Obese Children – Not So Cute!
People just love to squeeze chubby cheeks on little babies and young children and tell them how cute they are! But childhood obesity is becoming an epidemic problem. And there isn’t even any agreement on how to measure it!
According to a recent article in the International Journal of Pediatric Obesity, by the year 2010, approximately 50% of all children in North and South America, 38% of all children in Europe will be overweight. Dr. Philip James, Chairman of the International Obesity Task Force, states, “We have truly a global epidemic which appears to be affecting most countries in the world.”
Researchers analyzed medical reports on obesity from 1980-2005 and the World Health Organization tracked obesity growth rate trends in pre-schoolers and grade schoolers in 42 countries. Their findings - that the combination of junk food and inactive lifestyles were largely responsible for the alarming growth rate in childhood obesity worldwide.
And since obese children generally become obese adults, you can anticipate a steady increase in many health-related conditions (i.e., heart problems, diabetes, and strokes) that will severely tax public health resources.
Here are a few suggestions to manage obesity in children and adolescents:
- Make better food selections
- Increase physical activities
- Less television and video games
- Control portion size
- Eat meals at the family table
- Avoid using food to reward or punish
- Limit amount of evening snacking
In an effort to help curb this disturbing trend, many schools are removing “junk” food as menu selections and from vending machines. Continuing this in your home, and following the suggestions outlined above, may at least produce a positive effect on your own children.
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