Childhood Obesity And Its Effects On Children

Furthermore, federal assistance is also a cause of hunger. According to a study from the nation’s largest food bank operator, the number of Americans in need of food aid has jumped 46 percent in the three years. A growing number of people have had to make difficult choices about what to spend their money on. “These are choices that no one should have to make, but particularly households with children” (Escarra). The government and the community can help in many ways. Insufficient nutrition has adverse effects on the physical, behavioral and mental health, and academic performance of

It was difficult to read that countless millions of federal dollars and many of our country's most successful efforts to halt the spread of childhood hunger and starvation have recently been withdrawn. And as a result, this problem of childhood hunger is not getting better but is actually getting worse. The most recent estimates compiled by the USDA in 1999 indicate that 36.2 million Americans live in food-insecure households, which means that their access to adequate and safe food is limited or uncertain. This too is very disturbing information.

So, why do fifteen million children in America face hunger every day? How does this happen? Many people are on food stamps, and they can be extremely helpful, but it is difficult to feed family with them. Food stamps provide only a dollar per person for each meal, according to the organization, Food is Power. More often than not, unhealthy, processed foods are a lot less expensive than nutritious, organic food, and because of this issue, many people on food stamps reach for less expensive junk food. Unquestionably, healthy foods can be very hard to find and expensive in places like food deserts. Food is Power found that thirty-three percent of Americans live in food deserts. Of course, public transportation helps families reach grocery stores, but it still can be a lengthy trip, and in rural and suburban areas, there can be little or no public transportation at all. These issues make it a struggle for parents to provide healthy food for their

It is estimated that one in four children, or twenty-five percent of all children in the state go hungry on a daily basis (“Hunger in North Carolina”). Not only is North Carolina ranked one of the top ten states with the hungriest children, it also has cities which are ranked nationwide for food shortage including Asheville, Greensboro, High Point, and Winston Salem (“Hunger in North Carolina”). Many of North Carolinians rely on food from food pantries, government assistance, soup kitchens, and many other independent organizations freely providing food.

The family receives food stamps, or SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) but the $172 worth of assistance isn’t enough to feed the family of five for a month. They have to subsidize what they can’t buy with food stamps with charity from food stamps, and even have to decide to let certain bills go unpaid to put food on the table. Another challenge faced by the Dreiers and families across the country facing food scarcity, is that the food often available is usually unhealthy. Food banks usually give away processed or canned food that is filled with salt and preservatives, so even when a meal can be scavenged is usually has little nutritional value. Hungry American’s have to often times decide on unhealthy pre-prepared or processed foods because they are more easily accessible and more affordable.

In the United States of America, the richest nation of the world, one in six Americans do not have enough food to eat. Have you ever wonder why there are so many food banks and food pantries throughout the country? They are not simply, as you thought, existent to offer emergency food assistance. Indeed, they are the main sources of food to millions of food-insecure Americans. Food insecurity, the state of not having sufficient quantity of affordable and nutritious food, has been very widespread and common in America. It affected millions of Americans and has been increasing dramatically in recent years; in 2012, more than 48 millions of food-insecure Americans rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) (McMillan). The depth of deprivation varies in each family. Some families have to skip meals in order to save food for the next meal, some families get enough food but eat an unhealthy diet due to economic reasons, and some families get to eat but in the cost of other family members go hungry. Food insecurity is one of the most serious nutrition-related public health issues in the United States. Obesity in America is due in part to the consequences of food insecurity because of innutritious and unbalance diet. Food insecurity is associated with

As of 2017, millions of families in the United States live in poverty. As a result, this forces parents in between a rock and a hard place. This position of food insecurity, when someone is in a state where they are not able to access good quality food, leaves families with some cheap, unhealthy choices for food. Yet still, there are many other reasons as to why the United States is pressed with the major issue of food insecurity. One reason stems from the quality of American school lunches compared to those in other countries. Another is the link between hunger and obesity and the long-term health consequences of relying on processed foods for sustenance.

Social Factors: Children of many various ethnicity have greater implications with obesity, however studies have shown that Hispanic American children (both genders) and African American female children are effected at higher rate than European Americans and Asians (Salinas, Leyao, & DeWan, 2016). Numerous studies including BMC genetics have directly associated low household income to higher likelihood children being obese or overweight. According to the CDC 2000 growth reference, adolescence ages 12-19 are obese or over-weight with the body mass index (BMI) ≥95th, that is one in six child in the United States (Diesel, Eckhardt, Day, Brooks, Arslanian, & Bodnar, 2015).

A majority of those living in food insecure homes rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or previously known as food stamps. In order to be eligible to receive these benefits, one must live in a household with, “a gross income of no more than 130 percent of the poverty rate. For a family of four that qualifying point is $31,005 a year” (McMillan). The average monthly allotment per person receiving benefits is less than $2.00 per meal (McMillan). Due to the high prices of fresh foods and the low amount of benefits, those receiving financial assistance through SNAP have increased rates of obesity. The Milbank Quarterly reports, “Participation in SNAP

Childhood obesity is considered to be a serious issue among our youth. Obesity can cause many types of physical problems, which most are aware of, but it can also cause some undesirable internal feelings within children and adolescents who suffer from it. Self-esteem, or self-worth, is important as it helps develop personality and is a major ingredient to our mental health status (Wang, F. and Veugelers, P. J., 2008). Some have said obesity may even have a negative effect on cognitive development, as well. There have been studies performed to research the effects of obesity on children and adolescents, which I am going to review.

This information told them that 1 in 8 people, 13.4%, lived in homes without dependable access to meals. However, this number was a substantial decrease from the previous year, 2014, which had 48 million people worried about adequate food. Unfortunately, the percentage is greatly increased for the number of children who go hungry compared to the overall rate. The rate of child hunger is 17.9% meaning that every 1 in 6 children do not know when their next meal will be. (“What is the Issue”) This study also discovered that 26% of people make too much to qualify for most of these federal supplemental programs such as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). This results in 20% of children going hungry because they live in these households.

Food insecurity has been affecting the US population as about more than 23 million Americans, including 6.5 million children, live in low-income urban and rural neighborhoods that are more than a mile from a supermarket. These communities are much known since they lack access to affordable, nutritious food. Vault and healthy food should be affordable; policy or a plan that would improve our food supply or the health of the population should be put into consideration in order to enhance the American population’s public health.

Childhood obesity is a condition that affects children in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) the rates of obesity in children have more than doubled in children in the past 30 years. There was increase of 18% from 1980 to 2012 in children 6 to 11 years of age, estimating that more than one third of children are overweight or obese. ("Childhood Obesity Facts," 2014) Obesity usually begins in children during the ages of 5 and 6. The most troublesome fact is that studies have shown that obese children between 10 and 13 have a predisposition of becoming an obese adult. ("Obesity in Children and Teens," 2011) Consequently, overweight teenagers have a 70 percent chance of becoming obese or overweight adults, and if at least one parent is obese the child’s predisposition rate increases to 80 percent. (Bishop et al., 2005)

In the article of “Childhood Obesity”, Han, Lawlor and Kimm talk about the causes that cause childhood obesity, prevention of childhood obesity and treatment of it. The recent studies showed us the causes of childhood obesity by the understanding of the genetics and physiology of appetite control. The genetics of children have Instrumental in causing this disease, whereas the enzymes of children could not oxidize or digest the food completely or it takes along time to be digested, however, the fats accumulate in the child's body easily. The authors support their main point by a table that has information about the biology causes and habits relates to childhood obesity, such as sleeping and television viewing, according to Han, Lawlor

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.