The health of our nation continues to decline both in terms of adult’s cardiometabolic health and in terms of the age at which poor cardiometabolic health begins. While we watch the rates of diabetes, strokes, and heart attacks increase in adults, we have to wake up and realize that the tsunami of poor cardiometabolic health has not peaked yet. As more and more children begin to fall into the category of obese and experience earlier effects of high blood pressure, high blood sugar, and high cholesterol, the tsunami of early cardiometabolic diseases will continue to rise. Unless we as a society stop hitting the snooze button and face the reality before us, the upcoming generation and following will face early disability and even early deaths from preventable conditions.
A recent article in the journal, Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, paints a grim picture of the rising swell of future complications in our next generation. Coming from United States statistics, looking at children between age 12 and 19, we see the following:
18% are considered pre-diabetic
53% have elevated cholesterol or triglyceride levels
15% already have high blood pressure for their ages
These are well known risk factors for strokes and heart attacks, so we as parents and health care providers should be very concerned.
It is common knowledge that the habits of childhood basically set the course for future lifestyle habits which play the primary role in later life health outcomes. For these children whose unhealthy habits have already placed them in these risk categories, unless something changes their trajectory, nothing good can come from this trend. Who will be the first to wake up and respond to the alarm?
The article goes on to describe the situation in which there are not enough pediatric specialists in cardiovascular medicine to care for these children with high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Wait lists to see one of these providers can take months, months of delay for a guided medical intervention. The article urges pediatric primary care physicians to step in and begin caring for these children. While I was trained in a dual residency for Internal Medicine (adults) and Pediatrics in which I learned about cardiovascular care, most pediatricians did not receive this type of training. They were not prepared for this new epidemic thrust upon them. They would like to wake up and respond to the alarm but without consensus and clear guidelines, many are hesitant to move forward.
The article explores other pediatric specialists who might be able to shoulder some of this burden like endocrinologists, nephrologists, and obesity specialists, but seem to miss a greater opportunity for intervention. The best intervention would be prevention worked out through parents and families. Educating parents on improving healthy eating while keeping eating enjoyable and avoiding the stigma of diets holds great promise for larger scale success in draining out the impending tsunami before it hits the shores.
With the present and worsening health provider shortage in many areas of the nation, we are not going to overcome the medical care deficit for a decade or more even if we try harder. Instead, we have plenty of ‘on-location’ parents who just need some tools to guide their children in starting life with healthier habits. Much of that starts with empowering the parents to pursue healthier lifestyles themselves. As the parents make healthier choices in nutrition and exercise, the kids have a healthier model before them. By restoring a focus on the family and encouraging family healthy activities rather than dividing the family life into children-at-school and adults-at-work, we can develop a strong foundation for the child’s own health practices.
If we want our children to avoid the tsunami of cardiometabolic health bearing down on their future, we must not only stop hitting the snooze button, but also stop looking to inadequate solutions for the urgent situation. Empowering parents to live and pass on healthy lifestyles to their children has a greater chance of a future generation living healthier, more abundant lives.
Original Article:
Amanda M. Perak, Carissa Baker-Smith, Laura L. Hayman, Michael Khoury, Amy L. Peterson, Adam L. Ware, Justin P. Zachariah, Geetha Raghuveer. Toward a Roadmap for Best Practices in Pediatric Preventive Cardiology: A Science Advisory From the American Heart Association. Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, 2023; DOI: 10.1161/HCQ.0000000000000120
Thanks to Science Daily:
Northwestern University. “A wake-up call for kids’ poor heart health: U.S., Canada need resources to manage high demand of youth with heart disease risk factors.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 7 August 2023. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/08/230807121930.htm>.
Sanctuary Functional Medicine, under the direction of Dr Eric Potter, IFMCP MD, provides functional medicine services to Nashville, Middle Tennessee and beyond. We frequently treat patients from Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Ohio, Indiana, and more... offering the hope of healthier more abundant lives to those with chronic illness.
