Child hood obesity in elementary school age - Research Paper Example

? Childhood Obesity in Elementary School Age CHILDHOOD OBESITY IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AGE Childhood obesity has greatly increased over the years and this rise has resulted due to many reasons. This includes an increase in unhealthy eating patterns and a decrease in the physical activity of the children. The rise in obesity has raised many alarms owing to the negative impact on the health of the individual. Obesity leads to life hampering pathologies which include diabetes mellitus type two, hypertension as well as cardiovascular and renal diseases. These diseases can be prevented if the issue of obesity is effectively handled by the collaborative efforts of the state, the media as well as the educational organizations in the United States. Policies should be developed which promote physical activity amongst children and also encourage healthy eating patterns. CHILDHOOD OBESITY IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AGE INTRODUCTION Obesity has been termed as an epidemic owing to the rise in the statistics of the people suffering from this health condition. Childhood obesity is a major issue of concern in the United States because of the increase in the number of children who have started becoming obese. This has led to a rise in the risk of various pathological conditions in these children. Over the last three decades, the graph of obesity has shown an upward trend and childhood obesity statistics have soared more than twice in these years. This rise has led to show the link between obesity and life hampering health conditions including diabetes, cancer as well as cardiac diseases. Not only this, psychological and social issues are also prevalent amongst these children. This problem needs to be tackled and measures need to be taken to overcome this epidemic of obesity. Promotion of a healthy lifestyle with the collaborative efforts of the state, media and educational institutions can prove to be beneficial in the prevention of obesity (CDC 2013). Childhood obesity has thus reached to alarming levels in the United States and effective preventive measures are needed as childhood obesity is associated with a large number of diseases. BODY Obesity and its Causes Obesity is a condition where an individual has an increased amount of body fat and hence an increased body weight. Obesity results when a person consumes an excessive amount of calories in comparison to the amount of calories that are burnt or utilized. Thus, there is increased accumulation of fat in the body (CDC 2013). Obesity amongst children has greatly risen in the United States and a report by the Institute of Medicine put forward that up to 9 million children and adolescents above the age of 6 years had increased weight and obesity in the United States. This has been accompanied with a surge in the healthcare expenditure for the management of obesity related pathologies that result in these individuals (Witeing, 2008, pg. 545). Obesity results due to a large number of causes which include the influence of the media and physical inactivity. Racial characteristics and societal influences are also known to play a role in the causation of obesity. A higher incidence of obesity is seen amongst the children belonging to the African American, Mexican American and Native American groups. Societal factors also play a part in leading to obesity. This can be seen as in certain localities in the United States, supermarkets and outlets providing fresh foods are not in close vicinity in comparison to the fast food restaurants and other unhealthy alternatives. Thus, this promotes unhealthy eating habits amongst the individuals. Also in certain areas, open spaces for walking and physical activity are not present. This along with a rise in crime rate in certain areas and increased traffic prevents the parents from allowing their children from going out and hence the children are indulged in indoor activities like watching television and playing video games. Physical activity education has also decreased in the schools and this accompanied with increased availability of private transport has resulted in a lack of physical activity. This has promoted obesity as well. The media also has a central role in leading to obesity because of advertising unhealthy foods which appeal to the younger generation who prefer these foods over the healthy foods and thus obesity is the result (Witeing, 2008, pg. 546). Effects of Obesity Obesity is a grave issue owing to the fact that it effects the optimal functioning of all the normal systems in the human body. Childhood obesity raises the risk for the development of disorders of the cardiovascular system. This occurs due to raised blood sugar levels, altered levels of lipids in the body as well as increased blood pressure. Childhood obesity also leads to respiratory diseases including obstructive sleep apnea and asthma. Chronic renal pathologies may also result and diseases of the bones and joints are also fairly common amongst this group. The obese children are also at a far greater risk of suffering from chronic diseases like hypertension and diabetes mellitus type two at an older age. Childhood obesity not only affects the physical health of the children but it also leads to psychosocial disorders. These children do not mingle with other children of their age group and remain isolated. Their school performance is also affected and their results are poor in comparison to the other students. Thus, childhood obesity needs to be effectively tackled owing to the wide range of negative effects that result due to it (Caprio et al, 2008, pg. 2211,2212). Prevention Childhood obesity can be dealt with in an effective manner with the combined efforts of the parents of the children, the government, educational institutions, the media and the food industry. It is considered that children are the most effective targets for preventing the epidemic of obesity. The government should frame policies which implement the necessity of physical education as part of the school curriculum. It should also promote the usage of public transport and create walkways and public spaces for the children to indulge in physical activity. The educational institutions should also work for promoting physical activity and healthy eating habits amongst children. The media should develop marketing strategies which promote healthy foods rather than promoting unhealthy diets and junk food. The food sector should also take steps which include raising the cost of unhealthy food items and the provision of proper logos on these food items to reveal their composition so that the consumers are aware of the nutritional values of the food items that they are consuming (Dehghan et al, 2005). Conclusion In the United States of America, greater than 9 million children and adolescents above the age of 6 years are suffering from the problem of obesity. These statistics reveal the intensity of the issue and thus explains the fact that effective and strong measures are needed to overcome childhood obesity. Childhood obesity has risen greatly over the last three decades and this increase has resulted due to physical inactivity accompanied with unhealthy eating habits. This rise has also led to a surge in the disease conditions associated with obesity which include debilitating disease states like cancers and cardiovascular diseases. Thus, it has a great impact on the quality of life of the people in the United States. This calls for a strong action on the part of the government which should implement policies in association with the educational institutions, the media and the food industry to effectively reduce the incidence of obesity. WORKS CITED “Childhood Obesity Facts.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 10 Jul. 2013. Web. 20 Oct. 2013. http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/obesity/facts.htm Caprio, Sonia; Daniels, Stephen R.; Drewnowski, Adam; Kaufman, Francine R.; Palinkas, Lawrence A.; Rosenbloom, Arlan L. and Schwimmer, Jeffrey B. "Influence of Race, Ethnicity, and Culture on Childhood Obesity: Implications for Prevention and Treatment."  Diabetes Care. 31.11 (2008): 2211-21. 11p. Web. 20 Oct. 2013. http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/31/11/2211.full.pdf+html Dehghan, Mahshid, Akhtar-Danesh, Noori and Merchant, Anwar T.. "Childhood Obesity, Prevalence and Prevention." Nutrition Journal. 4 (2005). Web. 20 Oct. 2013. http://www.nutritionj.com/content/pdf/1475-2891-4-24.pdf Wieting, JM. "Cause and Effect in Childhood Obesity: Solutions for a National Epidemic." The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association. 108.10 (2008): 545-52. 8p. Web. 20 Oct. 2013. http://www.jaoa.org/content/108/10/545.full.pdf+html Read More