How to Prevent Obesity in Adults and Young Children

Obesity continues to be a problem in the United States. With obesity rates on the rise something must be done to prevent this massive issue. Seventeen percent of children and adolescents about 12.5 million are obese (Diet). Obesity is the result of a rise in fat that accumulated over time due to the lack of exercise and having a calorie surplus due to unhealthy food. An adult with a BMI (body mass index) higher than 30% is considered to be obese (Obesity). There isn’t a direct focus on obesity, because people don’t think it’s an important issue. To ensure a better future, solution is needed now. The solution to ending the obesity epidemic by encouraging a healthier lifestyle on children at young ages, improving nutrition at schools and restaurants, as well as providing more time and space for citizens to get physically active.

Since the 1980’s obesity rates have soared. Between 1980 and 2000, obesity rates doubled between adults and children. Twelve years later in 2012, the Center of Disease Control and Prevention estimated more than one third of children and adolescents are overweight or obese. Being overweight is defined as having excess body weight from a combination of height, fat, and muscle. On the other hand, Obesity is simply having too much excess body fat. Being overweight and obese are the result of caloric imbalance. Society tends to consume more calories than calories expended. Obesity can lead to more serious medical issues such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and even cancer. I believe that there are many causes of obesity, but there are just as much solutions for a healthier life.

Obesity remains an extremely serious issue worldwide. Once considered a problem for wealthier counties, overweight and obesity are now dramatically increasing in low and middle income countries (WHO, 2011). In American, the rates of obesity continue to soar. CDC (2009) recognizes obesity as a risk factor for diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, and other health problems. According to NHANES over two-thirds of the US are overweight or obese, and over one-third are obese (CDC, 2009). Treatment for this illness varies; it may include the incorporation of diet, exercise, behavior modification, medication, and surgery. Since there is no single cause of all overweight and obesity, there is no single way to prevent or treat overweight

One in three Americans are at risk for more than 30 chronic illnesses due to obesity. It is the biggest driver of healthcare, costing the country millions of dollars each year. Poor eating habits are the main cause of this disease and could all be changed beginning with the youth of the nation. 20 million children under the age of five are now considered overweight or obese in America (Dyer). What was once a rare disease, has now become an epidemic. Few health topics have initiated as much debate and controversy as obesity has within the past 15 years. The hope of new treatments progresses as obesity becomes the norm of our society and continues to change America every day.

Obesity has been measured or defined in various ways. Many researchers have differing opinions on the origins and effects of obesity. The rapidly increasing rates of obesity are often linked to a high calorie diet and little to no physical activity. Although obesity is seen as a disease that affects a person’s weight, it actually affects a lot more than that. Obesity can affect individuals in both adolescence and adulthood, their families, and the healthcare system. From an outside viewpoint, obesity looks like a disease that careless, inactive people develop. Not always is this the case. Obesity is not a disease that affects solely the weight of a person. To be considered obese, your BMI (body mass index) would have to be 30 or higher. Almost 70 percent of Americans are either overweight or obese. Not only does obesity affect the weight of a person, it can also lead to increased risk for diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, sleep apnea, and many other things. Questions posed on this dreadful disease by many people are on the origin of the disease, the effects and exponential growth of the disease, and the actions that are being taken to help provide a healthier environment for Americans and to establish programs and preventative methods across the country to help fight the ever increasing obesity rate.

One of the most commonly discussed issues of America in the last few decades has been obesity. It remains one of the biggest problems in American society and requires a careful, systematic but also immediate solution. Obesity is a term used to describe body weight that is much greater than what is considered healthy. Today, 65% of adults in the U.S. are overweight and half of those are obese. The rates for children are smaller but they are not satisfying either: 15% are overweight and another 15% are headed that way (Lemonick). Besides the aesthetic problems for many people that this condition creates, it is most importantly known as the main cause of serious health problems as well.

The rates of childhood obesity Worldwide are alarmingly high! Obesity is a global nutritional concern and leads to horrible consequences on our children and becomes a worldwide pandemic. Worldwide estimates of obesity are as high as 43 million, and rates continue to increase each year. In this study, people will find healthy tips to prevent childhood overweight or obesity to help children in our communities. Child’s obesity can make kids in our communities at high risk for diseases like heart problems, asthma, type 2 diabetes. Genetic, behavioral and environmental factors are a cause of obesity on children in the United States. Parents and

Obesity in America has been a constant epidemic and is a leading cause of preventable death. Obesity is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as the abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health. The obesity rates have doubled in the past twenty-five years causing a long span of chronic illnesses; although including a healthy diet and exercise are important to weight management, it is not the only cause to obesity. It can also be caused by family history and genetics. Americans have created unhealthy habits that have been passed on to our children and they will actually be sicker than we already are if these habits aren’t changed. This disease can be prevented and reversed if one makes the necessary lifestyle changes.

Childhood obesity is a national epidemic. Nearly 1 in 3 children (ages 2-19) in the United States is overweight or obese, putting them at risk for serious health problems. Studies show that overweight kids are likely to become overweight and obese adults. This is a significant issue in the U.S. and needs to be monitored closely. Some parents are in denial that their children are obese and do not do anything to help or prevent it. When obesity is a problem at a young age it is very easy to have, it become a habit all throughout their life.

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”.

Obesity is the second leading preventable cause of disease and death in the United States. Being overweight and obese has become more prevalent and increased during the last three decades in both adults and children. Currently, 25 million children in the United States are obese or overweight (Babey, Wolstein, Diamant, Bloom, and Goldstein, 2011). The rise in childhood obesity and related health diseases are indicators of a decrease in life expectancy and increased individual and societal costs (Olshansky et al., 2005).

Initially, children’s diets should be regulated, because these days there are too many children facing obesity. To begin with, obesity amongst children continues to grow and it needs to be stopped. Specifically, according to “Time for Kids; Obesity Rates Falling” from 1980 to 2000 the percentage of obese kids in the US ages 9-10 tripled. Obviously, obesity is growing at a much faster rate amongst adolescents so their diets need to be regulated. Additionally, obesity in children can be severely harmful at young age. For instance, being overweight can lead to problems like heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. It is clear that, if obesity continues with children like this diseases that used to only be common in

It’s a scary feeling when climbing a simple flight of stairs only to reach the top and be completely out of breath. In America today this is the reality that many children face. Obesity has become an epidemic in our world, it has many contributing factors, affects learning abilities but there are preventive methods for it. Although little is being done about obesity, it's affecting the lives of many but mostly children and by a multitude of different factors.

The percentage of overweight children is growing at a fast rate. Parents must be educated of ways to prevent early childhood obesity or customs which may possibly lead to obesity in later age. Katie Vaughn and Julee Waldrop suggest the potential risks of childhood obesity in “Parent Education Key to Beating Childhood Obesity” of Childhood Obesity: Part 2. Furthermore, Nancy R. MacKenzie informs, in addition, of ways to prevent childhood obesity in “Childhood Obesity: Strategies for Prevention” of Pediatric Nursing. Sara Gable and Susan Lutz inform the fraction of obese adults had already grown immensely to a great 33% in the 1980s; whereas, ten years before the percentage was only 25% (293). Gable et al give great information furthermore in

“Parental behavioral patterns concerning shopping, cooking, eating and exercise have an important influence on a child’s energy, balance and ultimately their weight” said diet specialist, Anne Collins (“Childhood Obesity Facts”). Childhood obesity has more than tripled since the 1980’s (“Childhood Obesity Facts”). Childhood obesity often leads to obesity as an adult which can put a person at greater risks dealing with the heart, diabetes, and many other obese related diseases. People want to blame the schools and today’s technology for childhood obesity, in reality, the responsibility lies in the hands of their parents.