Parents & Child Caretakers Obesity in America is literally a growing problem, affecting every age group. Children are the most venerable group because they have no control over where they have dinner or how often they have fast food. Parents and guardians make decisions about food and are responsible for the health of children. Childhood obesity has more than doubled in the last twenty years. This is concerning because Type Two diabetes is a horrible, crippling disease that is affecting children and teens dramatically whereas the disease was primarily seen in adults. Children are said to have a shorter life span than their parents for the first time ever. In the United States sixty-six percent of adults are overweight and one in …show more content…
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, childhood obesity effects more than 9 million children and teenagers between the ages of 6-19 in the United States with another 8 million considered “at risk” of becoming obese. These staggering figures have cause groups to form all across the country and organize their efforts to prevent this disease. One such organization is the Leadership for Healthy Communities, which is a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). The RWJF holds summits nationwide events calling on policy leaders nationwide to advance healthy eating and active living options in their communities. According to the RWJF, a special emphasis has been placed on collaborative state and community policy approaches that address childhood obesity among vulnerable populations disproportionately affected by the epidemic. The RWJF also has a panel, which consists of its chairmen, doctors, lawyers, but more importantly politicians on the state and federal level who are taking childhood obesity head-on and working with organizations like the RWJF to promote healthy, cost effective change in communities nationwide. Arkansas, as well as many other states, has adopted legislation preventing the sale of “fatty foods” within its public schools. Arkansas Act 1220 was adopted and immediately implemented in 2003, creating the state’s first Child Health Advisory Committee, which coordinates
What does childhood obesity means? Obesity can be defined as a condition in which the body carries abnormal or unhealthy amounts of fat tissue, leading the individual to weigh in excess or 20 percent more than his or her ideal weight (Health & Illness).Obesity in America is an ever-growing problem and has boosted America to the number one spot in terms of obese population. It also stands as the most prevalent medical issue in American Children. In the past thirty years, obesity has affected many different age groups of kids. Preschool group, two to five years in age, and the youths between the ages of twelve and nineteen the obesity rate has more than doubled (Childhood Obesity Statistics and Facts 2v007). Childhood obesity has more than tripled in kid’s ages six to eleven years old. Children can become obese due to many different things like parents or schools. Although obesity may linger for a lifetime, there are many ways to overcome childhood obesity and not have to deal with the weight issue. Childhood obesity causes many problems and concerns in many American families, but families need to work together to overcome obesity. One out of three children in the United States falls into the overweight or obese category (Ding). Children face many different problems and issues at a young age because of obesity. Children obesity causes type 2 diabetes, fatty liver because of excessive weight issues, social problems, depression, anxiety, and eating disorders (Ludwig). Childhood
In America childhood obesity statistics show that almost 60 percent of children are obese. This statistic continues to grow at an alarming rate. 70 percent of obese adolescence become obese adults. This means when these children grow into adults they will have more health problems than they already do and their quality of life will decrease. The amount of children who are obese between ages 6-11 years old has risen from 6.5 percent in 1980 to 19.6 percent, in 2008. In adolescents ages 12-19 years old the obesity rates risen from 5.0 percent in 1960 to 18.1 percent in 2008. Last year the United States government stated that obesity and type 2 diabetes have become a national epidemic.
The new generation continues to increasingly fall under obesity’s evil spell. Although many Americans recognize that their children are obese, they fail to accept that this is an epidemic that should be controlled and given dramatic attention to. Research suggests that childhood obesity in the United States has doubled in the past decade. Despite the fact that we have necessary resources to control these statistics, Americans continue to expose their youngsters to unhealthy and fattening meals. It is no joke that America is the fattest nation in the world. Thus, preventing this serious issue should be perceived as a life-or-death situation where if we fail to control it, many more overweight children will grow up to be obese adults in the future.
America is facing a growing danger that has been gradually taking more and more years off of the life expectancy of its citizens. Obesity has been a growing issue throughout the United States over the last few decades and is one of the leading causes of preventable deaths in the country. This health issue, particularly childhood obesity, is definitely a health equity issue that needs to be addressed. Being overweight stems from and creates its own complexities that undoubtedly affect the determinants of health. There are two main angles public health can attack this issue from; developing a healthy public policy and developing personal skills with regards to health.
One can imagine how obesity is taking over the world 's population, so rapidly and it is obvious that the United States of America has high rates of Obesity. Obesity, also known as overweight, is a serious epidemic disease that can cause harm to the systems of the body including the heart. Obesity is the biggest threat to the United State of America 's population and something urgent has to be done, otherwise our future generation is at stake. the parent of U.S kids should be aware that obesity is affecting health, has national consequences, and lead to depression in the victims. If something is not done fast to alter this misfortune, there is a high percentage that our future generation is at stake.
Childhood obesity affects 12.5 million children and teens and this has continued to increase over the years because the heaviest are getting even heavier (“CDC Grand Rounds: Childhood Obesity in the United States.”). Obesity is a growing disease in the United States and it is only getting worse. Data has presented in a new study that 8 year old are having problems with their hearts, as obesity has taken over America. Of 20 obese children, 40% had enlarged hearts, therefore letting us know that the organ is strained. Children now are setting themselves up for longterm heart failure and disease and more and more children will undergo this problem if they do not make a change. Type 2 diabetes is becoming more common, in the 1980’s, this was unheard
There is a new epidemic that is hitting America by storm in this day and age. It is a serious concern that can lead to serious health problems, social ostracism and, if left untreated, fatality. This disease is obesity, more specially child and teenage obesity in America which statistics show has reached an alarming 2.5 million for children ranging from 2 to 19. This teeming number is continually increasing and as a result, children are at an increased risk for diseases traditionally correlated with adults such as heart disease and Type II diabetes. Sadly enough, this can and will shorten the life span of children if measures are not taken. Now, there are many unknowns as to the actual causes of teen obesity and not just gluttony or
Today’s children are at risk to be the first generation in the modern era to have a life expectancy less than that of their parents (Lemonick, 3). This is because of obesity. In the last thirty years, the rate of obesity among adolescents in the United States has quadrupled, and the anatomical health repercussions are being felt (“A Comparison” 16). Ailments like heart disease and diabetes, that have a direct correlation with obesity, are all on the rise. The issue within society is that few people recognize that obesity is the root of these problems (Ward-Smith, 242). For this reason, Americans have allowed themselves to create a lifestyle where obesity will continue to exist. With a fast paced culture that demands results instantly, society
Obesity has become an epidemic in the United States with wide-reaching effects. In “America’s War on the Overweight” by Kate Dailey and Abby Ellin, they discuss the prejudice encountered by people in America, and how it’s difficult for most people to fight against obesity and not the obese. Then in “The Cooking Animal” by Michael Pollan, he describes the rapid decline of home-cooked meals. Furthermore, he writes how the more time a nation devotes to food preparation at home, the lower the rate of obesity. Finally, “The Problem of Childhood Obesity” by Ginger Beebe and Joe Thompson, explains the strides that Arkansas has taken to fight the epidemic of obesity by coordinating school health and cooperative education. All three articles target
A drive down the road in any given American city and one can observe at least one reason that the United States is struggling with obesity. One would be hard pressed to find a community that is not teeming with fast food restaurants. However, it might surprise some that the obesity epidemic in our country has reached the most vulnerable population of all and they aren’t even capable of driving themselves to these bastions of unhealthy food. The childhood obesity level has reached 34% of children in the United States (SHUMEI, 2016).Obesity is caused by consistently consuming more calories than are needed for the level of physical activity one has on a daily basis. Although there are several indicators of obesity, the CDC and The American Academy of Pediatrics use the body mass index (BMI). Childhood obesity is defined as a BMI at or above the 95th percentile for children of the same age and sex (Perpich, 2011). Childhood obesity has been linked to an increase in Type 2 diabetes mellitus, asthma, hypertension, increased risk for cardiovascular disease and even affects children in psychosocial terms with low self-esteem and fewer friends than their non-obese contemporaries (Hispanic Health Care International, 2011). There are a variety of causes that work together for contributing to childhood obesity from the income level of the home to gender to even the location of the child’s home. Although there are many factors that can cause childhood obesity, we
Unfortunately, adults are not the only one’s suffering from obesity; 17% of children are obese with 31.3% being between the ages ten to seventeen, and 13.9% being high school students (State of Obesity, 2016). The prevalence of obesity, in children, is higher among Hispanics at 21.9% and blacks at 19.5% whereas non-Hispanic white adults in the United States are 14.7% (CDC, 2016). However, obesity rates are higher for children who live in low income families that are enrolled in the WIC program, even though rates have decreased since 2000. In 2014, the obesity rate was an average of 14.5 % of children ages 2-4 years (State of Obesity, 2016). According to the CDC, “the prevalence of obesity was higher among Hispanics (17.3%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (18.0%) young children than among those were non-Hispanic white (12.2%), non-Hispanic black (11.9%), or Asians/Pacific Islander (11.1%)” (CDC, 2016). Childhood obesity for low income WIC children in South Dakota, alone, is 17.1% which is ranked the fourth highest (State of Obesity, 2016).
Childhood obesity continues to increase substantially each generation, especially here in the United States. Today, children have become more lazy while eating unhealthy and in excess. This trend ultimately results in increased healthcare problems throughout their life. Childhood obesity has increased because children eat in excess, they are allowed to eat food which is unhealthy, they lack the exercise needed to maintain a healthy weight, and are permitted by family to become and remain obese.
America is facing a rigorous obesity plague that is endangering the health of millions. Moreover, we are passing our bad practices down to our children. Obesity is a stipulation in which anomalous or excessive fat buildup in adipose tissue that damages health. Obesity is defined in adults as a body mass index (BMI) exceeding 30 (kg/m). Obesity is one of the most discernible, but until recently, most deserted public health problems. The present high pervasiveness of obesity and the brisk increase in pervasiveness in the last twenty years has been referred to as an endemic (Johnson SJ, Birch LL. 1994). Children all through the U.S. are getting fatter and less fit, through potentially treacherous enduring consequences. The figure of
In order to impede the epidemic of childhood obesity, the actual causes of the problem need to be evaluated and dissected. Obesity in children is becoming a huge problem in American society. In the past three decades, the rate of overweight children has increased by 300%. This is an alarming rate that is only climbing higher. Every member in society should take steps to becoming healthier. This would help the present generations as well as future generations to come. The lifestyle of Americans keeps us too busy to be a healthy society.
Over the past two-decades obesity has risenn at an alarming rate globally and now is reaching epidemic proportions in the western and industrialized countries… USA. Obesity prevalence in the United states is among the highest globaly as its obesity rate is projected to climb from today’s 30-40% today to a shocking 70% in 20301 . In particular, childhood obesity exhibited the highest growth rate today, tripling the percentage of children over the past three decades CDC. Obese individuals have a higher risk of developing type two diabetes mellitus (T2DM), hypertension, dyslipidemia, cardiovascular disease (CVD), liver dysfunction, sub-fertility, psychological comorbidity3. The