In the past 30 years, childhood obesity has more than doubled in children, and even scarier, more than tripled in teens. More than one-third of our young population is overweight and/or obese. One study found that an estimated 80 percent of overweight pre-teens and teens (ages 10 to 15) were obese by the age of 25. Another reports that 25 percent of adults who are currently obese were also overweight during childhood.
The scary truth about childhood obesity is that it sets children up for long term healthy problems including Diabetes, Hypertension, high cholesterol and cardiovascular disease.. These can be life threatening illnesses.
What’s the difference between being overweight and obese? The definition of obesity is having excess body fat, whereas you are considered overweight if you have excess weight for your height. The key is linked to body fat and muscle, but there is no one factor that is considered when determining what is overweight.
Why are children obese? It’s more than just poor food choices and calorie intake.
Lack of Exercise
Diet
Family History
Economic Factors
Television & Video Games
Psychological Factors
As Parents, what can we do to fight this silent epidemic?
A change of diet is the obvious place to start but it can be a challenge. As many children turn their noses up at vegetables and fruits. Offer fruits and veggies, and always have them cleaned and ready to eat. We’ve found that coming home from the store and washing and portioning out the fruits and veggies makes them more accessible and they become more of a go-to when the afternoon refrigerator raid happens.
Get moving! To stay healthy and fight weight gain, all Americans should aim for at least 60 minutes of sweat-inducing exercise every day. But the reality is that fewer than one third of kids and teens ages 6 to 17 get even 20 minutes of that kind of vigorous exercise.
Watch for hidden calories in the drinks your kids are drinking. Cutting sugary drinks out of your child’s diet (and your own) can help to significantly reduce the number of calories your child consumes every day. Sweetened drinks and fruit drinks offer nothing except sugar and calories. Even 100 percent fruit juices, although better than fruit-flavored, sugary drinks because of their vitamins and nutrients, still pack in a lot of calories per serving. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that kids ages 7 and older drink no more than 12 ounces of 100 percent fruit juice a day (one serving of fruit is equal to four ounces of 100 percent fruit juice).
Sleep. Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health have found an association between childhood obesity and the number of hours a child sleeps each night — the fewer hours of sleep each night increases the risk of being overweight or obese.
One of the most important things we can do is educate our children. Teaching kids how to properly take care of their bodies is one of the keys to fighting obesity. Educate your kids about the food pyramid. It’s changed since you were a kid, so get a refresher for yourself at the MyPyramid.gov Web site. Take the kiddos shopping with you, teach them how to read food labels. Allow them to help you prepare meals and snacks.
In an effort to combat childhood obesity in Birmingham’s youth, the City of Birmingham Mayor’s Office Division of Youth Services (DYS) and the Junior League of Birmingham will host its YOUTH FIRST NOBESITY EXPO + 5K FOR KIDS at Legion Field on Saturday, April 5, 2014. This community-wide event is sponsored by Princeton Baptist Medical Center.
