A National e-Health Program for the Prevention and Management of Overweight and Obesity in Childhood and Adolescence in Greece.

Athanasia Tragomalou,Evangelia Charmandari,Evangelia Charmandari,Evangelia Charmandari,Sofia Karampatsou,Ifigeneia Papageorgiou,Yannis Manios,Penio Kassari,Penio Kassari,Penio Kassari,Sofia-Maria Genitsaridi,George Moschonis

doi:10.3390/nu12092858

Abstract

Obesity in childhood and adolescence represents one of the most challenging public health problems of the 21st century owing to its epidemic proportions worldwide and the associated significant morbidity, mortality and public health costs. In Greece, the prevalence of overweight and obesity in childhood and adolescence exceeds 30–35%. To address the increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity in children and adolescents in our country, we developed the ‘National e-Health Program for the Prevention and Management of Overweight and Obesity in Childhood and Adolescence’, which provides specific and detailed guidance to all primary health care physicians about the personalized management of children and adolescents with overweight or obesity. In the present study we evaluated 2400 children and adolescents [mean age ± SEM: 10.10 ± 0.09 years.; Males: 1088, Females: 1312; Obesity (n = 1370, 57.1%), Overweight (n = 674, 28.1%), normal BMI (n = 356, 14.8%)], who followed the personalized multi-disciplinary management plan specified by the ‘National e-Health Program for the Prevention and Management of Overweight and Obesity in Childhood and Adolescence’, and were studied prospectively for 1 year. We demonstrated that at the end of the first year, the prevalence of obesity decreased by 32.1%, the prevalence of overweight decreased by 26.7%, and the cardiometabolic risk factors improved significantly. These findings indicate that our National e-Health Program is effective at reducing the prevalence of overweight and obesity in childhood and adolescence after one year of intervention in the largest sample size reported to date.

Highlights

Obesity represents one of the most challenging public health problems of the 21st century owing to both its epidemic proportions worldwide and the associated significant morbidity and mortality [1].Nutrients 2020, 12, 2858; doi:10.3390/nu12092858 www.mdpi.com/journal/nutrientsDuring the last four decades, the prevalence of overweight and obesity in childhood and adolescence has risen substantially in most high-income countries and appears to be rising rapidly in low-income and middle-income countries [1,2,3]
The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the interventions suggested by this electronic system in reducing the prevalence of obesity and overweight, and to present the progress of a large number of children and adolescents who have followed the personalized multi-disciplinary management plan specified by the ‘National e-Health Program for the Prevention and Management of Overweight and Obesity in Childhood and Adolescence’
All subjects followed the personalized multi-disciplinary management plan specified by the ‘National e-Health Program for the Prevention and Management of Overweight and Obesity in Childhood and Adolescence’ and were assessed at the end of the first year of their participation in this program

Summary

Introduction

Obesity represents one of the most challenging public health problems of the 21st century owing to both its epidemic proportions worldwide and the associated significant morbidity and mortality [1].Nutrients 2020, 12, 2858; doi:10.3390/nu12092858 www.mdpi.com/journal/nutrientsDuring the last four decades, the prevalence of overweight and obesity in childhood and adolescence has risen substantially in most high-income countries and appears to be rising rapidly in low-income and middle-income countries [1,2,3]. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 41 million children under the age of 5 years and more than 340 million children and adolescents aged 5–19 years are estimated to be overweight or obese [3]. Obesity is characterized by a marked increase in the adipose tissue in the body and is defined by the Body Mass Index (BMI; the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters). It is not the most representative indicator of body composition, especially for muscular or very tall people, it is the most widely used.

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