The National Forum’s chief scientific advisor, Stephen Sidney, MD, MPH, praised the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force’s draft recommendation statement on High Body Mass Index in Children and Adolescents: Interventions in comments submitted to the Task Force on January 16, 2024.
Drawing on two National Forum Signature Reports authored by Sidney, he pointed out that “obesity is a major underlying factor contributing to the increasing prevalence of hypertension, dyslipidemia, and diabetes in young adults, adding to the cumulative burden of these risk factors over the lifespan.” He highlighted the disproportionate burden on Hispanic/Latino, Native American/Alaska Native, and non-Hispanic Black populations.
The proposed USPSTF statement “recommends that clinicians provide or refer children and adolescents age 6 years or older with a high body mass index (BMI) (≥95th percentile for age and sex) to comprehensive, intensive behavioral interventions.”
