Childhood Obesity : A Known Problem For Decades

Childhood obesity is a growing epidemic in the United States. More than one third of children are overweight. This figure is increasing rapidly. This epidemic puts children at risk for various health problems such as type two diabetes and heart problems. Although they are several risk factors for obesity, parents play a significant role in this issue. This paper will look into how parents are influential to their children, how they contribute to this problem and how they may help fight the fight against obesity. Obesity is a very serious problem and there are solutions that parents can apply to help their children lead a healthy lifestyle. Obesity does not only affect a person physically, but mentally and psychologically as well.

Childhood obesity is not just an issue in United States- it is an growing epidemic. Obesity epidemic in kids has increased by alarming rate just in last few decades. Nearly one in every five child is obese in the United States. If the pattern of obesity continued on most of America’s children will be living with diabetes, heart disease, and dying young due to obesity. The American Heart Association reported this year that childhood obesity is the top health concern among parents in the United States, beating out smoking and drug abuse. My own younger siblings suffer with child obesity. Their craving for fast food and very limited physical activity has made them overweight and currently they suffer from health problems. Is this the future of our young generation? How much contribution should a parent have in their child’s diet? Fast food has taken over American diet and it has lead to poor nutritional diet among American youth. Fast food companies spend billion of dollars every year on commercials, convincing youth to love and eat their product. It’s just not our eating habits that has lead our young generation into obesity, lack of physical workout has also played a major role in obesity epidemic. TV, computer, video games and other technology entertainment has contributed to children getting no exercise. Obesity in children can put them in high risks of developing chronic and serious illness. Unhealthy weight leads to having weaker lungs, poor blood quality, heart

Childhood obesity has become an epidemic in the United States in the past three decades. In 2012, roughly 17% or 12.5 million children and adolescents are overweight or obese” (“Childhood Obesity Facts,” 2014). According to the Centers of Disease Control and

Since 1980 the rates of child obesity have more than tripled which has caused a growing pandemic of childhood obesity in the United States. Out of all the young children and adolescents within the age group of two through nineteen about 12.7 million are obese. That is the equivalent of about 17% of America’s population that is suffering from childhood obesity. Childhood obesity is too prevalent in all American households. Childhood obesity is detrimental on a national scale, since it has been growing at a steady rate in the United States of children not reaching the daily-recommended physical activity, the absence of a balanced diet with overconsumption of eating, and more critically the increase of type 2 diabetes.

America is facing a serious challenge! Children’s health is becoming a critical concern. Childhood obesity has become an “epidemic disease” that has rapidly grown over the years in the United States. According to the National Center for Health Statistics in 2011 states that, “childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in the past 30 years. In 2012, more than one- third of children and adolescents were overweight or obese” (Childhood, 2015, para.1).I would like to inform you all of childhood obesity in children, and ways to get involved in preventing obesity in our future generation. Childhood obesity has many factors, and is a preventable disorder that can be controlled, and if not, it could greatly affect the health of an individual.

Childhood obesity is an epidemic in U.S. In the year of 2012, about “one third of children and adolescents were overweight or obese.” Also, percentages of childhood obesity have increased by over ten percent in the last thirty years in children and adolescents (Childhood Obesity Facts 2015). These statistics are shocking, and many people are concerned for the health of their children. This medical condition, as defined by Mayo Clinic, leads to serious health conditions in the future in the children’s adult lives, which can only be treated with pricey medication, treatments, and surgeries (Mayo Clinic Staff 2015); some can also lead to a very short life, ending their lives in between the ages 40 and 60. Due to many studies and research, 1childhood obesity can be easy prevented early on from infancy by analyzing the causes, studying the effects and finding the solutions to the problem.

In the United States, childhood obesity is an epidemic and in the past 30 years, childhood obesity have had nearly tripled. There are 31 % of American children and adolescents are either overweight or obese. And according to the numbers, more than 23 million of American children are either overweight or obese and more than 12 million are obese (National Conference of State Legislatures, 2013).

During the 1970’s, about 5% of American children between the ages of two and nineteen were considered to be “obese”. Over the past several decades, that percentage has risen to a whopping 17% - a change that is seemingly minute. It may only appear as a 12% increase, however, that 17% translates to 12.5 million children and teens burdened with the challenge of obesity. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, obesity is defined as having a body mass index that exceeds the 95th percentile (U.S. Department of Health). In other words, the average between the mass and the height of an obese child is greater than that of 95% of all other children. As in any medical issue, the biggest concerns for childhood obesity stem from the potential risk factors that can result. Some of which include diabetes, heart disease, asthma, and even death. Thus, many have sought out the root cause of the issue as well as the most effective solutions. Childhood obesity, promoted by a processed diet, increasing portion sizes, and limited access to healthy, affordable foods, is an epidemic plaguing a vast number of children within the United States and will continue to do so if left to fester. Nonetheless, this ailment can be remedied through an extensive understanding of proper nutrition, dedication to maintaining dietary excellence, and emphasis on prevention.

Many studies have shown the increasing trend in early childhood obesity over the past few decades. But in recent years that trend has begun to level out and even decrease in some cases. In this paper, these trends will discussed along with the health implications that follow childhood obesity, how big of a problem it has become, as well as how to fix the problem and what we can do in the future to prevent this problem.

Childhood obesity rates in United States have skyrocketed thus making it a major public health concern. “There is a rapid climb in the prevalence of obesity in children in the United States over the last two decades such that in 2009-2010, 16.9% of US children and adolescents were obese”(Karnick, & Kanekar, 2014, p. 2). Today more than 23 million children and teens in US, nearly three in one young people are overweight or obese. Childhood obesity threatens the health of our young people now and their future potential. They are at high risk for serious health problems such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and asthma. Also they miss more school and have more psychological stress and are more likely

Childhood Obesity has become a topic of national concern. There has been an extremely rapid increase in the number of obese children in the recent years. The percentage of obese children from the age of 6-11 has increased from 7% to 18% and for adolescents age 12-19, a 5% to 21% in a short span of about 30 years. This epidemic has grown to such a high number that it had been brought to the attention Michelle Obama, the First Lady of America, who then created a plan to try to end this Childhood Obesity Epidemic in 2010. So, what is the cause of this new and uprising epidemic? Among the articles that I’ve come across, researchers have begun to link the source to the lack of exercise and fast food establishments.

Childhood Obesity is a well known issue in the United States. To some individuals childhood obesity is considered to be a medical condition while others may argue that is not. Childhood obesity is the condition where excessive body fat negatively affects a child 's wellbeing or health. Being obese is different from being overweight, although both mean that a person’s weight is greater than what is considered healthy for his or her height. Childhood obesity should be taken extremely serious or it could lead to life threatening situations. Several ways in which one can avoid children from becoming obese is by being physically active, maintaining healthy eating habits and having portion control.

Childhood obesity is a growing problem that needs to be resolved. Many people may say it is the Child’s fault, he is weak willed. This is just a common misconception; there are hundreds of different reasons for childhood obesity. I will just be scratching the surface of this paper. By the same token childhood obesity is a growing problem that needs to be resolved. We can achieve this by understanding some common misconceptions, understanding health problems, and understanding fitness.

In recent years, the world’s prevalence of obesity in children has increased alarmingly in most of the countries. It is estimated that 170 million of children under 18 years old are overweight, in the US there is a 30% prevalence of obesity, similarly 27% of children in Mexico are obese (OCDE, 2014; Gutiérrez et al., 2012). In some countries like East Germany, New Zealand, the Netherlands and Canada the prevalence of overweight children had risen by one percentage point each year (Wang & Lobestein, 2006). According to an OCDE report obesity rates have grown more rapidly with low socioeconomic and education (OCDE, 2014).

We are what we eat. Most of us have heard this many times, and just do not believe it; however, it is shockingly true. The human body is made up of the nutrients it extracts from foods (Katz). The importance of the statement “We are what we eat” often goes unrecognized, thus causing a major problem: parents not providing healthy diets for their children to ensure their best quality of life. Childhood obesity is a serious problem in America, and I believe it stems from parents. I have witnessed this first hand with my niece. It really bothers me that my sister-in-law often feeds my niece desserts and junk food instead of meats and vegetables. I have noticed that my niece is overweight and developing slower than she should. My family thinks it is cute, but I think it is starting her off in the wrong direction and posing problems for her future health. “For children and adolescents aged 2-19 years, the prevalence of obesity has remained fairly stable at about 17% and affects about 12.7 million children and adolescents for the past decade”(“Childhood Obesity Facts”). The number one cause for obesity is consuming an unhealthy diet filled with extra calories the body does not need. In a study of 6,212 children ranging in ages from four to nineteen, one-third ate fast food every day. By consuming fast food that often, it is likely to add about six extra pounds per child each year and increase the risk for obesity (Holguin). Although childhood obesity is problematic, there are