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ARS Home » Plains Area » Houston, Texas » Children's Nutrition Research Center » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #426125
Research Project: Enhancing Childhood Health and Lifestyle Behaviors

Location: Children's Nutrition Research Center

Title: A scoping review of the social determinants of pediatric and adolescent obesity

Author
item ERNEST, DEEPALI - University Of Texas Health Science Center
item ONUGHA, ELIZABETH - Baylor College Of Medicine
item SINGH, BIPIN - University Of Texas Health Science Center
item SHARMA, SHREELA - University Of Texas Health Science Center
item DAVE, JAYNA - Children'S Nutrition Research Center (CNRC)

Submitted to: International Journal of Pediatrics
Publication Type: Review Article
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/2/2025
Publication Date: 4/28/2025
Citation: Ernest, D.K., Onugha, E.A., Singh, B., Sharma, S.V., Dave, J.M. 2025. A scoping review of the social determinants of pediatric and adolescent obesity. International Journal of Pediatrics. 2025:Article ID 8871022. https://doi.org/10.1155/ijpe/8871022.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1155/ijpe/8871022

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Social determinants of health (SDOH) play a large role in pediatric and adolescent metabolic health worldwide. This study aimed at exploring key SDOH related to childhood obesity, worldwide. Primary research articles from PubMed, Embase, and Medline databases published between 2013 and 2023, had a study population of 0–19-year-olds, and examined the association between WHO-defined SDOH and childhood obesity were included. Non-English papers and those outside WHO-defined SDOHs were excluded. Two reviewers independently performed a blinded screening of titles and abstracts, followed by a full-text assessment of selected articles. Of the 703 initial articles, 22 duplicates were excluded, leaving 681 unique articles from PubMed (N=274), Medline (N=43), and Embase (N=364). Initial screening excluded 579 articles, and full-text screening excluded 61 more, resulting in 41 final articles. Reasons for exclusion primarily involve missing SDOH exposure or weight-related outcomes and articles being reviews, editorial/opinion pieces, or interventional studies. Most included studies were cross-sectional (N=25) and conducted in North America (N=22). The average study sample size was 43,640 participants. These studies focus on socioeconomic determinants, neighborhood characteristics, food environment, healthcare access, educational determinants, and immigration-related factors. Obesity-related outcomes included general obesity, severe obesity, abdominal obesity, weight gain, BMI/weight categories, and continuous BMI measures. Key SDOHs of childhood obesity include socioeconomic status, neighborhood characteristics, food environment, healthcare access, immigration, and culture. Despite diverse regional studies, there is a notable gap in US-specific data on SDOH of childhood obesity, especially by race and ethnicity. Further research is needed to better understand these determinants and their impact on pediatric metabolic health.