Date of Graduation

5-2015

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Human Environmental Sciences

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

General Human Environmental Sciences

Advisor/Mentor

Way, Kelly A.

Committee Member/Reader

Wiersma-Mosley, Jacquelyn D.

Committee Member/Second Reader

Bailey, Mechelle

Abstract

The target of this study was obesity’s problematic rise in America. It was noted in the research that children developed habits that would potentially last a lifetime and which also dictated their medical fate. The focus of this study was to identify and decrease the factors of childhood obesity through education, healthy eating, and changes in food choices through surveys administered by the researchers of this study. Research linked obesity to the diagnosis of type 2 diabetes and chronic diseases in children through decreased physical activity and poor diet due to the lack of essential nutrition knowledge. Other factors in childhood obesity included poor food preparation/creation, deceptive advertising, cultural habits, and an increased demand for fast-paced foods; leaving children’s recognition and desire for healthy food choices clouded. The purpose of this study was to create and administer a survey to find results connected to childhood obesity within the Hispanic community in Springdale, Arkansas. The study also assessed parents’ education levels in addition to parental perceptions and knowledge of healthy eating choices. The framework of the study will potentially become a catalyst for ‘raising a foodie’ in other outreach programs, preschools, or any Early Childhood Development Program locally and nationwide.

Keywords

Sociology; Individual and Family Studies

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