1.The hormonal changes that occur during puberty and their effect on metabolism
The developmental changes a youngster experiences to become sexually mature and biologically prepared for reproduction are called puberty. It typically starts between the ages of 8 and 14 for girls and between the ages of 10 and 16 for boys.
The hypothalamic-pituitary-gonad (HPG) axis hormones regulate puberty and the reproductive system. Pulsatile gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) from the brain causes the anterior pituitary gland to release luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). To promote the production and release of sex steroid hormones (estrogen/progesterone and testosterone) and to promote gametogenesis, LH and FSH operate on the gonads (ovaries/testicles). The hypothalamus and pituitary are strongly impacted by these sex hormones in order to maintain stable blood levels, which has a variety of effects on the reproductive system. (Kelsey et al. 2016)
During childhood, the body produces very little LH and FSH. It is attributed to a slow GnRH pulse generator cycle in the hypothalamus. The CNS no longer controls the GnRH pulse generator, which results in an increase in the periodic release of FSH and LH around a year before the onset of the first outward signs of puberty. Both the start of sperm production in males and an increase in oestrogen synthesis and oogenesis in females are triggered by an increase in FSH. LH stimulation promotes testosterone and progesterone synthesis in males and females, respectively. The physical changes connected to puberty manifest due to these hormonal changes. Children grow at different speeds for a variety of hereditary factors. Furthermore, it has been suggested that body weight influences the onset of puberty. (Kelsey et al. 2016)
2.The impact of genetic factors on susceptibility to weight gain during puberty
Genetic epidemiology studies are used to give evidence that excess body weight during growth has a genetic component. Childhood obesity is predicted by parental obesity. The familial risk ratio for childhood obesity exceeds 2.5 when a parent is overweight. Birth weight has a genetic heritability of about 30%, with significant maternal and paternal influences in addition to the neonatal genes. About five of these genes have been identified, accounting for about 5% of cases of childhood obesity. The most typical types of childhood obesity, however, appear to be caused by a propensity that favours obesogenic behaviours in an obesogenic environment. The effect sizes of these obesogenic genes are modest. However, genomewide association and candidate gene analyses show that the risk alleles for obesity are widespread in societies. The latter could result in a very considerable obesity risk that can be attributed to the population. Studies on the interactions between genes and the environment reveal that exposure to appropriate behaviours can increase or decrease the impact of predisposing genes. It’s probable that positive assortative mating, where fat husbands and wives produce more obese kids than parents who are average weight, is the cause of the rising prevalence of pediatric obesity across generations. The capacity to precisely assess a person’s body shape, dimensions, and skin surface area is changing because of 3D body-surface scanners. (Roth et al. 2016)
3.The role of lifestyle factors in determining weight gain during puberty
Worldwide, there is a severe public health issue with childhood obesity. Nutrition, energy balance, and hormones interact to control growth and pubertal development. Children who are obese or overweight generally age more slowly than lean children and are typically taller for their age and sex. The higher levels of leptin and sex hormones reported in obese children with excessive adiposity may be responsible for faster pubertal growth and faster epiphyseal growth plate maturation. To avoid metabolic and cardiovascular issues in the future, it is critical to make efforts to recognise the impacts of childhood obesity. (Moreno, et al. 2007
1.Lifestyle Factors and the Rise of Metabolic Syndrome in Children
The prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in children is also rising due to the global obesity epidemic. Metabolic abnormalities like dyslipidemia, hypertension, and insulin resistance grow in childhood and adolescence. A high intake of processed and snack foods, a low intake of vegetables and whole-grain products, a lack of physical activity (PA), excessive media use, and sedentary behaviours (SB) are all lifestyle factors that have been linked to an increased risk of metabolic disturbances such as obesity and metabolic disorders. The risk of metabolic abnormalities is further influenced by non-modifiableFootnote1 risk factors such as the family history of MetS components, birth weight, duration of nursing, maternal body mass index (BMI), parental education, and pubertal development. Increased serum C-reactive protein (CRP), a likely mediator between lifestyle choices and some health outcomes, also contributes to the pathogenesis of metabolic disturbances by raising the risk for conditions like hypertension, insulin resistance, and having a large percentage of abdominal fat, among others. These visceral fats can be measured with a 3D scanner. (Reinehr, et al. 2004)
2.The Persistence of Metabolic Abnormalities and the Role of Unhealthy Behaviors
Furthermore, several investigations have shown that metabolic abnormalities frequently last throughout age, from puberty to children. While the cessation of temporary metabolic abnormalities appears to normalize the risk, it increases morbidity and cardiovascular risk. In addition to the adverse effects of obesity, maintaining unhealthy behaviours, including poor food habits and low PA, which frequently start in infancy and persist throughout adolescence and adulthood, may make metabolic abnormalities more persistent. (Reinehr, et al. 2004)
4.Strategies for preventing excessive weight gain during puberty
Since many, but not all, fat children will grow up to be obese adults, prevention is the key to success in the fight against obesity. Age impacts “tracking,” or the possibility that childhood obesity will remain into adulthood. Adult obesity therapy is a challenging and frequently failed endeavour, especially without underlying organic etiopathogenesis. (e.g., leptin deficiency, other hormonal abnormalities). On the other hand, preventing childhood obesity can be more fruitful because it offers better prospects of lowering long-term problems. To combat childhood obesity, three layers of preventive must be implemented: (Franchini et al. 2012)
During childhood and adolescence
- Maintaining a healthy weight and an average BMI throughout childhood and adolescence is considered primary prevention.
- Preventing overweight children from becoming obese is primary prevention.
- Secondary prevention: focused on treating obesity to lessen comorbidities and, if possible, reverse overweight and obesity.
- The foundation of the preventative campaign is the instillation of healthy behaviours such as eating fruit and plant-based foods, as well as regular exercise and an active lifestyle.
- 3D body machinesshould be used in scanning your body weight regularly.
During the prenatal stage to puberty
The following can be done consecutively from the prenatal stage to puberty using all the previously described methodologies combined:
- Perinatal care includes proper prenatal nutrition for optimal maternal weight gain, reasonable blood sugar control in diabetics, and postpartum weight loss through physical activity and dietary guidance.
- Infants: Early breastfeeding begins, exclusive breastfeeding for six months, then the introduction of solid meals, provision of a balanced diet without consuming harmful calorie-dense snacks, and careful observation of weight gain.
- Preschool: Educate parents and children about nutrition to promote healthy eating habits, foster healthy food choices by exposing young children to various foods and flavours, and regularly monitor weight increase to avoid an early return of obesity.
- Childhood: keeping an eye on both the child’s weight and height, avoiding excessive preadolescent adiposity, offering nutritional advice, and placing a strong emphasis on daily exercise.
- Adolescence: avoid gaining weight following a growth spurt, maintain a healthy eating routine, and emphasize the importance of daily exercise and workouts.
During daily life
Promote nutritional objectives such as the traffic light diet:
- Green-Go: Low-calorie foods that are permissible to eat at any time.
- Yellow-Caution: Food items have a moderately high-calorie value and should only be consumed in moderation.
- Red – STOP: foods high in calories that should be avoided or consumed in moderation.
3.The long-term health implications of weight gain during puberty
Effective preventative methods are needed for obesity and its sequelae because they pose serious public health issues. The rising economic burden brought on by the increasing costs of treating diseases linked to obesity has become a social problem for the coming generation. Essential fats are necessary for maintaining life and metabolism in the human body. However, it is generally established that excessive or ectopic fat deposition is terrible and may even put children at risk for disease. Accurate adiposity assessment is now a crucial part of the obesity assessment process. (Reilly et al. 2011)
Clinical Assessment and Screening Methods for Childhood Obesity
In clinical practice, assessing nutritional status and tracking growth in children comes first. Teenagers’ pubertal stages also need to be evaluated. Most overweight kids grow up to be overweight adults. The most common screening method for determining obesity is body mass index (BMI). The inability of BMI to distinguish between fat mass and fat-free mass (FFM) may have more clinical ramifications for children and older people than adults. Rare endocrine causes of obesity are frequently associated with slowed growth. Measures other than BMI and its z-score should be used with individual height and percentile or z-score for evaluating childhood obesity. Asians, notably Koreans, tend to experience diabetes and obesity at younger ages. Therefore drastic lifestyle adjustments are urgently needed. Being underweight and malnutrition are risk factors for higher mortality, particularly in older individuals with comorbid conditions such as coronary heart disease and FFM loss in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and cancer. (Reilly et al. 2011)
Environmental Factors and Pubertal Development in Relation to Childhood Obesity
Environmental factors, among others, impact the time and speed of pubertal development. Adequate nutrition is a major enabling factor for pubertal development’s typical timing and pace. In the case of obesity, insulin resistance during puberty may be increased. Adiposity in early childhood also appears to be linked to accelerated puberty in girls, and the age of menarche is negatively correlated with BMI. Obesity during childhood may result in early indications of puberty in girls and pubertal delay in boys. Early interventions aimed at promoting healthy lifestyles, preventing rapid weight growth in infancy, encouraging breastfeeding, and encouraging proper maternal nutrition before and during pregnancy have grown.
4.Strategies to prevent and improve adolescent obesity through follow-up body fat percentage measurements
- The biopsychosocial stages of adolescent development should be considered when HCP prevents and treats obesity.
- The committee advises that HCP undertake the following for all adolescent patients:
- By calculating body mass index (BMI) and identifying the BMI percentile for age and sex, one can ascertain their weight situation.
- Check for potential medical issues.
- Check for habits that raise the risk of or exacerbate obesity, such as those related to diet, exercise, and family history.
- To monitor your body fat, routine 3D body scanning should be done.
- Please encourage them to adopt healthy behaviours and, when needed, guide them on body image, incorrect diets, and weight stigma. The HCP should collaborate with dietitians, behavioural health specialists, and exercise specialists to assist the patient through a comorbidity evaluation, provide evidence-based lifestyle counselling, and, if necessary, refer to more intensive treatment options like weight loss surgery, monitored diets, or residential care.
- HCPs are in a good position to push for changes both inside and beyond the healthcare sector in order to fight the obesity epidemic. There are many areas for advocacy, including expanding access to clinical and community resources to prevent and treat obesity, promoting environmental and policy changes related to healthy eating and active living, leveraging support for adolescent-focused research, improving reimbursement for multidisciplinary care, eradicating policies and practises that stigmatise obese adolescents, and integrating prevention strategies for both obesity and eating disorders. (Gascon, et al. 2012)
Applications of 3D body scanners for teenagers in weight loose
3D scanners are typically not used for weight loss directly, but they can have some applications in supporting weight loss efforts indirectly. Here are a few possible applications:
- Body scanning: 3D scanners can be used to create a detailed 3D model of a person’s body, which can be useful in tracking changes in body composition over time. This information can be helpful in setting weight loss goals and monitoring progress.
- Customized workout plans: Some fitness centres and personal trainers use 3D scanners to create customized workout plans based on a person’s body composition and specific fitness goals. This can help people lose weight more effectively and efficiently.
- Virtual reality weight loss: Some weight loss programs are beginning to incorporate virtual reality technology, which can use 3D scanning to create a realistic representation of a person’s body. This can help people visualize the changes they can achieve through weight loss and stay motivated to achieve their goals.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What hormonal changes occur during puberty?
Estradiol, which is crucial for the development of secondary sexual characteristics such as bone maturation, and fat redistribution to the hips and breasts, is produced by the ovary when gonadotropin levels rise throughout puberty.
- What genetic issues cause weight gain?
Genetics can directly cause obesity in diseases like Prader-Willi syndrome and Bardet-Biedl syndrome. However, genes may not always predict future health. Genes and behaviours may both be required for someone to be overweight.
- Which lifestyle choices are associated with weight gain?
Exercise and food. People gain weight by eating more calories than they burn off through exercise. Our ability to maintain a healthy weight is influenced by our environment, which includes genetics, medical issues, drugs, stress, emotional variables, and lack of sleep.
- Can obesity in children be avoided?
By ensuring that their kids eat wholesome meals and snacks, encouraging frequent exercise, and offering nutritional guidance, parents and other carers can avoid childhood obesity. While supporting growing bodies, nutritious meals and snacks can serve as role models for good eating attitudes and behaviours.
References
- Kelsey, M. M., & Zeitler, P. S. (2016). Insulin resistance of puberty. Current diabetes reports, 16, 1-6. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11892-016-0751-5
- Roth, C. L., & DiVall, S. (2016). Consequences of early life programing by genetic and environmental influences: a synthesis regarding pubertal timing. Puberty from Bench to Clinic, 29, 134-152. https://www.karger.com/Article/Abstract/438883
- Moreno, L. A., & Rodriguez, G. (2007). Dietary risk factors for development of childhood obesity. Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition & Metabolic Care, 10(3), 336-341. https://journals.lww.com/co
- Reinehr, T., & Andler, W. (2004). Changes in the atherogenic risk factor profile according to degree of weight loss. Archives of disease in childhood, 89(5), 419-422. https://adc.bmj.com/content/89/5/419.short
- Franchini, E., Brito, C. J., & Artioli, G. G. (2012). Weight loss in combat sports: physiological, psychological and performance effects. Journal of the international society of sports nutrition, 9(1), 52. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1186/1550-2783-9-52
- Reilly, J. J., & Kelly, J. (2011). Long-term impact of overweight and obesity in childhood and adolescence on morbidity and premature mortality in adulthood: systematic review. International journal of obesity, 35(7), 891-898. https://www.nature.com/articles/ijo2010222
- Bacardí-Gascon, M., & Jiménez-Cruz, A. (2012). A six month randomized school intervention and an 18-month follow-up intervention to prevent childhood obesity in Mexican elementary schools. Nutricion Hospitalaria, 27(3), 755-762. https://www.redalyc.org/pdf/3092/309226788020.pdf
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