PSA and Childhood Obesity

Public Service Announcement

Did you know America is in the middle of a crisis? Over the past thirty years childhood obesity has tripled.  Our Nation’s children are suffering from diseases normally seen in adults, such as diabetes and high blood pressure. One of the most important things we can do to combat this epidemic is to choose healthier food options for our children and increase their physical activity.  More fruits and vegetable along with thirty minutes of exercise is recommend to reduce childhood obesity (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2012).  It’s time to stop pointing the finger at what caused the childhood obesity crisis and wage a war against it! The "figures" don't lie. Healthy choices make healthy children.

New England Journal Study

One of the largest studies on childhood obesity was recently published in The New England Journal of Medicine.  The study kept track of weight and risk factors on thousands Pima and Tohono O’odham Indian children from childhood through early adulthood.  They found that the overweight children were two times as likely as their thinner counterparts to die prematurely from obesity and its related diseases, such as heart disease (Rabin, 2010). 

Throughout their study it became apparent that the children they were studying were not the only children being affected by the childhood obesity epidemic but it was becoming a widespread epidemic across American children. Nearly thirty-three percent of American children are categorized as being overweight or obese (Rabin, 2010).

 Helen C. Looker is assistant professor of medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center and the senior author of this paper. She says, “Obesity in children who have not reached puberty are increasing their chances of long –term health issues.  If today's children plan to live beyond the age of 55 the series of unhealthy behaviors that have been set in motion need to change”(Rabin, 2010).

Rabin, Roni C. (2010). "Child Obesity Risks Death at Early Age, Study Finds - NYTimes.com."

Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/11/health/11fat.html

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Childhood obesity is increasing at an alarming rate! Children are eating too many calories and are not getting enough exercise to burn them off. With the rise in childhood obesity we are now seeing diseases we only use to see in older adults such as, high blood pressure, diabetes, sleep disturbances, and  joint problems. If children continue to gain weight at unhealthy rates they will become obese adults (CDC, 2012).

The CDC has identified reasons they believe have contributed to this epidemic. Society has become lax in their physical activity trading outdoor activities for indoor activities, portion sizes have increased, increases in junk food options and limited access to healthy foods (CDC, 2012).

There is a combination of strategies and solutions to help decrease this epidemic. Parents can serve water instead of sugary drinks, increase physical activity, control junk food intake and reduce portion sizes.  Schools can reduce vending machines, stock vending machines with healthy options, add a salad bar and incorporate fresh products (CDC, 2012).

Statistics

• "Childhood obesity has tripled since 1980." (CDC, 2012)
• "Over 12 million children and adolescents aged 2 - 19 years are obese." (CDC,2012)
• "1 of 7 low-income, preschool-aged children is obese." (CDC, 2012)

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], (2012). Childhood overweight and obesity.                 Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/childhood/index.html

Family Lifestyle

 Entry 2 9/25

Childhood Obesity

            Family lifestyle, in my opinion, is a major contributor to the childhood obesity epidemic. We have two income, single income, and single parent families who are working longer hours, and more days to maintain their standard of living which leaves them with little time and energy to prepare home cooked meals.

There are two extreme ends to the contribution towards childhood obesity.  At one end we have families who are on the go with many extracurricular activities which leaves them little time for home-cooked meals so their options are usually on the go fast food choices.  The other end of the spectrum is many children are living sedentary lifestyles.  Nowadays it seems the majority of time is spent in front of the television, computer, playing video games, on our phones, and social networking.  All these activities promote sedentary lifestyles and, in my opinion, are contributing to the unhealthy lifestyle most Americans are living and the rise in childhood obesity. These activities contribute to snacking and filling up on junk causing us to feel full so we’re not hungry when it is time to eat a real meal.

When I was a child I spent barely any time indoors. My days consisted of riding bikes, climbing trees, and playing at the playground until dark.  I grew up in Upstate New York and the winters were brutal, but on almost any given day I was outside playing.

We are raising our children to believe that eating pre-cooked, high calorie processed foods are an acceptable means of nutrition. When really we are serving our children foods loaded with preservatives, sugar saturated fats and high sodium.

Interesting Statistics!

•  “Eight- to eighteen-year-olds spend more time with media than in any other activity besides sleeping—an average of more than 7½ hours a day, seven days a week” (Rideout, Foehr & Roberts, 2010)

•  "There are over 25,000 fast food chains for Americans to choose from. The yearly total Americans spend on fast food is over $140 billion a year” (The healthy eating guide, 2011).

References

Rideout, V., Foehr, U., & Roberts, D. (2010). Generation M2 media in the lives of 8to18year olds. A Kaiser family foundation study. Retrieved from http://www.kff.org/entmedia/ upload/8010.pdf

The Healthy Eating Guide. (2011). Health eating statistics: American’s obesity crisis. Retrieved from http://www.thehealthyeatingguide.com/healthyeatingstatistics.html

Welcome to my blog!

My Blog

Childhood Obesity is an epidemic! Please watch this video as this is an introduction the health topic I will be blogging about.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLMoFST_Lmc

The health topic I will be focusing on is childhood obesity. 

I have always been interested in eating healthy and exercising to stay fit.  I believe there is a strong connection between food and health. It is my belief that a healthy diet can prevent most ailments or at least help reduce symptoms.        

I believe our nation’s attitude towards food is one of indulgence with the motto “I can eat what I want and how much I want” but this attitude has come with a high price tag, childhood obesity. I believe that there has been some attempt at change, but because change is difficult many people settle for an easier solution. For example, we tell our children that eating chips is unhealthy, sounds like we are doing the right thing, but actually instead of changing our snack food to a healthier choice, such as carrots sticks or fruit we choose a chip that has less fat, lower sodium, or says they’re organic because this is easier than actually changing our habits.

Here are some shocking statistics!

•           “Over the past thirty years childhood obesity has tripled” (Centers for Disease Control and prevention [CDC], 2011a).

•           “The percentage of children aged 6–11 years in the United States who were obese increased from 7% in 1980 to nearly 20% in 2008. Similarly, the percentage of adolescents aged 12–19 years who were obese increased from 5% to 18% over the same period” (CDC, 2011a).

Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2011a). Childhood obesity facts. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/ healthyyouth/ obesity/facts.htm