Personal Narrative: Childhood Obesity

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 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

In Laura Dawes book, Childhood Obesity in America: Biography of an Epidemic specifically the chapter titled, “Fat Kids Go to Court,” the author examines various aspects of the food industries role in the childhood obesity epidemic. Dawes explores specific actions taken by children’s advocacy groups as well as junk food companies response to the groups attacks on their industry. The author also highlights the role future litigation could take in changing the advertising tactics as well as possible food reformulation by food industry powerhouses.

According to the article, “Children’s Life Expectancy Being Cut Short by Obesity” from the New York Times, the current generation may have a shorter life span than their parents.

There is a big epidemic on the health of today. The world is becoming larger with more obese people or people who are wasting a ton of food especially if they’re eating after they have been full. A lot of things could make the world better like not having as much pollution, not having so many children, alcohol not existing and much more but in this case being healthier is not only benefiting your community, it is befitting yourself. There are many ways to keep yourself from being unhealthy you just have to find an inspiration to be able to push yourself to be healthier. Family members and friends all love the people around them even if it does not seem like it, they would be highly glad to see a healthier person who might just live longer and see more.

Childhood obesity is not merely an 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, and there is no chance of it slowing down unless action is taken. Obesity puts children at a high risk of developing many serious illnesses. Not only do children who are obese have unhealthy weights, but they also have a high risk of having weak lungs, poor blood quality, and a variety of other sicknesses. Parents have turned a blind eye to their children’s eating habits. A fast-food craze has swept over the country, consequentially leaving a trail of poor nutrition in its wake. Fast-food corporations seem to be encouraging children to consume regular amounts of unhealthy foods by giving away toys with the purchase of a child’s meal Televisions, computers, and video games, which are considered to be technological necessities, have begun to cloud the importance of exercise. These influences are all major causes of childhood obesity, which bring an overwhelming abundance of negative effects. Despite the many obstacles, there are ways to slow, if not halt, the outbreak that is childhood obesity. Prevention can be achieved by following a balanced, mostly plant based diet and by participating in a healthy amount of physical activity.

Childhood obesity is an epidemic in America. Many experts like doctors and dietitians have narrowed the epidemic to a few causes some being lack of exercise, genetics, and food insecurity. Exercise and genetics could lead to obesity in the way that you need exercise to burn fat and some people are genetically more inclined to store more fat. Obesity is having excessive amount of fat that could lead to other health problem which is scary to think that childhood obesity is something that is on the rise in America. When you think of children you think of them being happy and healthy not being overweight and having health problems that most people get in their 50’s. I believe that food insecurity is the main cause for obesity and I will be arguing the stance that food insecurity is a leader in childhood obesity. Food insecurity is being without reliable access to obtain food that is high quality and nutritious. Some people may confuse food insecurity with hunger, but hungry is a physical discomfort. In discussion of food insecurity, one of the controversial issues has been if it is linked to childhood obesity. On the one hand, some Americans argue that food insecurity and childhood obesity have no association. On the other hand, some Americans argue that there is an association between food insecurity and childhood obesity. I personally believe that there is an association between food insecurity and childhood obesity.

Childhood obesity is increasingly becoming a major problem of Public Health in developing countries, particularly in Canada and the United States. Lack of physical activity, poor nutritional choices, easily accessible fast foods and the built environment are all seen as factors that contribute greatly to childhood obesity. Individuals who are obese have increased risk of developing high blood pressure, impaired glucose function and may sometimes fall victims to physical and psychological abuse (Ludwig, Peterson & Gortmaker, 2001). In Canada, the prevalence rate of obesity has risen predominantly among children and adolescents (Roberts, Shields, De Groh, Aziz & Gilbert, 2012). An estimated 19.8% within the age groups of 5 to 17

“At present approximately 9 million children over 6 years of age are considered obese” (Mahshid Dehghan). Childhood obesity continues to increase every year. Childhood obesity has a lot of causes centering on an imbalance of energy taken in and the amount of energy used. Factors of childhood obesity include children having obese parents; low energy expenditure which is a low amount of physical activity is a factor and too much television which is a cause for low physical activity time. Another factor that influences childhood obesity is heredity. Infants born to overweight mothers are found to be less active than other infants. Parents are the primary contributors of childhood obesity based on statistics, obesity risks, and government

A child that is considered average on a pediatric growth chart is called skinny, skin and bones, and underweight by both peers and adults. How could this be? Society as a whole has become overweight and has normalized obesity to the point that a child with typical measurements for their age and height suddenly becomes atypical in the eye of the beholder. This raises the question: Why is childhood obesity on the rise, and what effect does it have on their generation? Although many people blame the extra pounds on genetics, the truth is that children are obese because they are eating unhealthy, they have inactive lifestyles, and they are under educated about their own bodies.

I will never forget the words a guy named Johnny said to me when I decided to take the initiative to alter my entire life. Johnny, who I barely knew up to this point of my junior year of high school, approached me and in a hallway packed with students, told me I was fat as hell. I will most certainly never forget the faces of the bastards laughing hysterically as he continued his tirade. “Worthless… shitty…. bastard…. POS” (just to name a few). While some kids expressed concern and asked if I was okay, even though I know they didn’t mean it, most others just jovially agreed with him, not caring how it made me feel. Some even joined in the assault. Honestly, I wanted to punch him in his face right then and there.

I chose child obesity because my thirteen year old sister suffers from it, at first it was just “baby fat” and she was going to grow out of it. Then it became she’s just “big boned”(which is nothing but an excuse). Now it has reached the point that if there is any sweets purchased and left in the house they are demolished within twenty-four hours. She started 6th grade in august and she was so excited to try out for the cheerleading team. I was a cheerleader for years so I thought I would help her get prepared for tryouts, she wasn’t the best but their was no doubt in my mind that she wouldn’t make the team. The day of the tryouts she came home and when I asked her how it went she burst out in tears,

Smaller governmental initiatives have proven effective, as well as campaigns run by non-governmental organization, yet a large scale federal initiative has yet to be established. Childhood obesity is an ever growing epidemic that has increased to unacceptable proportions. In order to prevent any further escalation of this public, federal legislation must be advocated for and passed that creates more opportunities for physical activity, increased access to healthy food, and puts an end to dishonest marketing. By bringing together leaders from across the industry, academia and public health with policymakers and their advisors, the Campaign provides the information and guidance that decision makers need to make the policy changes that

There was a time when chubby children were considered cute. It was assumed that their baby fat would melt away and a healthy adult would emerge. We now know that childhood obesity can be very harmful for our nations children. Not only can obesity cause health problems but also psychological problems. In observing the causes of childhood obesity, hopefully we can slow down the epidemic.

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.