Obesity counseling by pediatric health professionals: an assessment using nationally representative data

Abstract

Objective: Examine the rate of screening for adolescent overweight and obesity by pediatric health care professionals and the provision of advice on healthy eating and physical activity.

Methods: Our sample contains adolescents 11 to 17 years old (6911 girls and 6970 boys) from the 2001-2007 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey who reported having at least 1 health provider visit in the previous 12 months. Using logistic regression, we investigated factors associated with whether parents reported that their children were weighed and measured and whether they or their children received counseling on their eating habits and physical activity. All models were estimated separately by gender.

Results: Forty-seven percent of girls and 44% of boys who visited a health provider were advised to eat healthy, and 36% of boys and girls were advised to exercise more. Obese boys and girls were both more likely to be advised to eat healthy (odds ratio [OR] = 2.10, P < .001 and OR = 1.70, P < .001) and exercise more (OR = 2.37, P < .001 and OR = 1.90, P < .001) than adolescents who have normal weight. However, overweight boys and girls were counseled at a much lower rate than those who were obese. Adolescents who were more likely to receive such advice lived in the northeast, were from higher-income households, had parents with at least some college education, and had a usual source of medical care.

Conclusions: Greater efforts should be made to incorporate guidelines on childhood obesity screening and counseling into clinical practice.