College of Charleston public health professor Kathleen Trejo Tello has published an article in The Conversation that examines the global childhood obesity epidemic.
Tello says with this growth of childhood obesity comes an increase in associated poor mental and physical health outcomes. She says conditions that were once rare in children are now becoming increasingly common.
“The field of public health prioritizes making the healthy choice the easy choice,” writes Tello. “Combating the childhood obesity epidemic means making healthy eating an easier choice for children and families than staying inside and eating processed foods. However, the reality is that much of the world’s population now lives, works, plays and worships in places that make it more difficult to choose healthy behaviors.”
