Research, Resources, and Other Info to Consider about Childhood Obesity

The facts are well known and, on any given week, we are bombarded by stories in the media about obesity. Childhood obesity is at epidemic proportions and has more than doubled in the last 30 years. But it goes beyond that. Overweight children grow into overweight adults.
Here are just a few facts to consider:

According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services, overweight adolescents have a 70% chance of becoming obese adults. This increases if a parent, one or both, is overweight or obese. That is not surprising since children are influenced by the lifestyle that they see and experience in the home. lifestyle that they see and experience in the home. That includes the amount of physical activity and eating patterns.

Children that become overweight or obese adults are prone to diabetes, heart disease and other health problems. The risk factors for heart disease, such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure are on the increase in overweight children and adolescents compared to normal weight children. And, type 2 diabetes has dramatically increased in children and adolescents. Type 2 diabetes until recently was considered an adult disease. But, not any more.

We can go on and on about the long term physical effects, but there are also substantial psychological effects to consider. A study which appeared in the Journal of the American Medical Association, focused on obesity studies that found, "obese children rate their quality of life with scores as low as those of young cancer patients on chemotherapy." From my personal childhood, as well as professional, experiences I know obese children are often teased at school, they are not picked to play on teams, and they often report trouble with sleeping.

Dr. Jeffrey Shimmer, a pediatric gastroenterologist at the University of California in San Diego said, "The likelihood of significant quality-of-life impairment was profound for obese children."

There is no doubt that the long-term effects of obesity can be devastating.

Obesity prevention must begin in early childhood by teaching skills and habits for a healthy lifestyle. It's not enough to tell children to 'go out and play'. We have to teach them physical literacy skills so they have the confidence to enjoy physical activity. Only them can we begin to reverse the staggering long-term effects of obesity.

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