Childhood ObesityEssay Preview: Childhood ObesityReport this essayStatistics show that childhood obesity is an increasing disease around the globe. Childhood Obesity is an abnormal accumulation of body fat, usually twenty percent or more over a childs ideal body weight. This excessive amount of fat, which builds up, can cause serious consequences. Effects that may include type two diabetes, thyroid disease, coronary artery disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, asthma, heart disease and many more. My research was based on childhood obesity in the United States. Approximately twenty three percent of American children and adolescents are over weight. Another seventeen percent are obese. There are many reasons why this is happening. Who is to blame? In my research there were critical points that I covered. My focuses were who is to blame, disease that are caused by obesity, methods that are being used to prevent and manage childhood obesity, and ideas that might be implemented in the near future.
Most parents are to be held responsible for their child becoming obese. Although many would disagree with this statement as Janice DArcy (2011) when she said, “When I look around, I see plenty of culprits other than individual parents. Municipal planners top my personal list. But theres a deep bench on this: sugar lobbyists, television-news-assignment-editors, video-game-hawkers, etc. etc.”(para. 6). She does have a point, there are many things that can contribute to obesity, but parents are a childs first teacher. As parents, they need to teach them what is right and wrong. Eating healthy is a subject that must be covered. For example, everyone knows cocaine is very bad for you but it makes you feel great while you are under the influence. Ask yourself: Would I let my child use cocaine? Sounds ridiculous, right? Well it is not. If at the end of the day all you care about is your child feeling good. Does it matter what he or she takes to make him or herself feel good? Parents should make it their responsibility to help guide their children to healthy eating habits. There is a lot of information about how to maintain a healthy life style. Parents should know what is best for their child and they would never want to see their child harmed .If childrens health and well -being is a parents priority, than why not stop this disease before it happens. This is a disease that can be foreseen. No one, not even a child, goes from 30 to 60 pounds in a week.
At the beginning of the paper I described some of the effects that childhood obesity can cause. A few of them caught my attention and after further research much more details about these disease, which were mentioned above, came to light. The first one is type two diabetes is the most common disease caused by obesity, which leads to heart disease. It used to be a disease that only affected obese adults but in recent study it has shown that because of the increase in child obesity, type two diabetes is now seen in most obese children. Diabetes is when insulin, the hormone that transports the sugar to the cells, is no longer doing its job. Since the insulin is not moving the sugar to the cells the sugar starts to build up in his or her blood stream. (Fagot-Campagna & Narayan, 2001). The child must constantly monitor their blood sugar with a glucometer. If this machine shows that the sugar is to low you may have to inject yourself with insulin. This must be treated or it can cause death.
Sleep apnea is a disease that has to be taken just as serious as diabetes. It is also caused by obesity and surprisingly enough it affects seven percent of obese children across the country. “Sleep apnea is a sleep-associated breathing disorder defined as the cessation of breathing during sleep that lasts for at least 10 seconds. Sleep apnea is characterized by loud snoring and labored breathing. During sleep apnea, oxygen levels in the blood can fall dramatically” said Mallory, Jackson, & Fiser, 1989 (as cited in the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2011, para. 7.) In other words this disease can cause a persons death. Imagine not breathing for ten seconds. That would mean your brain is deprived of oxygen for ten seconds, which can be fatal. My brother was diagnosed with this disease at the age of thirteen. Since that age he has used a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine. Every week or so, he has to use the CPAP machine to insure he does not die in his sleep. Therefore, I know first hand how bad this disease can be. It is very heartbreaking to see that his life depends on this machine.
Another effect, which was not mentioned above, is psychosocial. According to Obesity Reviews in 2003 the article Childhood obesity: a societal problem to solve, “Obese children and adolescents are targets of early and systematic social discrimination. The psychological stress of social stigmatization can cause low self-esteem which, in turn, can hinder academic and social functioning, and persist into adulthood.”(Swartz, & Puhl, 2003, para 10). I have personally seen this in action. Kids that are obese tend to get picked on and laughed at because of their size. These obese children usually breathe heavy, are slow when they participate in physical activities, and sometimes even smell. It is certainly not nice and it would make anyone feel self-conscience. This kind behavior towards an obese child might affect their grades. It can even cause severe depression that can lead them to get more obese or commit suicide.
There are many methods that can be used to prevent childhood obesity. The first and main rule that parents must remember is children need to have healthy eating habits in order maintain average weight. Healthy eating habits can be a very simple task. Reading the back of label that are located on almost every food product sold can give you an estimate of how many calories are being consumed by your child on a daily basis. Eating plenty of fruit and vegetables, including low-fat or fat-free milk, portion sizes that are adequate for your child, drinking lots of water, and limiting the intake of sugar. The second step is to make sure that your child stays active. There are parents that go bike riding, take a walk in the park, and do workout routines with their children to ensure
Cognitive and Physical Fitness
It’s best to have a child with good or strong physical ability who is getting back in tune with you and your family about you being a “good person.” The primary goal of parents is to control kids’ activity and make sure that that activity is safe. We should always be mindful of body movements, especially that of our children. We should always be mindful of how active we feel our child is on the playground and the rest of the world. The second way we might want a child with strong physical abilities to keep the weight off is by letting our children have a break during class, or by not watching them. That’s a good way to ensure that your child is in constant touch with, and can feel a change in your family.
Behavior
There is an increasing amount of research showing that children who play are more likely to be on the soccer field and in front of their parents. A good way to help your child to get along with their parents and learn to feel good in different areas of an environment is to have someone coach, talk to them about your experience with playing soccer in the world of college and university, and take on a different role in your community.
In order to maximize the child’s physical abilities (physical ability is defined as how well you can perform at a specific job well or in order to survive in difficult and crowded environments), it is essential for you to teach your children what you’re trying to achieve. You must be able to tell them what skills you’re trying to teach them and how their bodies translate this to what your child needs.
When it comes to physical performance, it’s your job to focus on what’s really important to your child. When you focus on physical ability, it’s your job to motivate your child to do what you really want them to do.
Physical fitness can be a very important resource for kids, so it is important to make sure that your kids are engaged in the physical activity that works best for them. Physical activity makes everything so much easier and safer. You’re never going to be able to run a marathon with your 9-year-old’s running shoes on, go to a class with friends for a class exercise, and be on a treadmill with your child as soon as they get their ankles full.
It’s very important for your child to have a healthy lifestyle that includes physical activity that works for them and your child. And there are lots of ways your child can develop physical energy levels consistent with your children’s needs – like using exercise to get to that goal.
As we can learn from the above, the best way we can achieve a healthy, safe environment is for our child to have a healthy, healthy lifestyle and exercise properly, and to never get sick.
How to Prevent Childhood Obesity
Many children and teenagers with childhood obesity develop body dysmorphic disorder or other physical or behavioral disorders. The key is to treat them with some type of treatment including medication and even medications that are safe and effective. I know some kids are