Child Obesity

Child Obesity

Obesity is a body fat percentage of more than 25 percent in boys and 32 percent in girls. Children must be given the tools so they can learn about nutrition and exercise and take responsibility for their own health. Obesity has doubled in the past 20 to 30 years. Obese children will most likely be obese adults. Obesity can lead to a future of diet-related disease, like diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease. Obesity is becoming a national health problem but making the right choices about diet and exercise is a step in the right direction to beat obesity.

Bad eating habits and poor nutrition is one of the leading causes of obesity. One cause of child obesity is vending machines in schools. This leads to bad choices and weight gain. Furthermore, having the vending machines in schools creates an environment that promotes unhealthy choices. Schools teach good nutrition but when the bell rings students can get junk food right down the hall. One approach to this problem is healthier snacks in the vending machines. In a single vending machine size of Lays chips there are 150 calories and 90 calories from fat. Alternatives to this would be fruit cups, almonds, and cashews. The alternative to pop would be juice, sports drinks and water. Eliminating junk food in vending machines and replacing it with healthy choices would encourage behavior changes and a better diet.

Another cause of obesity is inactivity. The creation of videogames has caused a large increase in child obesity. Every hour children play video games or watch television may double their risk of obesity. Video games and TV are fine in moderation but they should be paired with a couple hours of physical activity. Parents should monitor how much time their child is spending indoors and try to encourage physical activities such as going out and playing a sport. For younger children, having a mother who works outside the home or a father who smokes could also increase the risk of...