Obesity : Obesity And Obesity

In the past few years obesity among children has increased and has now become a major issue in this nation. Over twelve million children in the United States are obese and seven percent of those children are at risk of having type 2 diabetes. Obesity has become a burden to the United States economy and it is costing America $147 billion dollars a year. Are parents to blame for obese and overweight children or is society at fault? Obesity has been around for many years but has always been known to be an adult issue.

The rise of obesity in the United States has posed health and financial problems for this country that need to be dealt with. It is said that an obesity epidemic is sweeping the country and that the numbers are astronomical. Approximately 31% of all adults and 15% of children, ages 6-19 are obese. Obesity is also severe in a variety of ethnic groups. For example, 50% of non-Hispanic black women are obese.

The American Heart Association reported in the article “Overweight and Obesity” that 23.9 million children between the ages two to nineteen in the United States are overweight or obese. 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... ... middle of paper ... ...iatrics is a credible source because is an organization made up of 60,000 pediatricians dedicated to the health, safety, and well being of infants, children, and teens. The article explained how children should be allowed no more than one to two hours of media time.

Sometimes obesity can be a result of genetics, metabolic factors, or disease. Childhood obesity in America is a major health issue that has psychological effects, because of unhealthy food choices, lack of physical activity, and parental control. Children who are overweight have a greater risk to develop major health problems, as they get older. Each year obesity-related conditions cost over 150 billion dollars and cause an estimated 300,000 premature deaths in the United States (“What Causes Obesity” 1). Some health effects that are related to obesity are high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and the risk of diabetes.

Children who are overweight are 10x more likely to become overweight adults unless they change their eating habits and exercise. (“Childhood Obesity. Pg 1). 30% of adult obesity begins in childhood, it is also said obesity is the cause of 300,000 deaths a year and cost society an estimated $100 billion a year. Today, about one third of American’s children and teens are considered to be overweight or obese, it has nearly tripled in size since 1963 (“Childhood Obesity”.

Childhood Obesity Introduction The past several decades have seen an escalating trend in the rate of childhood obesity not only in the United States where 25%-30% of children are affected, but also in many of the industrialized nations. Childhood obesity has continued to be a major issue in the public health care system. The economic cost of the medical expenses as well as the lost income resulting from the complications of obesity both in children and adults has been estimated at almost $100 billion (Barnes, 2011). Overweight children are more predisposed to the danger of becoming overweight in their adulthood unless they ensure healthier eating habits and exercise. It is worth noting that the current lifestyle in which many children spend a lot of time watching television as well as the consumption of sugary and fatty foods has significantly contributed to the high prevalence of childhood obesity.

Sadly “2 million” (Tanner 2005) of these children are at risk for type 2 diabetes. Obesity has become a burden to the United States economy and it is costing America “$147 billion” (Holden, 2010) a year. A child does not become overweight and obese overnight. America, Parents, society and the government are to blame for the obesity among American children. Obesity has been around for many years, but it has always been addressed has an adult problem.

Obesity is an epidemic and affects millions of people of the nation of the United States every day. This health problem affects everybody not only adults .Obesity has increased in the past decade, particularly people with this problem eat a lot and use poorly devise diets. What causes obesity? What are some of the solutions for this problem? What do you say about a person with a BMI greater than 40%?

“More die in the United States of too much food than of too little” ― John Kenneth Galbraith Why are Americans getting bigger by the day? And what's so bad about that anyway? Studies have shown that there are many negative effects associated with obesity. Obesity has been accused of contributing to many long-term conditions, such as heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, osteoarthritis, diabetes and cancer (Pennybacker 15). Along with the fact that obesity is the most common form of malnutrition in the Western world, it also affects sixty-four percent of Americans (Pennybacker 15; Brownell 1).

Obesity has been identified as one of the risk factors affecting directly and indirectly the health outcome of the population. Even though many approaches and programs have been conducted in order to reduce the obesity rate, this health issue is still a big headache and keeps being put on the table. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), overweight and obesity rate have been increasing significantly in the past two decades in the United States with more than 35.7% of adults and almost 17% of children and adolescents from 2-19 years olds being obese ("Overweight and obesity," 2013). As Healthy People 2020 indicated, in the period from 1988-1994 to 2009-2010, the age adjusted obesity rate among U.S adults aged 20 and over increased from 22.8% to 35.7%, which means increased by 57% while the obesity rate among children and teenagers from 2 to 19 years old increased from 10% to approximately 17%, witnessing the increase of 69% ("Nutrition, physical activity," 2013). Obesity has impact both on economic and health of the nation.