Childhood obesity is one of the currently discussed ones both in terms of its physical consequences and the psycho-social effect it is likely to bring. There is much literature dedicated to the causes of obesity as well as the ways to combat the problem, hence the presence of active attention to the issue is well-grounded. The topic of the present paper is thus to investigate the ways the described problem is highlighted in the popular press sources and in the academic literature. The aim of the work is to find commonalties and disparities in the way of representing the problem of obesity, investigating its causes and outlining the ways to fight it. To achieve the aim, two articles from the respective types of sources have been chosen for analysis, with the further connection with the course materials available on obesity research.

The first article to be discussed is the one of the Weight Realities Division of the Society for Nutrition Education published in the Healthy Weight Journal. The thesis statement of the present article is to show that fighting obesity should not lead to harm, and to outline the key features of a successful health-centered program designed for children to fight obesity. The authors indicate that the long-term effect of anti-obesity programs may be guaranteed only in case when the overall causes of obesity, improvement of mental and physical health, as well as obesity-related negative consequences are constructively addressed in a comprehensive way (Weight Realities Division of the Society for Nutrition Education 60).

The framework designed to meet the needs for comprehensive anti-obesity intervention is also laid out in the article. It includes recognition of the fact that the group of specialists targeting obesity should be diverse, incorporating the knowledge and competence of health professionals, psychologists, eating disorder specialists etc. The healthy lifestyle framework is claimed to be the center of the program’s focus, thus ensuring the correct direction of the program (Weight Realities Division of the Society for Nutrition Education 60). Setting appropriate goals that would address nurturing environment, physical activity, and healthy eating, policies for avoiding harm, and school policies are also considered in the article. The framework is offered for community implementation as a highly effective way of facing obesity in an over-grasping, effective way of professional intervention (Weight Realities Division of the Society for Nutrition Education 61-62).

As for the scholarly article chosen for the present research, it was written by Hardus, Vuuren, Crawford and Worsley in 2003, and it refers to the study of community perceptions about the causes of childhood obesity as well as ways to restore healthy weight patterns. The rationale for the study is provided by the troubling statistics from the developed and developing countries witnessing a childhood obesity epidemic (Hardus et al. 1465). The causes for the problem are seen in the behavioral, social, and environmental factors, and the intervention necessity is recognized in all those aspects of human life and activity. Therefore, the study aims at finding out what causes are perceived by the public as the severest ones, and which intervention programs they view as the most effective ones (Hardus et al. 1465). The results of a qualitative study imply that there is little public knowledge about the programs needed to prevent childhood obesity, though the public generally agrees on the most widespread causes of childhood obesity such as lack of physical activity, negative impact of advertising, and consumption of fatty foods in front of the TV set and computer (Hardus et al. 1470).

Proceeding to the comparison of the reviewed articles, one has to note that the major part of each article’s specificity derives from the target public for which each of them is intended. The popular magazine article is more targeted at ‘laymen’, which means that no specific scientific data or results of scholarly analysis are given. In fact, it is more of an incentive for action than a scientific justification and grounding of a certain medical, social, and psychological phenomenon. There are many useful tips for school administrators, parents, and children suffering from the problem of obesity. The guidelines for an obesity intervention program offered in the article may be of certain use for the community healthcare professionals who take an active interest in designing a practical obesity intervention program and test its effectiveness in reality.