Pattern of chronic diseases amongst adolescent obese children in developing countries

Overweight and obesity are among the most prevalent nutritional problems in developed and developing countries. The problem of obesity is confined not only to adults but also to children and adolescents. In many developing countries childhood obesity is associated with increased consumption of processed and fast food, dependence on television and computers for leisure and a less physically active lifestyle. Obesity has serious long-term consequences. Childhood obesity is not an immediately lethal disease itself, but has a significant risk factor associated with a range of serious non-communicable diseases in adulthood. Hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, type-2 diabetes mellitus, gall bladder disease, asthma, mental health concerns and orthopaedic disorders have been linked to obesity. Thus, there is an urgent need to address the problem and efforts should be made to prevent the epidemic of obesity and its associated health disasters. An attempt has been made in this article to review the data published on prevalence and mechanism of specific morbidity conditions in obese adolescent children in developing countries with special reference to India.