Pediatric youth who have obesity have high rates of adult criminal behavior and low rates of homeownership

Adam W Powell; Zachary Siegel; Christopher Kist; Wayne A Mays; Roohi Kharofa; Robert Siegel

doi:10.1177/20503121221127884

Pediatric youth who have obesity have high rates of adult criminal behavior and low rates of homeownership

SAGE Open Med. 2022 Oct 24:10:20503121221127884. doi: 10.1177/20503121221127884. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Adam W Powell^{1

2}, Zachary Siegel³, Christopher Kist^{1

2}, Wayne A Mays^{1

2}, Roohi Kharofa^{1

2}, Robert Siegel^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA.
² The Heart Institute, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA.
³ University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, USA.

Abstract

Objectives: The social outcomes in adulthood for pediatric patients with obesity are not well-described. This study investigated lifetime criminal behavior and homeownership in youth with obesity.

Methods: Retrospective data on all children enrolled in the weight management program from 1999 to 2009 and who completed exercise testing were collected. Demographic and public record collection included body habitus, death records, real estate transactions, and criminal conviction history with comparisons made to published normative data.

Results: In the children with obesity studied (N = 716; 12.0 ± 3.1 years old), the now-adult patients (28.5 ± 3.7 years) had a 1.5% mortality rate (11/716). Overall, 9.6% of these adults were convicted of a felony compared to ~7% lifetime prevalence in Ohio (p = 0.03). Also, 14.7% of study patients purchased a home compared to 38.3% of Midwest adults <30 years old (p < 0.0001). Mortality, history of a criminal conviction, or homeownership was associated with any exercise or study parameter.

Conclusion: Children with obesity appear to have greater social risk than their peers in adulthood with higher rates of criminal behavior and lower rates of homeownership. This appears to highlight the need for treatment in this vulnerable group of children and young adults.

Keywords: Obesity; criminal behavior; fitness; homeownership; risk-taking behavior.