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Obesity in young children in the united states essay
Media influence on how we view kids eating habits
Obesity in young children in the united states essay
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American philosophy thus far has been to educate children once they have entered into the school system. From cute cartoon vegetables, to flashy internet games, hoping to convey the importance of eating nutritious food to kids, there have been many attempts to influence what American children are eating. According to a 2007 USA TODAY article by Martha Mendozab who is an Associated Press writer and has won a Pulitzer Prize for her work in investigative journalism, the Associated Press reviewed 57 government programs dedicated to nutrition education. Just four showed any real promise, and had a lasting impact in the child participants ' diets. All of this for the small sum of one billion dollars of taxpayer money spent by the Federal Government …show more content…
In any given school day, parent 's are responsible for providing the other two meals, but often fail to present meals which are nutritionally balanced. Currently, state laws exist as to what food can be served at school to counteract the lack of nutrition that children are receiving at home, but according to Carol Ogden in her 2014 JAMA paper entitled “Prevalence of Childhood and Adult obesity in the United States, 2011-2012”, “in 2012, more than one third of children and adolescents were overweight or obese”. With statistics like these, it is clear that our current system is not working. Parents are responsible for the overall nutrition of their child. They do the shopping, the cooking, and then present a meal in which they hope that their child will eat. Unfortunately, the majority of parents ' in the United States are unaware that focusing on good nutrition should be a priority well before a child reaches elementary school, and being ill informed jeopardizes a controllable aspect of their child 's health. Focusing our energy and money on further educating and helping parents discover what proper nutrition looks like for each stage of their child 's life is …show more content…
Allan Walker and Courtney Humphries, in their 2006 book entitled The Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating During Pregnancy, “argue that good nutrition starts in the womb”(19) and that “Your role as a prospective parent begins with the choices you make while you 're pregnant”(19). Potential parents need to learn how to take care of themselves before they have children, because here again, a lack of information can unwittingly cause mothers ' to make poor decisions during pregnancy that will affect their child 's health later on in life. Unless one is a pediatrician or a nutritionist, the average pregnant mother 's knowledge of how much and what types of food they should be consuming may be woefully inadequate. Thankfully, it is common knowledge in America that drinking alcohol, smoking, or doing drugs is harmful for a baby while in its mother 's womb, but a lack of nutritious food can be just as damaging to an unborn child. According to the Association of Nutrition, which is based in London, article “Maternal nutrition: Building foundations of long-term good health” by Cathryn Salisbury and Claire Robertson in 2013, lower birth weights and how much a child weighs at the age of one can “be associated with an increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease and a higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes and glucose intolerance” (250). The whole case for teaching our children about nutrition in schools so that we can spare them from these specific medical issues
Schools are meant to give our children a healthy and nurturing environment, and yet so much of the lunches in schools are fattening; does this stop schools from achieving the aforementioned goal? Childhood obesity in the United Sates continues to be a growing problem despite so any new programs to help combat it, and new research is showing how schools may be playing a large role in childhood obesity. School lunches are showing to be the problem, they encourage poor nutrition in our nation’s students, and simple reform is proving to not be enough to stop the rise in obesity rates.
It is apparent that living an unhealthy lifestyle, as well as eating poorly, negatively affects one’s health. From a young age it is quickly learned which foods are considered healthful as opposed to junk food. It is a parents responsibility to supervise the intake of their child's food, however there is a higher risk than ever before of childhood obesity.
A child’s eating habits begin with the mother. Taste researcher Julie Mennella, PhD states “We’re finding that foods eaten during pregnancy and lactation can influence a baby’s willingness to accept those foods later.” A mothers influence on eating does not end with lactation, she should continue to model healthy eating. Mothers should make it a point to not allow their children to consume soda or overly sugary fruit drinks, instead offer water and more importantly milk.
Research indicates that “the specification of fetal brain areas affected by prenatal exposure to nonoptimal maternal distress and nutrition, will, in part, identify developmental processes, such as synaptic plasticity, neurogenesis, and dendritic arborization, as vulnerable to the influences of these two maternal factors” (Monk, Georgieff, & Osterholm, 2013). Interestingly, the vitamins and nutrients a mother eats herself provides her child with vitamins and nutrients. Psychologist Martha May Reynolds wrote, “The science of nutrition has made careful studies of food requirements during pregnancy, and the results are now available to practically all mothers-to-be. Calcium is especially important in the formation of the child 's bones and teeth, and other minerals, vitamins and proteins play their parts in nourishing the developing embryo. The present and future health of both child and mother depend on a well-balanced diet for the mother” (Reynolds, 1939). Seemingly insignificant and something people take for granted, eating healthy foods is essential to the present and future health of the
Kalafa, Amy. Lunch Wars: How to Start a School Food Revolution and Win the Battle for Our Children's Health. New York: Jeremy P. Tacher/Penguin, 2011. EBook Reader.
“New School lunch standards implemented as a result of First Lady Michelle Obama’s anti-obesity campaign have led to more than 1 million children leaving the lunch line, according to a new report.” (Elizabeth Harrington 3). Because of The Healthy and Hunger-Free Kids Act “ New meals are required to offer a whole grain,protein,fat free or low fat milk, fruits and vegetables”(Arit John 10). Even if the government regulates school lunches to prevent obesity and diabetes, the government should not be able to regulate them because students are not happy with the new school nutrition requirements, schools should be responsible for providing a nutritious lunch children will eat.
While the public fears murder or natural disasters, Jaime Oliver highlights the real American killer: heart disease, in his TED Talk presentation. He explains that he is not a doctor; rather he is a chef and activist for a healthier society. For the last seven years, he has worked to bring awareness to the issue of poor diets in America. Oliver says that people are living in a society in which they are accustomed to having fast foods and eating without the knowledge of what is being put into their bodies. He explains that two thirds of Americans are overweight or obese. The screen shows a statistic about the most popular killers of American people. While homicide,
Food is the essential vitality of life and the essence of survival. It nourishes one’s physical body to enable pursuit of passion. However, in overwhelming aspects of American society, food is viewed as an enemy. It is seen as the root cause of obesity which carries heavy condemnations of ugliness and weakness. Countless people have become obsessed with food as a means of exerting strength, displaying will-power, and achieving alleged beauty. The way society views nutrition has become misconstrued and disordered, resulting in unhealthy relationships with food, and thus emotional and physical harm. The most effective way to change society’s relationship with food is to target the presentation, practices, content, and intentions of nutrition
To conclude, unhealthy foods in the cafeteria and the vending machines are the worst examples for the kids to maintain the healthy eating habits. Us Parents have to step in to make changes for our kids because in doing so would determine what kind of foods our kids are consuming. We do know for facts they are not getting the proper nutrients while in school, although they do spend in average of eight to 12 hours in schools. We, the parents, can start to make a difference, by attending the school meetings and being active in our kids functions in schools.
Nutritionism and Today’s Diet Nutritionism is the ideology that the nutritional value of a food is the sum of all its individual nutrients, vitamins, and other components. In the book, “In Defense of Food” by Michael Pollan, he critiques scientists and government recommendations about their nutritional advice. Pollan presents a strong case pointing out the many flaws and problems that have risen over the years of following scientific studies and government related warnings on the proper amount of nutrients needed for a healthy diet. Pollan’s main point is introducing science into our food system has had more of a negative impact than a positive one, we should go back to eating more of a traditional diet. I believe food science has given us
A healthy diet is very important because the deficiency of some nutrients can cause various adverse effects for both, mother and the fetus. It is know that the mother and the baby compete for the same nutrients and calories, and for this reason it is necessary that mothers have a balanced diet of nutrients for you and your baby. Most nutritional and metabolic needs can be met by eating a balanced daily diet containing approximately 35 kcal for each kilogram of optimal body weight plus an additional 300 kcal/day during the second and third trimesters. An inadequate diet can cause impaired growth of the fetus and it may be born too small and even underweight. Thus to be nourished properly makes the pregnant woman has a healthy life and to develop less risk of suffering premature deliveries, giving birth to more babies healthy. In addition some changes that occur during the pregnancy such as nausea, vomiting, constipation, hemorrhoids, heartburn and swelling can also be minimized with a proper diet.
Parents are not teaching children how to eat healthy. They feed them cheeseburgers, chicken fingers, and fries. Kids are not being exposed to a regular diet of health fruits and vegetables. Now some people are just naturally overweight, but being “overweight” is not the same as being “obese.” Someone who is overweight has reached a maximum weight limit for their height. When someone goes beyond this maximum limit, then they are considered “obese” (Kiess 1). Research shows that “obesity is generally defined as the abnormal or excessive accumulation of fat in adipose tissue” (Kiess 1). The increase in childhood obesity today is mainly the fault of the parent because they are unable to tell their children “no” when it comes to junk food (Kiess 104). Parents are the one buying all the food that comes into the house. They are the ones buying the sugary drinks and chips. They are the ones allowing the children to “have what they want.” Because parents are not teaching their children how to eat healthy, we will continue to see childhood obesity increase. Unfortunately, overweight children will be the ones who suffer because statistics show children who are overweight are more likely to become obes...
People is always asking: “Why is important to have a balanced diet? Why is necessary to have a balanced diet on a daily basis? And why do professionals tend to recommend a balanced diet?” The human being has essential needs to its existence: breathing, feeding, and keeping the body in constant movement. The majority of the people are aware of this, but they do not have a balance among these things and even more important they do not eat the adequate food to keep their body healthy. Food is one of the most important factors because it gives the energy the body needs daily. In other words, few words food is the fuel that provides glucose, which is carried to each cell of the body through the bloodstream. This process is extremely important and this is influenced by the type of food that each person consumes. A balanced diet is important for human beings, and makes reference to a good nutrition with regard to the food they eat; which contains macro nutrients that are carbohydrates, fats, and proteins; these provide energy and basic materials that the body uses to grow and stay healthy.
I want to investigate how schools and parents can work together to support healthy eating for young children. Many schools already have healthy eating initiatives in place, however, there is still a high percentage of children with obesity. I firmly believe that if schools and parents have a close partnership in promoting healthy eating young children will have consistency both in the school and home environment. Healthy eating is an area that I feel passionate about due to the effects poor nutrition can have on the child both in the short term and in the long term. During my second school placement, I witnessed a healthy eating initiative that was extremely successful both with the staff and the students. This has influenced my enthusiasm to promote healthy eating in the early years by including parents in order to combat the serious issue of childhood
As they always say HEALTH IS WEALTH! Your food selection today, makes you enjoy for the moment and affects your health tomorrow and in the future!