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 rising numbers of obese children has reached an alarming rate. With many Americans, “…‘obesity’…carries the connotation of being extremely overweight. [But] health professionals define overweight as an excess amount of body weight that includes muscle, bone, fat and water; whereas obesity is specifically defined as an excess amount of body fat” (Andrews 1). More often than not we tend to switch these definitions and have false pretenses. Although, there are many health threats in the world today, “…childhood obesity (is) one of the leading health threats in the United States” (2). Even the statistics show that obesity is becoming an epidemic. In fact, “[s]ince the 1970s, the prevalence of obesity has more than doubled for preschool children and adolescents and more than tripled for school-aged children” (1). With the increasing numbers it causes people to wonder if there are other causes for obesity.
Through tests and observations it has been found that obesity can be caused by other factors. Many scientists “…believe there are other causes for the obesity epidemic besides too many French fries…” (Belluz 1). Eating habits can contribute to obesity but they’re not the only factor playing into the bigger picture. For instance, “[p]ollutants, like DDE, are believed to...
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...n't be the ones that are out of breath.
Work Cited
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Beebe, Ginger, and Joe Thompson. "The problem of childhood obesity." Arkansas Business 2010: 7.
Belluz, Julia. "Born to be fat: does prenatal exposure to chemicals called 'obesogens' help explain the epidemic of obesity?" Maclean's 8 Nov. 2010: 89.
DeSantis, Cari. "On child obesity." Policy & Practice 2010: 3.
"Move it." Current Events, a Weekly Reader publication 25 Oct. 2010: 6.
"Physicians Group Urges Schools To Go Veggie.” American School & University 2010. 5.
Skolnik, Neil S., and Mackenzie Mady. "Clinical guidelines for family physicians: screening for obesity in children and adolescents." Family Practice News 2010:49.
Obesity in children across America has become an increasing public health concern. Obesity has been identified as an epidemic that is plaguing our children in the United States. In some countries around the world children are dying of starvation everyday. How can this happen when here in America the opposite is a major problem? This is not to say that in America there are no hungry or starving children. It has been proven that our children suffer from obesity, and “children who are overweight or obese as preschoolers are five times as likely as normal-weight children to be overweight or obese as adults” (“Hope”). Obesity not only can cause a child to become more prone to having health problems down the road, but it can also make them feel insecure about themselves. There needs to be action taken in schools as well as in homes to help prevent this growing epidemic.
The human body requires the intake of food in order to function properly. The foods that we decide to eat has an effect on the ability to use are mind, are strength, and even how prone we are to getting sick or hurt. Eating to much of the wrong foods, with little or no exercise can cause the silent but deadly epidemic of obesity in children and in teens. In the past, obesity was just known as a condition that only affected adults. In this generation the youths are becoming more prone to obesity. In 1995 an average of 18 million children all around the world was categorized as being overweight (Rabbitt, Aifric, and Imelda Coyne 731). In a Childhood Obesity Interventions article it says that 17% (12.5 million) of children in the United States is considered to be obese (Rabbitt, Aifric, and Imelda Coyne 731). This outrageous number of overweight children in the world is almost tripled in 2010, where 43 million children under 5 are considered to be overweight (Rabbitt, Aifric, and Imelda Coyne 731). Another staggering statistic is more than 60% percent of the children that are classified as overweight before they reach puberty, will be overweight as they become adults (Rabbitt, Aifric, and Imelda Coyne 731). This leads us to the most stifling fact of there being 2.8 million people in the world that die from being overweight or obese each year (Rabbitt, Aifric, and Imelda Coyne 731). These shocking statistics show how dangerous obesity really is, and should urge everyone to fight against this epidemic.
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)
Today, approximately 25 percent of children and teenagers are obese and the number is on the rise. Since the 1960’s childhood obesity has increased by 54 percent in children ages six to eleven. In children twelve to seventeen it has increased by 39 percent. (Silberstein, 1) Childhood obesity is so prevalent among these age groups that it has reached epidemic proportions.
It is imperative that society coalesces to help prevent childhood obesity. No child or parent wants to suffer through any type of heart condition or disease, whether it be now or later on in their lives. Experts have seen the rising obesity rate as a wake-up call to take the “epidemic” of childhood obesity very seriously. Because of the fact that childhood obesity is interconnected with so many health issues it significantly affects lifespans. Childhood obesity can be prevented and needs to be in order to ultimately save the lives and future lives of children.
Obesity is not a disease. It is a condition where our body stores excessive fat and affects our health or well-being. Childhood obesity is a major cause for disease and health risks which may be lifelong. Childhood obesity is becoming a threat to society because of its prevalence. Obesity reduces life expectancy. Childhood obesity is an epidemic in the United States. The number of obese children has increased and doubled within two decades. (Helping your overweight child." Pamphlet by: National Institute of Diabetes & Digestive & Kidney Diseases, National Institute of Diabetes & Digestive & Kidney Diseases, 1997, p. 2+.) The childhood obesity epidemic requires more prevention focused on the first five years of a child’s
However, there is more at stake here than what these two groups ultimately believe to be true. The percentage of obese children in the United States has risen from 5% in 1980 to almost 20% in 2012. Factors such as food choices and fitness levels are contributing greatly to this problem. Obese children eventually become obese adults and bring along with them many adverse medical conditions. These medical conditions such as diabetes are known to be severe and place a shorter life expectancy on the people it affects. Ultimately, what is at stake here is childhood obesity is on the rise in the United States due to people’s failure to eat the proper foods and as a result of children followin...
Causes of Overweight/ Obesity. There are multiplicities of factors that combine to influence body weight including genetic, behavioral, metabolic, environmental, cultural and socioeconomic factors. The main cause is an imbalance of excessive calorie consumption and/ or physical inactivity. I...
In today’s society, childhood obesity is growing at an alarming rate. According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in the past thirty years (OgdenCL, Carroll MD, Kit BK, Flegal KM, 2014). In 2012, more than one third of our children and adolescents were reported as being overweight or obese. The consequences of this growing epidemic are becoming more and more detrimental to our children’s health. Childhood obesity not only causes short-term health problems, but there are long-term issues as well. It is rapidly becoming the “norm” for our society instead of the “exception”. We as parents, should educate ourselves and become active in saving
For the past 10 years, obesity has become an epidemic. Not only adults are obese but children as well. The number of children with obesity keeps increasing each year. There are children being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and other serious health problems due to their obesity. Some experts are predicting that obesity will became the number one leading cause of premature death, instead of tobacco. There are many ways to prevent obesity in children and is up to the parent, to provide their children with healthier food options.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC,) there were 90.6 million obese individuals in 2010 (Ogden, Carroll, and et al). This represents approximately 36% of the total population. In 2010, it was determined that out of the 36% of obese person...
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).
Childhood obesity is an increasing problem here in the United States. According to Schuab and Marian (2011) “Childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions” (P.553). The prevalence of child obesity and overweight has increased over the last 30 years all over the United States, becoming one of the biggest public health challenges (Moreno, Johnson-Shelton, & Boles, 2013). The purpose of this paper is to give a background of the obesity epidemic, a review of current policy, and make a policy recommendation.
The effects of obesity in children are immediate health problems as well as long term health problems. According to the WebMD article “Children’s Health” states that “children have fewer weight-related health and medical problems than adults. However, overweight children are at high risk of becoming overweight adolescents and adults, placing them at risk of developing chronic diseases such as heart disease and diabetes later in life.” Obesity has negative effects on children, which raises concern, because lon...
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...