Research proposal draft

Research Proposal Draft Background of the problem The number of obese children below the age of 18 who are obese has continued to increase. The health implication for child obesity, but in the current time as well as in the future of the child are many and imminent (Pan et al, 2012). At the same time, the health benefit for these children to lose weight through positive lifestyle and proper diet are also eminent. However, as Bethell et al (2012) say, the problem is that there is few studies that have been done to indicate the connection between low body weight (Body Mass Index) and the positive health benefits. There are also few studies that indicate the way in which these youngsters can be motivated to adopt a positive lifestyle in terms of being physically active and eating the proper diet that will help them to avoid obesity.
Problem Statement
There exists a desperate need to identify a connection between the benefits that come with weight loss. There is also a need to make sure that people, especially the young people are not only aware of the health benefits of losing excess weight but that they are motivated to lose the excess weight through positive lifestyle and the proper eating habits.
Research proposal
The significance of the current research study is to measure how a quantitative weight loss program will affect those who will be involved in the study. The study will involve 50 participants of ages between 8 and 18, from both the genders. All the participants have to have a body mass index of over the 95th percentile which is a clear indication that they are obese and overweight. The study will be done in a period of twelve weeks. The study will monitor food intake, oxygen saturation, blood pressure, heart rate, blood glucose and cholesterol levels of the participants.
Research Question
Will there be increased positive health benefits such as, improved oxygen circulation, healthy blood pressure, heart rate, blood glucose and cholesterol levels, in the participants who will be children age 8 to 18 with a BMI above the 95th percentile?
What will be the things that are the most likely to motivate the children to be able to eat healthily and to lead a more physically active lifestyle?
Research hypotheses
The hypothesis for this research is that there will be clear indication of the positive health outcomes that will be achieved by the 50 participants who will be involved in this controlled medical study for weight loss.
Null hypotheses
The results of the study will not indicate any significance differences in the health benefits when the results for females are compared for males.
Variables
The variables to be looked at in this study will include the following;
Age
Needles to say, age is an important factor when weight related health issues are being considered. The way an 8 year old child can be affected by overweight may not be the same way s an 18 year old will be affected. At the same time, the way an older patient may be able to stay in course in a controlled weight loss progress is not the same way a young child would. In this case, age will be an important factor to consider.
Gender
Gender will also be considered in order to make sure that there will be an indication of whether gender is a factor to determine how a patient will be able to stay in courser in the controlled weight loss program. When compared to age, gender can be an interesting variable to look at in this study.
Family background
There is already enough evidence that child obesity has a direct relation with the family they come from. According to Papoutsi, Drichoutis & Nayga (2013), in a country like the USA, children who come from the economically disadvantages are the ones at the highest risk of being obese. Family background in this study will look at past history to know whether there has been anyone in the family how has been affected by the same in the future.
To monitor how the controlled weight loss program will help the participants, the following variables will be monitored throughout the period of the study. Each will be monitored after every week, for the twelve week that the study will take place.
Oxygen circulation
The oxygen circulation will be measured on the first day of the study for every participant and then will be measured after every week to monitor how this has improved or deteriorated.
Blood pressure
There is a direct correlation between the weight of a person and their blood pressure. Needles to say, people with higher body masses have are likely to have unhealthy blood pressure. This will be monitored for all the participants in the study.
Heart rate
The heart rate will also be monitored for every participant in the period the study will take place.
Blood glucose and cholesterol levels
These two will also be monitored in every participant over the twelve weeks that the study will be carried out.
References
Pan, L., et al. (2012). Trends In The Prevalence Of Extreme Obesity Among US Preschool-Aged Children Living In Low-Income Families, 1998-2010. Journal of American Medical Association, 308 (24), 2563-2565.
Bethell, C. et al. (2010). National, State, And Local Disparities in Childhood Obesity. Health Affairs, 29 (3), 347-56.
Papoutsi, G. S., Drichoutis, A. C., & Nayga, R. M. (2013). The Causes of Childhood Obesity: A Survey. Journal of Economic Surveys, 27(4), 743-767. doi: 10. 1111/j. 1467-6419. 2011. 00717. x