Childhood Obesity Problem

Do you get enough exercise? Are you sure about that? Or how about this, are you overweight, do you even know? Today’s adolescents don’t. In fact today’s adolescents face serious risk from their lack of activity. Today’s children are obese because they have developed some very bad habits related to healthy living and as result can suffer serious physical and psychological damage.

Childhood obesity is becoming an increasingly severe problem in today’s society. This portfolio aims to explain different causations of childhood obesity, and evaluate the interventions that have been put in place to combat the issue.

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

Being fat takes the fun out of being a kid. Paul Campos in his article “There is no Childhood Obesity Epidemic” discussed the there is a “stunning” drop in childhood obesity rate. He claims that obesity rates among two to five year olds have plunged over the past decade, and that the so called “obesity epidemic” had ended. I strongly disagree with Campos view that there is no childhood obesity epidemic, this is due to the researches that was done by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which shows that childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescent in the past years.

More and more Americans are becoming obese every single day. “More than half of Americans are overweight, including 1 out of 5 children. Nearly one third are obese”. (Wooten) Childhood obesity is a serious and common

Childhood obesity is more than a major issue in the United States: it is an epidemic. The number of overweight and obese children in America has increased at an alarming rate over the past years. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and tripled in adolescents in the past 30 years [1]. American Heart Association stated, “Today one in three American kids and teens are overweight or obese; nearly triple the rate in 1963” [5]. Unfortunately, this affects our children physically, mentally, and long-term.

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.

Why is there is a higher percentage of obesity in children than adults? Do school lunches lead to high childhood obesity? Why are three out every child in America suffering from obesity? These are the questions that come in mind when people talk about childhood obesity. Childhood obesity is defined as a sober medical disorder that affects youngsters at a young age and it arises when a child is exceeding his or her normal weight. The obesity in adolescents is increasing because of nonexistence of physical activity, school lunches offering high calorie food to students, food advertising promoting unhealthy food, and government providing additional money to school for school meal.

Obesity is an epidemic that affects millions of People around the world and it continues to rise. A particular concern is the rise in childhood obesity throughout the United States and it has become a national epidemic. Obesity is a threat to the health of many children as it has doubled in children and has quadrupled in adolescents in the past 30 years. According to survey on childhood obesity, 2014, “an estimated 80% of obese adolescents continue to be obese into adulthood, so the implication of childhood obesity on the nation’s health are very huge”.

One of the biggest health concerns facing children in the United States to is childhood obesity. Childhood obesity has grown to become a major epidemic all across the nation effecting millions of children both physically and emotionally. One of the biggest contributors to this public health issue is sugar sweetened beverages. Sugar-sweetened beverages are an unregulated and out control beverages that is being consumed by millions of children each and every day. Progress is being made on the local level to treat and control this concern, but in order to truly make a difference a federal policy needs to be implemented. This federal policy needs to tax sugar-sweetened beverages to encourage consumer to make healthier and cheaper choices. A federal

The number of overweight children in America has increased at an alarming rate. Today it is estimated that more than one-third of children and teens are overweight or obese (CDC, 2004). Obesity is the result of excess body fat. It is difficult defining obesity in younger people. Research shows that children who are obese are more likely to grow up to be overweight as an adult (CDC, 2004). Childhood obesity increases the risk of developing serious health problems, such as heart disease, diabetes, and asthma (CDC, 2004). Despite the increase in public awareness, overweight children often are teased and excluded from social activities, which can lead to low-self esteem and poor body images. Bullying can increase negative feeling including anxiety

Obesity has been a major health issue in the community for the past three decades, and has recently become a spreading concern for children (Black & Hager, 2013). Childhood obesity leads to many health and financial burdens in the future, and has become a public health priority. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (2016), childhood obesity has doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in the past 30 years. Black and Hager (2013) state that pediatric obesity is a major public health problem that effects a child’s mental and physical health. Having childhood obesity also increases the risk of developing adult obesity and many other chronic illnesses. Childhood obesity will be further explored in the following sections and will include: background, current surveillance methods, epidemiology analysis, screening and diagnosis, and the plan of action.

There is a giant threat looming over the United States, a catastrophic event of epidemic proportions which is threatening to capsize the health care system and that epidemic is childhood obesity. The awareness of this epidemic as a national problem developed in 1999 with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) publication of a compilation of yearly state-based maps that indicated the increase in the levels of childhood obesity. There were earlier studies done by the CDC regarding this epidemic, but the maps gave physical proof of the dramatic increase for this pressing issue (Dietz, 2015).

Perhaps the most notable campaign recently created to deal with the problem of childhood obesity is the brainchild of First Lady Michelle Obama entitled "Let's Move". Online, the "Let's Move" campaign provides resources such as My Plate to encourage children to eat a balanced diet within a normal calorie range, and gives advice about appropriate exercise daily requirements. The approach is fairly conservative (the dietary and exercise advice is accepted by mainstream scientists) but there are few concrete proposals to enact meaningful changes, other than to make better choices and to get moving.

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.