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Childhood Obesity And Its Effects On Children

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Despite recent declines in the prevalence among preschool-aged children, obesity among children is still too high. 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 (CDC). Childhood obesity does not only affect children, but also has many long term health effects on our children as they get older, including, an increased risk of type 2 diabetes in both childhood and adulthood. (2). Researchers estimate that if obesity trends continue, obesity related medical costs, alone, could rise by $43 to $66 billion each year in the United States by 2030. (1) A major factor in childhood obesity is the inadequate amount of physical activity children are getting, as well as the school lunches that are being provided to the kids. The accessibility of competitive foods which includes things like vending machines, student stores and items a la carte in schools has been linked with negative dietary behaviors, including higher saturated fat intake, higher sweetened beverage intake, and less fruit and vegetable intake,(3) thus resulting in obesity among our children and adolescents. Research suggests that by making sure children are getting healthy school meals and getting enough physical activity in their day it will decrease their chances of having childhood obesity (3). The purpose of this review was to determine the role, school lunches and physical

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