A recent study revealed that childhood obesity may incur lifetime medical costs up to $19,000 per child.

So childhood obesity is not just bad for health, it is also heavy on the pockets. Many studies have focused on how this weight disorder leads to many health issues, both as a child and an adult. For the first time, Duke Global Health Institute and Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School researchers looked into the financial aspect of childhood obesity and found that medical expenses of this disorder come at a hefty price.

 After analyzing existing medical data and costs related to obesity, researchers found that childhood obesity may incur lifetime medical costs up to $19,000 per child, according to Science Codex. When this number is multiplied by the number of 10-year-old obese children it the U.S., researchers found that the country spends over $14 billion on medical expenses for childhood obesity.

The data collected in the study were compared to medical costs for normal-weight children who stay a normal weight into adulthood. Researchers took into account expenses for doctors' appointments and medications but didn't consider indirect costs like absenteeism and lost productivity as working adults. The study also noted that for normal weight children gained weight in adulthood, the lifetime medical costs reduced to $12,900.

This is the newest study that highlights the importance of reducing childhood obesity.

"Reducing childhood obesity is a public health priority that has substantial health and economic benefits," said lead author Eric Andrew Finkelstein, according to USA Today. "These estimates provide the financial consequences of inaction and the potential medical savings from obesity prevention efforts that successfully reduce or delay obesity onset."

While some progress has been made in lowering obesity rates in children within certain age groups and regions, childhood obesity remains a significant health problem.

In February 2014, CDC released a report stating that the obesity rate for American children in the two to five-year-old demographic dropped from 14 percent in 2003-04 to just above 8 percent in 2011-12, a 43 percent decrease.

"We continue to see signs that, for some children in this country, the scales are tipping. This report comes on the heels of previous CDC data that found a significant decline in obesity prevalence among low-income children aged 2 to 4 years participating in federal nutrition programs," said CDC Director Tom Frieden in a statement.  "We've also seen signs from communities around the country with obesity prevention programs including Anchorage, Alaska, Philadelphia, New York City and King County, Washington. This confirms that at least for kids, we can turn the tide and begin to reverse the obesity epidemic."

The exact reason behind this drop has not been determined yet but experts suggested that reduced consumption of sugary drinks, improvement in breastfeeding rates and better nutrition and physical education programs at day care centers have contributed immensely.

Earlier this month, the Obama administration laid out new restrictions on the marketing of junk food and sugary drinks in schools. According to the new restrictions, advertising of unhealthy foods on school campuses during the school day is strictly prohibited. This includes sugary drinks that account for 90 percent of such ads in school, Associated Press reports.

"The idea here is simple-our classrooms should be healthy places where kids aren't bombarded with ads for junk food," said First Lady Michelle Obama in a press release.  "Because when parents are working hard to teach their kids healthy habits at home, their work shouldn't be undone by unhealthy messages at school.

Recently, the president's wife also joined the Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA), the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) in their 5-year Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA). The partnership aims to create healthy environments for children who attend out-of-school programs across the country by providing them healthy snacks and physical activity during the period when kids leave school and before they go home.

"Because of this new announcement from the Boys and Girls Clubs and the National Recreation and Park Association, millions of kids will be in healthy environments not just during the school day, but during those critical hours after school as well.  Kids will be getting a fruit or a vegetable at every meal and every snack, they'll have healthy beverages like water and low-fat milk and they'll be getting active for at least 30 minutes a day," said First Lady Michelle Obama in a press statement.  "This is going to make a huge impact-not just on our kids' health, but on their success in school and in life."

Childhood obesity affects one in every three American kids. Currently, 17 percent of the country's children are obese, according to the American Heart Association. Children and adolescents who are obese are likely to be obese as adults and are therefore, more at risk for health problems such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, several types of cancer, and osteoarthritis.