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Many adolescents are suffering of obesity in the past couple of years. It has become a huge problem for many kids from ages six through eleven and twelve through nineteen in the United States. The percentage of kids twelve through nineteen has increased from 5% to almost 21%. For children six to eleven has increased from 7% to 18% over a course of thirty two years. The rapid growth of obesity in the country is very concerning for many people, including parents and doctors. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention state that in 2012 almost one third of children and adolescents are overweight or obese. This immense growth of children overweight can be prevented. It becomes even more clear that recess can make a huge change. It provides
Child obesity became a very serious issue that is taking on the health of the nation 's children. It is everyone responsibility to work on preventing and reducing childhood obesity, from the parents who are suppose to care about their children’s health, to the public health representatives, who should care about a future healthy nation, and everyone in between. Every part of society should create a set of lifestyle changes in order to save our kids from obesity. There are many aspects, which have to be changed or improved, including parent’s nutrition education, children’s physical activity and kid’s nutrition in a school and home, food industry and etc.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) discuss about childhood obesity. With CDC, this research is very useful in helping others understand what overweight and obesity is. Having excess body weight for a particular height from fat, bone, muscle, water, or a combination of all is being overweight. Obesity is just having excess body fat. It states about obesity occurring to children and adolescents that has passed since 30 years. The first stage of this phenomenon starts as a person being overweight which will lead to obesity. More than one-third of children and adolescents were overweight or obese. The result for both of these terms is a caloric-imbalance which is an amount of too few calories that is consumed and is affected by many genetics, behavioral, and environmental factors. From this source CDC gives a specific estimate percentage of children aged 6–11 years that is more overly obese. In the United States in 1980 who were obese increased from 7% to nearly 18% in 2012. Furthermore over the same period, the percentage of adolescents aged 12–19 years who were obese increased from 5% to nearly 21%. Additionally, there is a list of health effects of childhood obesity and inform immediate and long-term health effects. Tips are also included here to prevent any other health problems relating to obesity. It does not clearly teach every step of how to prevent it, but giving out ideas on how to solve the problem yourself.
A national epidemic is occurring, the war between food and people. In the United States, about “32% of children (from 2 to 19 years old) are obese” (Bernadac 1). As the years continue to go on the rate of obese children are increasing as well. In the past the problem did not have much consideration due to a low rate of affected children. Now families are suffering the long-term consequences of having an obese child. Some of those health effects are “Heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, several types of cancer and osteoarthritis” (CDC 1). A problem with this type of drastic effects may have a solution; method prevention for the future generations and correct treatment for those who are already obese can lower the rate.
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.
There is an alarming rise in childhood obesity throughout the United States, making it an epidemic in our country. Obesity has become a threat to the health of many children. Childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in the past 30 years. The percentage of children aged 6–11 years in the United States who were obese increased from 7% in 1980 to nearly 18% in 2012. Similarly, the percentage of adolescents aged 12–19 years who were obese increased from 5% to nearly 21% over the same period.(Childhood Obesity Facts, 2015)
Forty years ago in America childhood obesity was rarely a topic of conversation. A survey done in the early 1970s showed that 6.1% of children between the ages 12 and 19 were overweight. Eight years later the same survey was done and 17.4% were considered overweight (Iannelli). “Childhood obesity epidemic in America is now a confirmed fact since the number of overweight or obese children has more than tripled during the last 30 years” (Childhood Obesity Epidemic). “Over the last 20 years, the prevalence of obesity in children aged 6 to 11 years has tripled from 6.5% to 19.6%” (Childhood Obesity Epidemic). As a nation statistics should be alarming. Why are American children today so obese?
The World Health Organization (2006, WHO) defines obesity as a body mass index (weight-for-height) equal to or more than 30. In the UK the prevalence of obesity in childhood has significantly increased over the past twenty five years. A study commissioned by The Health Survey for England (HSE) showed that between 1996 and 2001 the proportion of obese children aged six to fifteen rose by 3.5 per cent from 20 per cent to 23.5 per cent of the population in that age bracket; there is no reason to suspect that the children of England are not representative of the United Kingdom as a whole.
Childhood obesity is a serious problem among American children. Some doctors are even calling childhood obesity an epidemic because of the large percentage of children being diagnosed each year as either overweight or obese. “According to DASH sixteen to thirty-three percent of American children each year is being told they are obese.” (Childhood Obesity) There is only a small percentage, approximately one percent, of those children who are obese due to physical or health related issues; although, a condition that is this serious, like obesity, could have been prevented. With close monitoring and choosing a healthier lifestyle there would be no reason to have such a high obesity rate in the United States (Caryn). Unfortunately, for these children that are now considered to be obese, they could possibly be facing some serious health conditions, such as heart disease, diabetes, and some types of cancers. All of these diseases have been linked to obesity through research. These children never asked for this to happen to them; however, it has happened, and now they will either live their entire life being obese, or they will be forced to reverse what has already been done (Childhood Obesity).
Children have a higher chance of obesity, therefore, obese children and adolescents are more likely to become obese adults" (qtd. in Mirtcheva and Powell 1). As a result, adults have a difficult time trying to lose that excessive weight when they become obese. Given that, prevention of childhood obesity in an earlier stage with the increase of a healthy diet and physical activity is important to their future
Problem Statement Globally childhood obesity poses a serious challenge to public health. According to the World Health Organization (n.d), reported 42 million children under age 10 were overweight in 2015. This issue is not different in the United States. The CDC (2016) reported 12.7 million children and adolescents were overweight and obese in 2014. This figure indicates the growing problem of obesity among children.
Child obesity has turned into a huge problem that continues to increase every year and parents seem to be either helping the situation or hurting the situation by specific actions they take. Each year the increase of numbers in childhood obesity keeps growing. Back then, it was rare to hear from a parent that their child was obese because back then all kids did and liked to do was go outside to parks, play sports, take walks anything that dealt with the outdoors made any kid a happy kid. In today’s world, that theory of play time does not exist nearly as much as it used to because of what society has introduced to the world. Society has introduced us to all these new and fun types of technology that keeps us from doing what we should be doing to stay active. Instead it teaches kids how to become more lazy and inactive and parents make it worse by realizing the affects they just do not care to do anything about. Therefore, the real question becomes are parents to blame for childhood obesity?
According to the 1999-2000 National Health and Nutrition Examination survey says that, 16 percent of children around the ages of 6-19 years old are at risk of being obese. Obesity has increased in the last twenty years now. Obesity is like other disease, it impairs the normal body functioning. Children who are overweight have excess fat tissue that caus...
Obesity has considerably became a global issue in the recent years. Poor diet can lead to unhealthy weight gain that eventually leads to an obese individual. We also know that it is easily observed but at the same time it is harder to be treated. It can end up being a lifelong issue. In order to avoid the complications associated with obesity, it can be an effective approach. “The prevalence of children and teens who measure in the 95th percentile or greater on the CDC growth charts has greatly increased over the past 40 years. Between 16 and 33 percent of children and adolescents are obese.” We cannot say whether it is helpful or harmful to test the kids. When we look at today’s situation we should certainly consider this fact stated. We
When I was twelve years old, I began to struggle with my weight. I remember when it got to the worst point: in the fifth grade. My classmates would comment on my weight and tease me about it on a regular basis. It wasn’t until the 8th grade that I decided to do something about it. Sports, weight lifting, and a healthy diet became parts of my daily life and were the major steps that I needed to fight obesity and become healthy. The reason I am telling you this story is because the Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta launched an extremely controversial ad campaign to show the significance of childhood obesity. The ad campaign has ads that state, “It’s hard to be a little girl if you’re not,” and, “Fat prevention begins at home. And the buffet line,” which also feature children that are heavily obese. This ad campaign shouldn’t be taking the steps to put down the children with weight problem, but rather encouraging them to take on a healthier lifestyle. With positive encouragement from parents and better ad campaigns around America, children would be more likely to be inspired to become healthier.
Overweight and obese children significantly affect the United States today, becoming a further pronounced issue. The amount of overweight adolescents and younger children sky rocketed in the past few years, and more than tripled since the 1970s. Developing overweight habits while young inhibits an individual’s chances of a healthy lifestyle later in life. In order to prevent the obesity epidemic in our country, the major causes and root problems of obesity must be explored and abolished. Obviously, overeating and a lacking of physical activity both contribute immensely to obesity. The one most unaware to the public eye is the overwhelming availability of cheap food and how that affects social classes. Childhood obesity, an issue slowly swallowing the United States, becomes more pronounced every day due to overeating, little to no exercise, and product availability and easy access.