Introduction: Pediatric obesity and the role of children's hospitals.

The National Center for Health Statistics estimates that 16.9% of children and adolescents aged 2 to 19 years are obese.1 Thesemost recent data follow a trend in increased prevalence of overweight or obesity that has spanned the last 30 years.1 The public’s perception of the gravity of childhood obesity as a health threat mirrors national prevalence data. In a recent poll, 81% of respondents identified childhood obesity as a serious problem, and approximately two-thirds agreed that it is getting worse.2