Physiological Results That Correlate With Premature Aging On Obese Children

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1. In the article three physiological results that correlate with premature aging in obese children are discussed. The first of these three is children going to puberty early. This premature start to puberty is happening in obese children around the age of ten. This is pushing the body into this phase of growth to make the body ready for reproduction well before the child is ready for sexual activity. The second physiological result is fatigue. This fatigue comes from liver disease. Any obese child runs the risk of developing this disease and side effect. The last physiological result is the increased risk of heart disease, diabetes, stroke, atherosclerosis and certain cancers. This is where the toll of childhood obese on the body is most evident. It can be difficult to bring an issue like childhood obesity to light, but the evidence in the body speaks for itself and should be alarming to our society.
Just as there are results seen in the physiology side, there are several results seen in the psychological side. Higher rates of depression is one of the issues that arise from children who are obese. These children also develop a negative body image very early. This is damaging to the child and to their future self-image. Lower self-esteem can also effect the children struggling with obesity. This is a result that can follow the child until adulthood and may never resolve. One last result would be the toll that taking medications for survival has on the human psyche. To have that kind of stress and fear to deal with every day is too much for a developing child.
2. In the article several plans are discussed to help correct the unhealthy behavior of obese children. Dr. Seema Kumar at Mayo clinic Children’s Research center has a progra...

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...children how to eat, what to eat and what an active lifestyle looks like. There are many ways to keep children from going down a path of obesity. Parents should limit the amount of sugar, soda, and snacks. But also learning to give healthy portions, because even too much of a good thing is bad. Making sure that children eat their vegetables and eat on a schedule will help to maintain a healthy weight. However, children are not always under the direct care of their parents. School cafeterias play a large role in the health of our children. This is the area in which I feel that government does have a certain responsibility to protect our children. Schools taking our harmful chemicals, unhealthy food and ingredients out of lunches would be a great place to start. Schools taking student BMI (body mass index) number would give parents a better idea of then child’s health.

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