Children in the United States and around the world manifest a burgeoning problem with obesity. An estimated 16 to 33 percent of American children meet the definition of obesity according to the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP). Children who display obesity between ages 10 to 13 have an 80 percent likelihood of becoming obese adults. The AACAP notes that obesity poses significant risks to health and well-being. For example, obesity heightens the probability of breathing problems, high blood pressure, heart disease, orthopedic problems, liver disease and sleep problems such as sleep apnea. Similarly, obese children and adolescents are more likely to develop social and emotional problems like low esteem, social rejection, anxiety, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Generally, children are considered obese when they are more than 10 percent heavier than is average for their height, or when their Body Mass Index (BMI) is 30 or greater. You can determine if your child is overweight or obese by using an online BMI calculator at Keep Kids Healthy.
Overeating
Obese children tend to overeat. Studies such as described at Advertising Education Forum show that portion sizes have increased in recent years. Obese children cultivate distorted perceptions of what constitutes a normal serving size. Family patterns contribute to the glut. The presence of one overweight or obese parent in a family creates an 80 percent risk that a teen child will be overweight or obese, according to University of Michigan Health System. This may be due to genetic proclivities, but is more than likely due primarily to family eating patterns.
Poor Food Choices
Obese children not only eat too much food, they eat the wrong kind of food. Obesity rates, insulin resistance rates and the consumption of fast foods have all witnessed steep increases over the past three decades. Pediatricians Elvira Isganaitis and Robert Lustig describe disturbing trends in American dietary patterns at American Heart Association. They note that the characteristics of fast food, including high fat, high fructose, low dairy, low fiber, and high-energy density encourage insulin resistance and obesity. These same qualities that sabotage the nutritional value of fast food have infiltrated Americans' home diet in the form of frozen, processed and prepared foods. Fatty, fried, starchy, and sweet foods take wide berths on our tables and in our pantries. Widely marketed, readily available and arguably addictive, these seductive foods have become a staple that threatens our children's health.
Television, Video Games and Inactivity
Obese children consume more calories than they burn. Rising obesity rates mirror ever-increasing amounts of time children spend perched in front of video games, computers and television. Children who spend more time in front of screens spend less time engaged in physical activity. As noted at University of Michigan Health System, many studies find that children who spend more time watching television or playing video games are less active and more obese.
Medical and Genetic Factors
Sometimes obesity results from genetic or physical factors. Diseases like Prader-Willis syndrome and Cushing's syndrome can induce obesity. Children who have mothers with diabetes are more likely to be overweight. Studies cited at University of Michigan Health System indicate that in utero or newborn exposure to certain chemicals may compromise weight control mechanisms and contribute to later obesity.
Medications
Medications that stimulate appetite, slow metabolism or cause water retention may cause weight gain. Steroids, anti-seizure medications, anti-depressants and medications for other psychiatric conditions can stimulate weight gain.
References
- Advertising Education Forum: Increasing portion sizes in American diets: More calories, more obesity
- American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
- American Heart Association: Fast Food, Central Nervous System Insulin Resistance, and Obesity.
- University of Michigan Health Systems: Obesity and Overweight
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