online program and chatroom where pre-teens, teens, and parents can get valuable information and share questions and testimonies. A weight-loss program can also be viewed and monitored by a child’s health provider.
Download at: http://www.blubberbusters.com/ or http://www.weigh2rock.com/
KIDNETIC: Healthy Eating and Activities for Kids and Parents. A cool interactive website for kids, parents, health care professionals, and educators. All components of Kidnetic.com promote healthy eating and active living in a way that is fun and relevant in the 9-to-12-year age group. The Kidnetic resources are aimed at inspiring kids and their families to move toward healthier lifestyles.
Download at: http://www.kidnetic.com/
Useful Links
Overweight and Obesity Website: American Academy of Pediatrics. Information for professionals, families, and children’s advocacy groups.
Online at: www.aap.org/obesity
American Dietetic Association: Food and Nutrition Information. The ADA provides timely and objective food and nutrition information for consumers, health care providers, and ADA members.
Online at: www.eatright.org/
My Pyramid for Kids: USDA. My Pyramid offers kids aged 6 to 11 years personalized eating plans and interactive tools to help plan and assess food choices for a healthier lifestyle.
Online at: www.mypyramid.gov/kids/
Action for Healthy Kids: Tools for Action. An organization in all 50 states that provides a selection of tools and resources designed to help support positive changes in children’s nutrition and physical activity in the school environment.
Online at: www.actionforhealthykids.org/
Coalition on Children and Weight San Diego. An amazing collaboration of hundreds of individuals from various sectors of the San Diego community working to combat childhood obesity throughout San Diego County. Includes annual action plans for seven domains where efforts can have the most influence in shaping healthful environments.
Online at: www.ccwsd.org/
NICHQ Childhood Obesity Implementation Guide: Best Practices and Tools. Phenomenal implementation guide for the assessment, prevention, and treatment of childhood obesity. Many other tools available at this website.
Online at: www.ihi.org/IHI/Topics/ChronicConditions/AllConditions/Resources/NICHQChildhoodObesityImplementationGuide.htm
We Can! Ways to Enhance Children’s Activity and Nutrition. A national program for families and communities to focus on three healthy behaviors: improved food choices, increased physical activity, and decreased screen time.
Online at: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/obesity/wecan/whats-we-can/
American Heart Association: Children’s Exercise and Nutrition Resources.
Online at: http://www.americanheart.org/
PE4Life. A nonprofit organization dedicated to inspiring active, healthy living for all children by advancing the development of quality, daily physical education programs in U.S. schools. Tabs for teachers, parents, school administrators, health care providers, and industry are very useful.
Online at: http://www.pe4life.org/
Consortium to Lower Obesity in Chicago Children (CLOCC). A phenomenal site that offers updated information and resources for all sectors of communities.
Online at: www.clocc.net/