Physical Activity for Obese Youth: Implications for Chronic Disease Risk Factors

Obesity and chronic diseases are becoming increasingly important health concerns among the world’s youth. For example, in the United States it is estimated that approximately 32% of children are now overweight or obese (Ogden et al., 2012). Data from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) also indicates that the prevalence of prediabetes/diabetes increased from 9% to 23% between 1999–2000 and 2007/2008 among youth 12 to 19 years of age (May et al., 2012).