Childhood Obesity

Introduction

If you were to take a walk through the neighborhood park twenty years ago you would see happy, healthy children running all around. If you were to walk in that same park now, you would more than most likely find half the number of children and a good number of them would be considered overweight. Childhood obesity is a very dangerous epidemic with potential catastrophic effects on the health of our future. This report will analyze what causes childhood obesity and what can be done by schools, parents, and communities to help our children grow up happy and healthy.

Purpose, Scope and Limitations

In a perfect world every child would be in perfect health and ready to start their life in the most optimal conditions. In reality, that is not the case. This report will help find causes and solutions to help us obtain this perfect world. This report is focused on parents, schools, and the fast food industry’s involvement in childhood obesity. Although there are many culprits in this epidemic, these are the ones that are most contributing to childhood obesity.

Sources and Methods

This report involved diligent research from a variety of sources. The main source of research came from the internet. There was a vast amount of information available from a variety of websites. Other sources of research were different newspaper publications and periodicals by a variety of reputable sources.

How Many Children are Obese?

Childhood obesity has skyrocketed in the past three decades. Obesity in children has nearly doubled for preschoolers and more than tripled for children aged six to eleven during this time period and there is no end in sight. There are nearly one third of children and adolescents between the ages of 6 and 19 that are overweight or are in great risk of becoming obese. This means that nearly 1 out of 3 kids is nearing or considered obese! Also, there are some groups of children that are more prone to becoming overweight. The most likely group to become obese is Mexican American boys with 42.8% of them aged 6 to 19 overweight. In females 40.1% of African American girls are overweight or at risk of becoming overweight.

Why is obesity so harmful?

Obesity is one of the most deadly diseases that one can have. Obesity can be described as a slow and silent killer. It does not directly kill you like a type of cancer or other ailment but it plagues you with various complications that will eventually wear your body down. Obesity has the same effects on our children. Childhood obesity is known to be very harmful for children and it can become worse as they grow into adulthood. Dr. Sonia Caprio stated in a CBS news article “Obesity is not just a cosmetic issue. It's a big problem because you open the door for serious, chronic complications”. Also, being obese as a child is a key predictor that one will be obese as an adult. The American Academy of Family Physicians states that poor diet and