I don’t know if it’s just me, but it seems children today are getting fatter.
Maybe it’s just in America, but with fast food, television and video games, kids these days just don’t seem to want to go outside and play anymore.
It’s a sad trend I’ve been noticing, so I’ve decided to
rant.
All joking aside, obesity in children and adolescents is a serious issue and can cause many health and social consequences that could last until adulthood for many kids.
According to the American Obesity Association, yes there is such a thing, some “modifiable” causes of childhood obesity range from lack of physical activity, sedentary behavior that it attributes to “high frequency of television viewing, computer usage, and similar behavior,” socioeconomic status with low family incomes and non-working parents, eating habits like over-consumption of high-calorie foods, eating when not hungry or while watching television or doing homework, and environment which includes “over-exposure to advertising of foods that promote high-calorie foods and lack of recreational facilities.”
Seems like common sense, right? Well, some people may not be aware that the direction American culture has headed may cause a host of other health risks for the next generation.
The only cause the American Obesity Association designates as a “non-changeable” cause of childhood obesity is genetics, which only says there is a “greater risk of obesity” in children with overweight parents.
So what can we do about this growing epidemic of our over-weight American society often referred to as the “battle of the bulge” in children as young as 6 and 7?
The American Obesity Association suggests teaching “healthy behaviors” to children at a young age before their behavior becomes difficult as a teen.
They suggest promoting behaviors involving physical activity and nutrition both at home and at school.
First, let’s see how bad the problem really is.
Again, according to a survey run by the American Obesity Association, 78 percent of parents in the United States believe physical education or recess should not be reduced or replaced with academic classes.
Yes, that’s a majority, but why isn’t it unanimous? What good is a smart child if they’re going to die at a young age due to a preventable disease, obesity?
The survey went on to say that almost 30 percent of parents said they were “somewhat” or “very” concerned about their children’s weight.
That’s a huge number of people when you look at the size of this country.
Furthermore, 12 percent of parents actually considered their child “overweight.”
Now, as far as eating habits, which I believe originate with parents, comparing their own childhood health habits to their children’s, 27 percent of parents said their children eat less nutritiously than they did as a child, and 24 percent said their children are less physically active.
This is the key issue here.
About 25 percent of the population will actually admit in one isolated survey indirectly that our society has become less healthy and no matter what they do to teach their kids how to be healthy, society makes it hard to do so.
But I’m not saying women belong barefoot and pregnant holding the house together while the man is the sole bread winner.
In today’s society that is near impossible if a family wants a comfortable life.
I’m saying if parents and schools do not decide to invest in children’s health and stop pumping them full of grease and fat, then the quality of life for the next generation is in serious trouble.
So, what can Joe Blow College Kid do and why should he or she care?
If our generation makes it a point to become a little healthier than the generation before us, then we will teach our kids better nutrition, and it will slow the spiral down just a bit.
I don’t know about you, but I think I’ll skip the fast food today.