Answer

Article Critique:

Determinants of Overweight in the Population of Parents of School-Age Children

Summary

Overweight and obesity is a serious issue in the world today.  According to the World Health Organization (2020), over 1.9 billion adults were overweight in 2016. Overweight is an excessive fat accumulation in the body that can affect health. When classified using the BMI, an overweight adult has a BMI equal to or greater than 25 (World Health Organization, 2020). The purpose of the Resiak article is to examine the factors that lead to an overweight body among the Gdańsk residents that have school-aged children. The factors include the population’s socio-demographic features, health behaviors, and neighborhood activities. The aim of the analysis is “to assess the extent to which the risk of overweight or obesity increased or decreased when changing from one predefined category of the analyzed variables to other categories” (Resiak, Walentukiewicz, Łysak-Radomska, Woźniak & Skonieczny, 2019, p. 678). The residents of the region in the study undergo a survey to help identify the causes of overweight and obesity among individuals with school aged children to aid in implementing innovative educational activities in the area and contributing to the interdisciplinary procedures. The research identified factors such as sex, length of sleep, marital status, and the amount of sweetened fizzy drinks that one consumes as the main predictors of the rate of overweight and obesity in the region. However, the authors’ research did not find any statistical relationship between BMI abnormalities and factors such as social class and education level despite being proven in other studies to impact BMI.  

Analysis

The article is relevant and reliable since the authors provide adequate support to the factors analyzed using several examples and quotations from other reliable pieces of writings. It even gives justification for other work where it is due and provides simple explanations to justify why some factors such as income, socio-economic status, and education are worth noting. Yet, the authors’ research did not find any relationship between them and the body mass. Moreover, the study group’s selection may have impacted its objectivity and resulted in bias since it did not consider parents with special needs such as the blind and deaf and were therefore unfairly left out of the study. If “incorrectly completed questionnaires were rejected,” some illiterate parents also found themselves unfairly being overruled from taking part in the study (Resiak et al., 2019, p. 678). To be fair to everyone and avoid bias in the study, special attention could have been given to illiterate parents and those with special needs. For instance, they could have been given a translator or assistant to help fill the survey questionnaires and ensure every individual that is willing to participate is included in the study.

Application

My analysis of the article’s information directly relates to my academic field by identifying the risk factors associated with being overweight, contributing to other serious health issues. The family environment and lifestyle are linked to BMI, and parental lifestyle changes over time as children grow older, increasing or decreasing BMI depending on the new lifestyle incorporated (Naess, Sund, Holmen & Kvaloy, 2018). I can apply the lessons learned from the research to my nursing profession by educating patients on maintaining a low BMI by ensuring a healthy lifestyle and having enough sleep. I can apply the article’s findings by educating them about the right foods they should consume and avoiding that prevents them from having an adequate sleep. In sum, I will incorporate the findings in my nursing practice to ensure a reduced risk of overweight and obesity among my patients.