Why Is It Important To Reduce Childhood Obesity?

For years, Americans have been told that exercising and staying active is imperative to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. In general, this fact holds true for all generations and age groups, including the youth of today. Children simply need to exercise and participate in more physical activities in order to maintain a high level of health. The Center for Health and Health Care in Schools suggests that, “one of the leading causes of this epidemic (childhood obesity) is a marked decline in physical activity and athletic participation” (“Athletics in Schools”). Childhood fascinations with watching television, playing video games, and browsing the internet are just a few of the sedentary hobbies taking over children’s free time to be active. Therefore, mandating physical activities in schools across the country will effectively reduce the frequency of this major, obesity health crisis in young students. Understandably, a plethora of factors cause and influence children to become overweight and obese, but working to fix each evident problem will, in the end, contribute to finally ending the developing childhood health crisis.

Participation in youth sports in the United States is on the rise. “Organized youth sports are highly popular for youth and their families, with approximately 45 million children and adolescent participants in the US” (Merkel, 2013). There are many benefits for children that can be attributed to sports such as: physical activity, learning motor skills, sense of belonging, stress relief, and many more. With childhood obesity on the rise recreational sports has never been needed more than it is today. “Over the past three decades, the incidence of obesity in children has tripled, with one of every three children being affected” (Merkel, 2013). Obesity has many long-term health problems related to it such as: diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure cancer, asthma. We can attribute this health problem to changes in our society over like increased technology, increased crime rates, fast food and isolated suburban neighborhoods. Sports and other physical activities are needed to keep children from causing further damaged to their future.

Today’s generation of children is the most inactive and obese in all of U.S. history (Loonin, 54). Poor exercise habits are developed as early as preschool age (All children above the age of 2 should be getting at least an hour of exercise a day in order to stay healthy and maintain a healthy weight (Overweight and Obesity, 2). Many young children have become accustomed to staying inside and using electronics, where they do not have to exert much energy whereas going outside and playing would. The average child in today’s society spends up to

America's children are not getting enough exercise, and the health risks due to obesity are becoming epidemic in nature. Even First Lady Michelle Obama is supporting an initiative to help children become more active and to provide for exercise (at least 30-60 minutes per day) in all schools. Even limited amounts of exercise can have great health benefits. When humans exercise, the brain produces chemicals that help enhance mood, limit cravings for sugars, and contribute to healthier joints, muscles, the heart, and kidneys. In turn, this translates into more productive work time, the ability to sleep better, increase memory, and reduce dependence on medications. Children are so vulnerable to this health risk that if it continues, over 60% of graduating seniors will be clinically obese. Written by a medical journalist, the book is designed for the lay reader but has a number of documented scholarly sources.

Childhood obesity is one of the most prevelant epidemics plagueing American youth. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) only 18 percent of all American youth were able to pass the 2008 national fitness standards (A Growing Problem, 2012). This means the vast majority of American youth are incapable of satisfactorally meeting fitness requirements such as completing pushups, running laps in a specific time, and stretching their muscles. According to the CDC, these goals are easily accomplished by any child who gets a total of 1 hour of aerobic exercise daily (A Growing Problem). In fact, that hour of exercise also ensures those same children have greater focus and mental stamina in school and increased immune systems to fight regular diseases.

In 2001 and 2002, adults with a family history of alcoholism were 30 to 40 percent more likely to be obese than those with no alcoholism in the family. Women were at particularly high risk: they were almost 50 percent more likely to be obese if there was family alcoholism than if there wasn’t. (Men were 26 percent more likely to be obese.)Why the change over time? He says our so-called obesigenic, or obesity-inducing, food environment has changed in the decade between the two surveys. The most likely culprit, he

Over the past decades, many parents did not have to get a child to move around. The children would regularly play all day long without being asked; however, nowadays the young children aren 't playing enough themselves and the children need their peers to tell them to go play outside. The peers would need need to promote the children with resources to keep them moving. As a matter of fact, the lack of exercise is a major problem, and it is increasing each year; especially, the rate of disease that were found in young adults can now be found in young children because of lack of exercise. Therefore, as the director of this facility in for future reference, the research I 'm focusing is base on the children 's improving in physical health to prevent any disease in the future or at least to minimize the situation problem of obesity that is occurring right now in the 21st century. In addition, play is an important product for young children which can also help them have opportunities to enrich in their learning and be active youngsters. It is a new exploration where children can be active during play time, which play can help having bad health problems in the future. It is letting the children to gain weight and determining their health issues to worsen than making it better for them. For instance, the Scientist are now finding out new health problems that isn 't noticeable until adulthood just like diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, high cholesterol, cancer and

There is no arguing that exercise is effective in preventing weight gain and lowering the risk of obesity for all ages. According to The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the current recommended amount of vigorous physical activity for 6-17 year olds to achieve an ideal cardiorespiratory level is recommended to include 20 minutes of activity three times a week (Mo-suwan, L., Pongprapai, S., Junjana, C., & Puetpaiboon, A. 1998). This recommendation tested a study that was conducted to observe the effects of an aerobic exercise program with children. 252 kindergarten students from Thailand were selected where half of the children partook in 15 minutes of walking before class, nap and then 20 minutes of

Physical activity is essential for children; therefore sport participation has many physical benefits for youths (Willox, 1994). In the United States there is a very unhealthy trend of physically unfit children going on. According to a recent study by the Harvard School of Public Health seven out of ten kids in our nation are out of shape and the incidence of obesity has increased by more than 50 percent among America's children and teen since 1976 and continues to grow at a staggering rate (Metzel & Shookhoff, 2006). When children participate in sports activities they get some of the exercise they need to improve their quality of life and can help prevent children from becoming obese. Physical activity regulates obesity because it increases energy expenditure, suppresses appetite, increases metabolic rate, and increases lean body mass (Willox, 1994). Even though regular physical sport activity has been shown to improve physical fitness, it can also help in preventing many different health problems down the line that youths who participate in sports are more likely not to develop than youths who do not participate in sports. Women who participated in organized sport and fitness programs as

Play contributes to children’s “physical, emotional and social well-being” (Else, 2009, p.8) and through play, the child’s holistic development and well-being is being constantly accounted for as is it led by the individual. The child decides what s/he wants to do and does it; it is

Another environmental cause of childhood obesity is the lack of physical activity. The problem is that physical activity has been replaced by video games, television, social networking and other technology. (Child Obesity Statistics) “It’s proven that children who watch the most hours of television have the highest incidence of obesity.” (Hosten) The American Heart Association they recommend “all children age 2 and older should participate in at least 60 minutes of enjoyable, moderate-intensity physical activities every day.” They also recommend “if your child or children don't have a full 60-minute activity break each day, try to provide at

A growing number of children are demonstrating unhealthy eating habits and as a result are becoming obese due to lack of physical activity, nutrition and genetics. Children in today’s society are not motivated to exercise and participate in after school activities. If we were to go back in time 15 to 20 years ago, children were encouraged to explore the outdoors by engaging in activities such as camping, bicycling, walking, running and playing sports. Now, living in the 21st century, technology has taken a major toll on our children health; they are spending more time indoors watching television, playing video, games, surfing the internet and texting on their mobile phones.

To slow this epidemic of childhood obesity, physical activity needs to be put back in these children’s lives.

Obesity is the condition of being seriously overweight. It is now considered a global health epidemic by the World Health Organization (2000) (McDevitt & Ormrod, 2010). Physical activity is important to children in the middle childhood age group because a staggering amount of children have become overweight in the last few decades and teachers play a role in preventing obesity by becoming a positive role model,

In today’s society children are increasingly becoming less active. Lack of physical activity in childhood leads to obesity, can increase one’s risk for diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, asthma, arthritis, and poor health status. Physical inactivity also increases one’s risk for dying prematurely, dying of heart disease, and colon cancer. Technology and video games have become a major factor in this and have seemed to take over and control lives of many children. Less children are involved with sports and few play outside. The lack of physical activity as a child, can pay huge dividends in the child’s health, into his/her adulthood.