Child Obesety

When we look at children today we can see that childhood obesity is on the rise in the United States. While child obesity is a growing concern among society, is it an issue that should be dealt with as to who is responsible for the obesity itself, or is it an issue that should be analyzed as to what can be done about it? What is childhoof obesity? Obese children are those who have an excessive amount of body fat. This excess amount of body fat causes detriment to health. Obesity leads to many physical ailments, health problems, a lower life expectancy, and mental trauma as well. There are different methods of determining obesity in children. Measuring in terms of relative weight for height and age is a typical and simple method. BMI, or body mass index, is another way to indicate amounts of body fat and is a useful tool in identifying obese children.“A child's weight status is determined using an age- and sex-specific percentile for BMI rather than the BMI categories used for adults because children's body composition varies as they age and varies between boys and girls.More children and teenagers are being diagnosed with diseases that were only usually observed in adults due to childhood obesity. According the The American Heart Association, “Today, about one in three American kids and teens is overweight or obese, nearly triple the rate in 1963.” If you were to walk around surveying people in the street and asked them what they thought was one of the main reasons why there is a rapid increase in childhood obesity, “overeating” would probably be on top of their list. Recent studies show that children are now eating foods with higher calories now then they ever have before. Wherever they go or look , there are vending machines , fast food restaurants and commercials advertising these high calorie foods. Just take a short drive down any main street in a popular city and you will drive past no less than eight fast food restaurants and three convenient stores within a couple of blocks from each other. If that is the route driven on your way home every day from work and you do not feel up to making a home cooked meal, what do you think your family will be eating that night. It is sometimes cheaper to buy a cheeseburger off of the value menu rather than cooking one at home. The problem with this fast food is that it has a high percentage of both fat and calories, well if those calories are not burned , ultimately they will be stored in the body as fat. The new generation of children lack exercise, which also leads to obesity. It is not uncommon to see a child on the computer and or watching television. This is twice as bad because not only are they inactive, but all those calories are just going to sit there and be converted to fat. Lack of physical activity just triggers a domino effect which inevitably ends up with a diagnosis of hypo kinetic diseases at an early age. Some schools are making the situation worse by taking away physical education time. Mostly in the elementary level , which leads to children who are not well educated on ways to eat healthier. Childhood obesity also has a long term effect on children health. Childhood obesity increases the chances of becoming obese in adulthood. Children who are obese are likely to become obese when they grow up. This also increases the risk factor for having adult health issues like heart diseases, stroke and cancer. It also results to type 2 diabetes. This is according to a study carried out by Reedy and Krebs-Smith (2010).According to their article it also shows that pbesety can also lead to various different types of cancer , gallbladder and colon cancer amongst themChild obesity has not only health but psychological and emotional repercussions as well. Emotional problems also are a big part of childhood obesity .in most cases , children who are obese also suffer from fepression and other emotional related issues. Being an obese child , sometimes makes you a target for bullies. Children can be bullied simply because they are fat , this spiraling out o control and eventually making them depressed.

When the child is responsible for his or her decisions is a good question. Who is at fault should not be the prevailing question but rather what can be done to stop child obesity. Who needs to be educated on child obesity, the child or the parent? These are points to ponder when it comes to child obesity.