Discuss the Impact of Social Drivers of Health on Obesity

Discuss the Impact of Social Drivers of Health on Obesity
Literature
The impact of social drivers on Obesity is undervalued. Therefore, while healthcare professionals are conversant with these factors, the uncertainty in dealing with them outside their scope of practice is detrimental to addressing Obesity. Obesity dramatically increased between 1975 and 2016, with 41.9% of adults, 13.4% in early childhood, 20.3% in middle childhood, and 21.2% between twelve and nineteen obese. The prevalence of Obesity is significantly associated with gender, genetic and biological factors, and socioeconomic factors. It is further exacerbated by other elements such as food availability, the proliferation of more affordable sugary, high energy and high glycemic load foods, sedentary lifestyles, and the environment and deprivation that lead to sustained positive energy balance, given the complexity of this disease, effective interventions to reduce the epidemic require extensive knowledge of the relationship between social drivers of health and Obesity and how to integrate these interventions across health systems and the community.

Research Questions
The paper aims to answer these questions;
What are the mechanisms of Obesity?
How do the causal pathways of obesity run?
How do social drivers of health impact the obesogenic environment?
What is the clinical evidence for the prevention and management of Obesity?
What are the best ways to deliver obesity management interventions among susceptible populations?
Who is primarily responsible for the epidemic?

Research Strategy
Since this paper investigates the impact of social drivers of health on Obesity, the most effective approach is analytical research strategies to investigate the connection between variables and, at the same time, understand when, where, what, and how Obesity occurs. Analytical review on obesity studies will be used using databases such as Medline, CINAHPlus, Cochrane, and Directory of Open Access Journals based on search terms such as “prevalence,” “obesity,” and “determinants/drivers of health,” among others.
Anticipated Challenges
One of the most anticipated challenges in conducting an analytical literature review is determining which papers are conclusive since the analytical review can only be effective if the primary studies use reliable methods that reduce their study’s inherent problems. Additionally, there might be studies that lack appropriate critical appraisal of validity which could impede the study. Lastly, selection bias may lead to indeterminate results due to a lack of representativeness of the evidence for the research questions.
Findings
Addressing the impacts of social drivers of health on Obesity is likely to demonstrate the gap in health equity across the United States and its causative nature in the epidemic. Additionally, this research may determine that institutions and education programs should alter their intervention programs to address individual behavioral factors and extend into underlying factors interlinked with social drivers of health. Lastly, the study may demonstrate that the fragmented approach to dealing with Obesity impedes success. Instead, since Obesity is a complex phenomenon, stakeholders should consider the multifaceted nature of Obesity and integrate better interventions in society to deal with the epidemic.

Next Steps
The steps to reduce Obesity may not be as complex as most parties assume. Simple policies such as taxation on sugary and high glycemic foods are likely to reduce its prevalence. Similarly, making Obesity an individual problem rather than viewing it through the social drivers of health lens shifts the blame on healthcare professionals. In essence, it is a product of social and environmental factors. Obesity results from busy schedules, increased living standards, minimal wages, and unhealthy food and the environment. Therefore, Obesity should be reframed as a socio-political problem with the government being held responsible for addressing the obesogenic environment and making it more hospitable and equitable.

References
1 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Overweight and Obesity. CDC Website. https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/index.html.
2 Wharton S, Lau DCW, Vallis M, et al. Obesity in adults: a clinical practice guideline. CMA. 2020;192(31): https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7828878/.
3 Swinburn BA, Sacks G, Hall KD, et al. The global obesity pandemic: shaped by global drivers and local environments. Lancet. 2011;378(9793): https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21872749/.
4 Rutter H, Glonti K, Lakerveld J. The way ahead: where next for research into obesogenic environments? Obese Rev. 2016;17 Suppl 1: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26879118/.

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