Young Kids, Old Bodies By Alice Parks Analysis

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In today’s society, childhood obesity is no big surprise, we are “used to it.” In “Young Kids, Old Bodies” by Alice Park we are shown many graphs and pictures and each depicts a different story depending on the page the reader is on. As the reader reads along each page the different pictures/graphs set the stage for the author’s words. The first image the reader sees, is a photograph by Katherine Wolkoff which introduces Kimberly Rhodes a thirteen year old with childhood obesity. Kimberly does not look very happy in this picture, she looks lonely, only finding companionship in her pets (since there are 4 dogs in the picture). This tragic picture sets the stage for the sad story of childhood obesity, on how these children become isolated from …show more content…

The graphic is of an overweight child’s organs that explains how they are affected by obesity, and data on the affected. All of the organs show aging and degeneration that otherwise would not occur. The bottom third of the graphic states that obesity since the 1980’s has tripled in ages 2 to 19, which should be of great concern to all parents. This increase in recent years shows that parents are not checked into their children’s eating habits or they just do not care. Even though they both are bad enough let’s take into account the former, why aren 't parents worried about their children 's lives? Above all, are these parents even caring for their children? Since nutrition and health are a very important part of a child’s development, wouldn 't it be safe to say that these children are being neglected. In the article we read about Mrs. Amador the mother of an obese child, she states that her husband and she figured “he would start losing weight as he got a little older and the girls started paying attention… My husband thought it was funny.” Ultimately, these habits can change, therefore, new trends over parenting help will arise. Books on “how to keep your child eating right” will sell, and as the amounts of obese children increase the bigger the effect it will have on

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