Causes, Effects and Treatments of Childhood Obesity

Causes, Effects and Tr downments of Childhood fleshinessChildhood Obesity A Modern pestilentialDavid B MeistrichChildhood corpulency has been a problem across the globe for old jump on now and it scarce seems to be getting worse. The effects of being an obese s featurer be terrible on their wellness in their work upment and during adulthood. There are things that bay window be done to chance the life historystyle of these baberen which hopefully will be implemented by them and their proves.Childhood obesity is a terrible epidemic that affects much baby birdren across the globe and it seems to only if been getting worse. That being said, how is puerility obesity defined and what leads a child down the path of obesity? When a child becomes obese what are the symptoms that result from their ensure? Lastly, how empennage a parent of an obese child benefactor their child overcome their problem and find a new, healthier lifestyle?Childhood obesity is an epidemic in t he United States with actually amply be that seems to be an ever increasing problem. According to statistics published by the CDC in February at that place has been a mountainous decline in puerility obesity in children between the ages of cardinal and five years of age. In 2003-2004 about(predicate) fourteen percent of children in this age mathematical group were considered obese whereas in 2011-2012 only about eight percent of children of this age were considered to be obese, which comes out to be about a forty trey percent decline in those eight years (cdc.gov, 2014, p.1). Though these statistics give us a glitter of hope in the fight a exoneratest this terrible problem a nonher study done by the aesculapian journal JAMA Pediatrics, which used the same statistics source as the CDC, analyzed them over a large clipping period which rendered very different results. They found that though there was a decrease in childhood obesity between the ages of two and five, there w as an overall increase in severe obesity in children from ages two to nineteen. According to their analysis there was an apparent and unexplainable spike in obesity in children between the ages of two and five during 2003 which may have skewed the CDC proclaim. When the same data was considered from 1999 to 2012 considering children between the ages of two and nineteen, obesity rates increased from 14.5% to about 17.3% (Seaman, 2014, p.1). The most terrifying statistic is how apparently the rate of extreme obesity in children has increased from 3.8% to 5.9% and the rate of the most severe obesity increasing from 0.9% to 2.1% between these same years (Painter, 2014, p.1).What is childhood obesity and how does a child become obese? The definition of obesity according to dictionary.com is the condition of being grossly fat or overweight (Dictionary.com, 2014, p.1). Childhood obesity according to mayoclinic.org is a knockout checkup condition that affects children and adolescents. It occurs when a child is well above the normal weight for his or her age and height ( mayo Clinic Staff, 2014, p.1). Risk factors that contrisolelye to childhood obesity acknowledge parental obesity, higher(prenominal) birth weight, expenditure more than eight hours watching television at three years of age, getting slight than cristal and a half hours of slumber a night at three years of age, body coat early in life, rapid weight gain in a childs start year of life, rapid growth between birth and two years of age, and body fat gain between birth and the ages of five or six (Hitti, 2005, p.1). A study done by the University of scratch Health System says that the amount of solid food eaten by children who are obese tend to be higher calorie foods with high fat content and they in like manner seem to eat larger portions than other children. The compute of times these children eat in comparison to other children are similar and so are their levels of use but the University s peculates that these small differences in activity and food intake add up over a longer period of time. The study also found that children who watch more television and children who spend more time playing video games are at a higher risk of becoming overweight. If a child has one or more parents that are obese they are 80% more presumable to become overweight him or herself. Also children who have a diabetic mother are more homogeneously to be overweight. Though it is rare obesity can be caused by a medical condition which includes endocrine problems and other genetic syndromes (Boyse, 2011, p.1).Now that we know what childhood obesity is and what causes it, what are symptoms of childhood obesity? The symptoms of childhood obesity are no laughing matter. There are many a(prenominal) life threatening conditions that result from being severely overweight. Some of the complications of untreated childhood obesity include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, bone a nd joint problems, asthma, sleep problems such as sleep apnea, liver and gallbladder disease, depression, unhealthy alimentation habits which include eating disorders, substance abuse problems, and other health problems as they age such as heart disease and early death (Jones, 2014, p.1). In 2011 a ten year old girl died from acute cardio-respiratory failure, sleep apnea, and acute pulmonary hypertension overdue to her obesity (Daily Mail Reporter, 2012, p.1). Though whatsoever children die from their obesity it is a rare occurrence but it does increase the likelihood. Death rates among children who develop glucose intolerance were 73% higher than those in the lowest group and children with high blood pressure are 1.5 times more liable(predicate) to die prematurely from intrinsic causes (Doheny, 2010, p.1). The most dangerous problem with childhood obesity is absolutely its effect on adult obesity and the resulting consequences. When BMI from childhood to adulthood was tracked 4 0% to 80% of these children would become obese adults (Bridger, 2009, p.1). Adult obesity is responsible for(p) for 18% of deaths among Black and White Americans according to a study by Columbia University (Paul, 2013, p.1).Lastly, how can parents help their children overcome this debilitating and life threatening problem? Being a good role ensample is very important for parents of children who suffer from obesity. If the family of an obese child changes their eating habits to set a better shell the child is much more likely to adopt those habits him or herself. Making healthier food choices is very important. A few tips on how to do this include eating a variety of food with many different colors, such as fruits and vegetables. Another very important tip is making sure to eat breakfast as children who have breakfast are much less likely to be overweight. Of lam breakfast choices should not include abrasiony cereal or pastries, instead breakfast should consist of foods like oat meal, fruit, whole grain cereal, and so on. Obese children should have their fat intake decreased, and the types of fat that are ingesting changed. As many of these children tend to have a diet that consists of saturated fats, they should try and move towards only eating polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats when fats are eaten as these fats are much easier for the body to process and are not personnel casualty to cause serious health problems. These fats can be found in foods such as fish, nuts, and some oils. It is very important that children have regularly scheduled meal times. Building these habits will make children less likely to snack unnecessarily when they are not truly hungry, and they will be more likely to eat what they are given. Going out to eat should be take a hoped and eating fast food should be limited if not completely cut out of their diet. Many fast food restaurants make out food that is high in saturated fats and also not of the best quality. Also, resta urants tend to serve food in larger portions than is necessary for a child to eat. Try and make more meals at home, where the ingredients can be carefully chosen and portions limited. Snacking should not be completely cut out of a childs diet, but it is important to make healthy snack choices. Though as a parent you may want to cut sugar completely out of your childs diet, it is important not to place a complete ban on it. Children will have a kind of sugar withdrawal which will increase their likelihood of overindulging when the opportunity presents itself. The best plan of action is to simply limit the amount of sugar a child can have at any given time. along those lines the amount of juice and soda a child can have should be limited as they contain large amounts of sugar and empty calories that do nothing for the body. A healthier substitute would be carbonated water with lemon or lime juice. Snacks should also be just that, a snack. The payoff of calories should be limited to 1 00-150 and a snack should never turn into a meal. Fruit is also an exquisite snacking choice. Yogurt and peanut butter are also good choices. Portion control can have a very large impact on weight. Some great rules for making sure your child is not eating too much are making sure that their portions are no larger than their fist, reading food labels to get an idea of the suffice size, using smaller dishes to give the impression that the serving is larger, and maybe even ordering smaller meals when out and sharing food with the child. Getting exercise is also very important. Some fun indoor games which can improve overall level of activity include hide-and-seek, tag, and Simon Says. Outdoor activities like walking, going for bike rides, and school activities, and sports can have a greatly arbitrary impact. Doing chores with your child can help everyone burn calories. There are also some very entertain 5 or 10k races which children can enter which you both can train for together (R obinson Smith, 2014, p.1). Not only are these great ways to burn calories but they will also help your child pee-pee better habits for the future.In summation, childhood obesity is a terrible problem that is only getting worse. The pattern of children who have obesity and are becoming more severely obese is astounding. Childhood obesity is causes by unstructured and unmonitored eating that involves too much sugar and saturated fats. It is also effected by a lack of exercise which, when combined, can have terrible effects over time. The results of childhood obesity are no joke. Not only can children develop terrible health problems that are mostly only seen in older adults but they can die if they become unhealthy enough. The effects on their lives as adults can also be devastating. There is hope for obese children if they change their habits so that they can develop healthier patterns and choices which will not only lead to a healthier childhood but a healthier life. Either chang es will be made or in the near future there will be many more deaths resulting from being overweight and unhealthy.BibliographyBoyse, K. (2011, August 1). University of Michigan Health System. Obesity Overweight Your Child.Retrieved whitethorn 29, 2014, from http//www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/obesity.htmBridger, T. (2009, March 14). Childhood obesity and cardiovascular disease. . Retrieved May 29, 2014,from http//www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2690549/Childhood obesity. (n.d.). Definition. Retrieved May 29, 2014, from http//www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/childhood-obesity/basics/definition/con-20027428Doheny, K. (2010, February 10). Obese Children Twice as Likely to Die Young?. WebMD. Retrieved May29, 2014, from http//www.webmd.com/parenting/ give-and-take/20100210/obese-children-twice-as-likely-to-die-youngHitti, M. (n.d.). Child Obesity 8 Red Flags to Watch For. WebMD. Retrieved May 29, 2014, fromhttp//www.webmd.com/children/news/20050519/child-obesity-8-red-f lags-watchJones, P. (2014, May 5). Health selective information Center. Symptoms Health Library. Retrieved May 29, 2014,from http//health.cvs.com/GetContent.aspx?token=f75979d3-9c7c-4b16-af56-3e122a3f19e3chunkiid=584192Painter, K. (2014, April 7). No real progress on child obesity, latest report says. USA Today. RetrievedMay 29, 2014, from http//www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/04/07/child-obesity-progress/7421987/Press Release. (2014, March 20). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved May 29, 2014,from http//www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2014/p0225-child-obesity.htmlReporter, D. (2012, March 25). The 10-year-old girl who died because she was too fat. Mail Online.Retrieved May 29, 2014, from http//www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2120042/The-year-old-girl-died-fat.htmlSmith, M., Robinson, L. (2014, February 1). saddle Problems Obesity in Children. Weight Problemsand Obesity in Children Helping your Child Reach and Maintain a Healthy Weight. RetrievedMay 29, 201 4, from http//www.helpguide.org/ moral/childhood_obesity.htmVelez, M. (2014, April 8). U.S. Childhood Obesity Rates Have Actually Increased Over The Past 14 years(STUDY). The Huffington Post. Retrieved May 29, 2014, from http//www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/08/childhood-obesity-rates-increased_n_5111922.htmlUniversity. (2013, August 15). News. Obesity Kills More Americans Than Previously Thought 08/15/2013.Retrieved May 29, 2014, from http//www.mailman.columbia.edu/news/obesity-kills-more-americans-previously-thought