Child Obesity.

Why is Child Obesity on the Rise?

The prevalence of child obesity in the current generation of young people is an alarming turn for our society. But what has led to the continually increasing average weight among our children? Here are a few factors that contribute greatly to this growing epidemic of obesity among our children.

One of the main factors is that young people simply do not spend as much time on physical activity these days. Previous generations were often engaged in a great deal of outside play, which included biking, playing sports, or even walking around town with friends.  While modern video games are often cited as the culprit for this decrease in physical activity, there are other considerations as well. For example, many parents no longer feel free to allow their children to roam the neighbourhoods or to visit a friend across town without adult supervision. The dangers to young people in modern society make it much more difficult for children to spend time out of doors. Also, air conditioning these days is considered a necessity and not a luxury. The result is that children prefer to be inside during the summer months, rather than outside in the warmer climate.  

The emphasis of society on bigger means better has also played a huge role in child obesity. Portions at fast-food restaurants are larger than ever. Children see these larger burgers and helpings of French Fries and automatically reach for them.  Sodas are also much bigger as well. Where once upon a time, an eight-ounce bottle of soda was considered sufficient, the children of today want the thirty-two-ounce gut buster soda from the local convenience store.  This combination of larger portions coupled with less exercise has led to a culture where waistlines are inflating at an alarming rate.

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Child obesity is alarming, since carrying around extra weight means that our children are at greater risk for a number of health issues. Heart problems, diabetes, back problems, and a whole range of medical problems will be their lot in life if this trend does not reverse. Of course, there are ways to deal with child obesity today. If you have a child with a weight problem, then consult with a physician today.  A strong diet and exercise program could make childhood obesity a thing of the past in your home, and in other homes as well. 

Child Obesity and Fast Food.

There appears to be a direct tie between child obesity and fast food. Studies have been conducted which point to the fact that when they eat out at fast-food restaurants, too many children, of all ages, consume too much sugar, carbs and fats. It does not matter whether one of the big-name branches or merely the local burger joint is the restaurant in question. The fare is not safe and studies continue to prove this. Studies have determined that children aged four to nineteen eat at fast-food restaurants regularly enough that they pack on an extra almost two hundred calories each time they eat there. This translates into a minimum increase of six pounds gained per year. This definitely enhances the risk of obese children. 

The draw for children to eat fast food is different than that of adults. The average adults grab something at a fast-food restaurant because they are feeling too lazy to cook that day, are running between things and have not got the time to stop for a proper meal, or have the chance to meet a friend, but only for a quick bite. Fast food restaurants fill this adult need. For kids it is different. Although they do enjoy the taste of fast food burgers, fries etc. they also like what they see in the commercials that promote those kinds of restaurants. The little ones know that they can buy, or be given, an assortment of toys that reflect the latest trends in movies and television shows. This brings them into the fast-food restaurants by the thousands. Older kids look at them as places to hang out with their friends. That too is a big draw.  

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Obesity research is showing the youth of today that eating right is better than eating fast. The tie in between child obesity and fast food has prompted many schools to change the kind of foods they are offering in their cafeterias. Soft drinks and greasy foods are being pulled out; snack machine content is being changed.  The country is waking up and caring about the weight of our children

Some causes of child obesity.

There are several factors that contribute to the current epidemic of childhood obesity. Here are some examples of child obesity causes that can be addressed and managed with a little love, common sense, and support.

One of the most obvious children obesity causes is that the child has access to all the wrong foods. Sodas, supersized fast-food meals, sweets, and other snacks that are loaded with fat and carbohydrates are too readily available in our society.  Realizing that this vast range of foods is marketed to be attractive can help the parents to see all these things with the sense of wonder that a child engages when a commercial for hamburgers and fries flashes across the television set.  With more families relying on fast food to grab a quick bite, the chance for overweight children and adults increases dramatically.

Second, sometimes it is not only what one eats, but how much one consumes that creates a weight problem. Child obesity causes have to do with the portions that a child consumes at each sitting. Loading down the dinner plate and encouraging the child to eat every bite is often the root of the problem. Choosing to go with more modest portions gives the child a chance to enjoy everything on the plate, but come away from the table not feeling as bloated.

Child obesity causes are not just about food. In many cases, a child who feels marginalized by his or her peers may turn to food for solace. Understanding that your child may be having social problems can lead to providing the child with some new social opportunities, such as joining a club. As his or her confidence builds, the need for food begins to fade into the background.

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Finally, child obesity often involves a lack of exercise. Kids simply tend to stay indoors more than ever. If conditions do now allow a child to play outside, then make arrangements for your child to spend time at a gym or health club on a regular basis. In fact, make time to go with your child and work out as well. Chances are if your child has a weight problem, there is also some tendency for the adults in the home to be carrying around extra weight as well.  

Child Obesity Facts Every Parent Should know.

There are a number of factors that may be relevant to the weight problem of any child. Here are some child obesity facts that may be helpful in getting to the root causes of your child’s obesity, and helping you to find solutions that will leave the child healthy and happy.

One of the first child obesity facts to understand is that your child has plenty of company. Each year, the number of children who are classified as obese seems to rise.  By understanding that the problem your child faces is not unusual, you prevent the chance of making your child feel like a freak of nature. Also, this means there will be plenty of resources to call upon to help fight obesity.

Another of the more important child obesity facts is that while many factors contribute to child obesity, food is always involved in some manner. Practising good nutrition around the home is imperative if your child is ever to break the cycle of consuming too much food, as well as the wrong types of foods. Make your home a place where healthy meals are the norm, while still allowing the occasional pizza or night of hamburgers as something to be enjoyed on a special occasion.

One of the hardest child obesity facts to deal with is that eating is as much of an addiction as most types of substance abuse. However, there is no way to stop eating altogether. Educating your child on what happens when too much food or the wrong types of foods are consumed regularly may be the necessary wake up call.  While some object to scare tactics such as showing a child what twenty pounds of fat looks like, this approach may be just what is needed.

Last, child obesity facts include the realization that our kids are not getting enough exercise. Cultural factors, such as technology, have conspired with our desire to give our kids more than we had growing up. The result is children who feel more entitled than previous generations, and who are often averse to physical activity. Changing this attitude can be very difficult, but is absolutely necessary if the trend toward child obesity is ever going to reverse.    

How To Fight Child Obesity.

One of the most important wars that parents face today is dealing with childhood obesity. Fortunately, there are some powerful weapons that can be used to make a difference in the life of a child, helping them to grow into healthy adults who know how to take care of their bodies. Here are some tips on how to fight child obesity, while instilling values that will serve the child well for a lifetime.

The fast pace of life today has taken a toll on our children. In fact, a great deal of child obesity in the world today can be traced back to the fact that many families have made eating out the main method of consuming food. The larger portions, coupled with the added fats and carbohydrates, do nothing for the overall health of the parents or the kids. Slowing down the pace and taking time to cook balanced meals at home will not only mean a healthier style of eating for all family members but also will create pockets of time for children and parents to spend more time together.

Technology has improved many aspects of our lifestyles, but when it comes to physical activity, these same time saving and entertainment options have helped lead to increased childhood obesity. Take some time to turn off the television, shut down the computer, and put the video games away. Instead, look for activities that will help all family members to burn up excess calories. Taking a walk for thirty minutes a day together can be a big help. Toss around a football in the backyard or at the park. Getting outside and doing something will help to curb child obesity in the world, and also help with the obesity problem of adults as well. 

Fighting child obesity is all about making changes in the way we all think about food and physical activity. One of the important things is to think in terms of substituting good habits for bad ones. This helps to fill the gap that is left behind when we reduce or eliminate something from our lives while opening us to new opportunities at the same time.  By focusing on improved nutrition and exercise habits, we can go a long way toward minimizing the reality of child obesity in the world today. 

How To Implement Child Obesity Prevention In Your Home.

The key to the health of our children worldwide, and especially in the United States, is a child obesity program that works to prevent the problem, not one that tries to work after the issue is already a crisis. These programs are beginning to spring up across the country and they are focusing on the child and the whole problem of eating healthy, exercising regularly, self-image and eating disorders. All of these are part of the strategy to ensure a child with a proper body mass index. The body mass index, BMI, is the evaluation of the weight of a person balanced against the height of that person. This tool for measuring the weight health of a person can be very useful when trying to determine if a child is entering that dangerous area where their weight becomes an issue.

Parents must be careful that they do not become obsessive about a child’s weight, wanting to keep them healthy and stop them from becoming overweight, since a child’s self-image is reflected clearly in their parent’s perception of them. The programs to help avoid children from becoming obese set-out guidelines in parental behaviour to help encourage their children to keep healthy body weight as well as how to deal with kids whose weight is high without giving them a poor self-image. Acceptance is as important as encouraging.

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The programs also give guidelines on how to change the way your children eat and what they eat. A child obesity program will show parents that it is not just what food is consumed by their children but how it is eaten. It is also important to have foods from all five food groups; these include vegetables, grains, dairy, fruit and meat. As well, it is important not to discourage snacks, we all snack, but to instead encourage eating healthy snacks. Make eating a pleasant experience, family meals help children eat better and enjoy mealtime instead of just filling themselves quickly with whatever they can find. The guidelines discourage fast food as much as possible since it carries a lot of calories and so is not healthy. Exercising for at least an hour daily is also highly recommended since burning off calories helps to keep weight in check.  

Child Obesity Rate Shows Worrisome Trend.

In the United States, the child obesity rate has become an issue that is very worrisome to parents, children, and medical caregivers across the country. Studies have shown a startling and worrisome climb in obesity rates for children over the last thirty years. The number of obese children two to five years old and twelve to nineteen has doubled during that time period while the rate for those aged six to twelve has tripled. That means that there are over nine million children juts in America who are currently classified as obese. The term obese is classified as when the body mass index is equal to the ninety-fifth percentile or higher. 

The scary thing is that the obesity rate in children is rising globally and researchers are very concerned with the potential outcome. The studies have shown that by the year 2010 it is expected that close to fifty per cent of all children in North and South America will be obese. In the European Union, the expectation is that thirty-eight per cent of children will be in the same condition. Even in some of the countries where one would not expect to see these high rates, like the Middle East, Mexico, Brazil, and parts of Asia the number of overweight children is growing steadily as they approach the same rates as industrialized countries. By 2010 twenty per cent of Chinese children will be considered overweight. 

The question is why and what will this mean to our children. The feeling is that our children are eating too much unhealthy food, junk foods and fast food being the biggest culprits, and not getting enough exercise to burn off the calories. The situation is so bad that the medical community believes that this upcoming generation of children may be the first in years to have a lower life expectancy rate than their parents. They have a higher chance of suffering from heart disease, stroke and other medical conditions related to their weight that can begin in their youth and follow them into adulthood. The medical community is saying that now is the time to deal with the child obesity rate growth before it is too late for our children. 

Child Obesity Solution.

The best child obesity solution is to watch your child’s weight from the time they are young without becoming obsessed with it. At one time it was more common to want your baby to be a chubby little one until people learned that a  fat baby does not necessarily grow up to be a slim adult. The only way to fix the problem of obese children is to begin young with a proper diet that has fewer fats, carbs and sugars and does not consist of a high proportion of fast foods. 

Remember that solutions to the obesity problem start young and follow the guidelines that some of the programs suggest. For example, never use food as a reward. That sends all the wrong signals. There are many other things to offer as rewards like a favourite activity, a trip to the park or zoo or staying up later than usual. Make mealtimes a family time. This avoids children just grabbing whatever fills them that moment and makes eating a pleasant and longer event. The child is less likely to pig out and more likely to eat the healthy food put on the table. Everyone likes to snack. What your child puts in their mouths is reflected in what you have in the house for them to eat. Instead, pastries and chocolate bars have their favourite fruits and yoghurts.  

Do not make the child with the weight problem uncomfortable by singling them out. The whole family should eat healthily and exercise daily. This exercise can be in the form of bike riding, walking, skateboarding, or playing a sport like soccer. The child obesity solution is not to suddenly put your youngster on a strict diet and cut out everything they like to eat. Cut back slowly and carefully. Give skim milk instead of homogenized, get low-fat cheeses and yoghurts. Make sure you buy only lean meats. All these are helpful in the fight to prevent unhealthy overweight children.

Child Obesity Treatment.

Child Obesity Treatment Should Begin with A Check-Up 

If you are looking into a childhood obesity treatment program for your child there are some things you should know before making your choices. First, it is essential, if your child is a preteen or in their early teens, to be certain that they are not still growing. Adolescents tend to put on some extra weight before they have their growth spurt and then they wind up tall weight appropriate children. At the same time if your young child appears to be overweight then they likely are and starting them on a program to reduce their weight and improve their health is very important. There is a fine line between being worried about the health of your child and knowing when they are truly overweight.

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The treatment programs will tell you that it is essential to start good eating habits early on. But if your child appears to be gaining more weight then you and your health care provider think is good for them you may want to look into what you can do to change that. First, like in any treatment program, the health care provider will want to do a full check-up to see if there is any medical reason why the child is overweight. Genetic and biochemical conditions can play a part in weight issues. These include hypothyroidism, Prader-Willi Syndrome and other hormonal conditions. Only once these conditions have been ruled out can the health care provider put your child into the correct treatment program. 

The right child obesity treatment program for your child will take into account the fact that losing weight is not an easy thing to do and set up guidelines that you and, most importantly, your child can live with. This will include both eating and exercise suggestions along with suggestions on making things easier for your child by offering helpful hints on self-image and self-esteem, eating meals with the family, exercises that can be fun and perhaps family-oriented. Encouragement not discouragement is a key issue to helping your child with their weight problems.

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