The_Troubles_of_Childhood_Obesity

The Troubles of Childhood Obesity Navi Parker English 122 Sarah Bowman October 10, 2010 The seriousness of childhood obesity can not be stressed enough. If more people where educated on this topic then maybe the continuous rising numbers could possibly become decreasing. It is a lot of people who have just recently started working to turn this problem around. Our current first lady Michelle Obama is one of the people. She started a campaign to raise awareness about childhood obesity. Her Let’s Move campaign has been very informative and has did just as she wanted, open eyes on a subject that has been over looked. Considering all the documents and all the deaths that have taken place due to childhood obesity, you would think this would have been happened. I planned to stick to the original claim, but after research I see that my claim would be a little wrong due to the lack of parents knowing all the information they should. At first when I looked at this topic I was upset. I couldn’t understand why a parent would allow their child to become over weight/obese. Now after getting more knowledge I have come to realize that most parents are not educated on childhood obesity. I am addressing the lifestyle of the child. Another topic will be to educate on childhood obesity. The way food is marketed to children is another topic. The way schools better meals and activities a child could be offered and also entertainment. I feel that entertainment plays a big part. Medical information was a big help because it informed me on diseases, and also names of things such as BMI. BMI stands for Body Mass Index. Articles the internet and Proquest were all a big help. After doing research it is one topic that kept jumping out and seemed to be more important than the kids. The topic was how much money is being spent every year. Quoted directly, “The countries overall expense of care for overweight youth at $14 billion annually.” (Levinet and Stien) This is just one of many of the comments made about the money. That was in 2008 it is now 2010, stated by president Obama his self the price of medical care due to obesity is $150 billion per year. There was a program that was created to help inform new mothers about things to do to prevent obesity. One of the things was breast feeding. (Anonymous) These things ties into the lifestyle of the child. Childhood is when everything takes place. It is when you learn who you are, where you build/ develop self-esteem. Also, childhood determines what adulthood will be like. An historic study showed that normal weight children rank obese children as the least desirable friends. Obese individuals were described as lazy, dirty, dumb, and deceitful. These descriptions were made by children as young as six years old (must,Aviva,Ph.D.,”Effects of obesity on morbidity in children and adolescents,”Nutrition in clinical care, p.9). This was interesting because of how young the children are. It is sad that a child a child at the age of six and younger could even judge another child of the same age, let alone anyone at all. It is easily noticed that over weight/ obese children are always separated from the group. This is something that needs to changes immediately. The lifestyle that a person lives can affect their well-being. Your surroundings are also a key factor in how your life goes. It has been observed that low-income families tend to have one or more members in the household that are obese. Where as more fortunate families may only have one member of the household. Another thing is that different races live different lives. Obesity tends to be most popular within Black/African Americans and the Hispanic race. Obesity also hits certain regions harder than others. These are just a few things there are way more. Education is another one. The education about childhood obesity is low to none. That is the problem no one really knows the true problems about obesity. One statement that is often said, “You’re too big you’re going to die.” Now the person who said this is right but they don’t know why or what would be the cause of death. You would think the same way they talk about sex, pregnancy, and drugs in schools they would talk about childhood obesity. Seeing that childhood obesity is being called an epidemic, that would give schools more reason to talk about it in class. There are many complications an obese child can possibly go through. Most of the problems are medical. Orthopedic abnormalities, fatty liver disease, insulin resistance, and type 2 diabetes, (McDonagh), those are just a few of the bunch. Being located in North Carolina it was shocking to find out that the problem is worse in North Carolina. It is sad that we’re the fifth sate in the United States with regards to childhood obesity. (Shaker) It is ways to go about fixing this problem, such as food. Parents should not let the child dine in front of the television. This is a major factor because the child could easily been sitting there all day. Now it is dinner time and the child is still in front of the TV. Maybe if they try to alter the eating habits of the child it could have some impact on the child. If they started practicing these better eating habits. Example: breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner. The snack should be something healthy and still appealing to the child. Examples of healthy snacks are fruits and vegetables, yogurt/ ice cream, and also vanilla wafers. The parents should support their child. Encourage the child to do things that will better the situation. Never remind the child about being over weight/ obese. You should never single the child out either. Before this research paper I would have never thought that childhood obesity as genetic. An educational factor is that obesity can come from genetics. Prader-Willi syndrome is an uncommon genetic disorder. Poor muscle tone, low levels of sex hormones constant hunger are all symptoms. People with PWS tend to over eat, which causes obesity. The sad part is there is no cure for this syndrome (NIH). The way that food is marketed has a great affect on children. The way foods are displayed and advertised has something to do with the consumption of food. While a child sits in front of the television all day they consume a high number of commercials that are advertising foods that are nutrient-poor and calorie-dense. Have you ever noticed that sweets, fried foods, and sodas are always advertised with bright colors or either celebrities' When healthy foods are displayed they always nasty looking or they look shriveled up. Never are they displayed in an eye catching way. If company’s started making the nutrition facts seem important, then maybe people will become aware of the things they eat. An example would be putting the label on the front of the product instead of the back. Even using healthier ingredients, for example Chef Boyardee uses multi-grain noodles, the child doesn’t know because it has the same great taste. The school system is playing a huge role in childhood obesity. They have gone from fried foods and sugary snacks to baked foods and sugar free snacks. They offer many nutritious selections such as fruits, steamed vegetables, multi-grain breads and baked foods. A comment was made by Adam Carson, “thirty years ago, there wasn’t any concern about trans fat/sodium. Now we don’t have any foods that have trans fats.” (Keith) This is a statement that caught the eye remembering the day salt was taking out of the cafeteria. If every child had multiple activities to complete then they wouldn’t have to sit in front of the television all day. Now kids who live in housing developments and the country have the space to play and still be safe. Children who live in cities really don’t have safe places to play. Maybe if parents make up activities for the child to do or took out the time to actually play with the numbers could change. This could have a major affect on the rising numbers of childhood obesity. Entertainment plays a big role in childhood obesity. It has its advantages and also disadvantages. Yes the child can learn a lot of positive things at the same time too much TV can be harmful. It is hardly ever you see an obese actor/actress, musician, singer, author etc. It is a certain look that is always portrayed as what you should look like. It is very rare that an obese person is the star of a movie. The thing you always see is the “fat” kid getting made fun of, or they are ugly, or poor. If this changes maybe obsess children could stop filling so down and start feeling good about their self. In conclusion to all of the research and knowledge that has come to surface I feel that with all of the awareness childhood obesity will soon come to pass. Looking at all aspects the lifestyle, educating parents, talking about food marketing, how schools are bettering meals, activities, and entertainment. If everybody continue with the ideas of improving the health of children then childhood obesity will end. Reference Page Levine.S and. Stein.R. May17,2008.Washington post “Obesity threatens a Generation” Anonymous.us.news and world report.Washington:jul 2010. p.1 Must,Aviva,Ph.D.,”Effects of obesity on morbidity in children and adolescents,”Nutrition in clinical care, p.9 Thomas m. mcdonagh.Newday.(combined editions).Long island,Ny: Sep 9,2010.pg.a37 Hayman shaker be our guest.Times News. Hendersonville,N.C.:Aug 25,2010 Keith Paradise.public opion.York chambersburg,Pa.:Sep 20,2010 Photo “lets move”, fooducate.com Photo “body”, Complications of childhood obesity, obesityhelp.com National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Prader-Willi syndrome, retrieved from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/praderwillisyndrome.html