Childhood Obesity Is Now a Global Problem

 Global Child Health  Comments Off
Jan 082012
 

Childhood obesity is now a global problem, and is no longer an issue that affects just the USA but also the whole planet. There is no country that does not face the severe menace of childhood obesity.

Childhood obesity is likely to cost us our future if we bury our heads in the sand. Obesity is a state of being critically overweight to such a degree that it affects the child’s health. The first difficulties in childhood obesity are emotional and psychological. These lead to sadness, loneliness and nervousness, and these children are more likely to engage in higher risk behaviours such as smoking and alcohol consumption, which makes the problem much worse.

This childhood obesity also leads to life-threatening conditions such as heart disease,

high blood pressure, diabetes, sleep apnoea, liver disease, early puberty, eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia, asthma and shins infections, and worst of all, cancer. Obese children grow up to be obese adults. Also of concern is the mortality rate, which is on the rise for childhood obesity and adolescent obesity.

Obese children suffer terribly from teasing, harassment, and discrimination, which leads to very low self-esteem and depression. Children who are obese have carotid arteries which have prematurely aged 30 years, as well as abnormal levels of cholesterol.

Eating in high street fast food outlets such as McDonald’s is one of the main causes of obesity in childhood. The fast food industries are totally at fault here, but so are parents. They allow their children to make the choices for eating when parents and family should be sitting down to a family meal with no TV, music or radios blasting in the background. Try to remember this; the fast food industries spend $50 billion each year on advertising AIMED AT CHILDREN. See how many websites these fast food chains have and then remember that 100 million children view these websites each month. Also, look at McDonald’s and other fast food chains. They give out toys. Who for? CHILDREN. Continue reading »

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Children’s Health – Steps to Prevent Childhood Obesity

 Global Child Health  Comments Off
Dec 082011
 

So you eat out regularly and the children tag along as well. You spoil them with all the junk food they want. You think that you are a good parent because you give your children what they require.

You look at your children and realise that they are FAT! They don’t do sport, hate exercise but love doing other less stressful thing. Obesity has never been a problem amongst children like it is today. Preventing childhood obesity is not as difficult as it may seem. It starts with you the parent. Open the fridge and see what you buy them. Look at how you feed them. Preventing childhood obesity starts with you! Change the eating habits of your children. Get them into an exercise routine. Yes that is right… Cut their access to social media. They are young and should be out running in the back yard. Not loafing around on chat sites, watching television, etc. Get involved in their lives and encourage them to play a sport. And I do not mean that they play baseball on their game console and your encouragement ends with you playing with them.

A healthy diet, good exercise and quality family time will prevent childhood obesity making an unhealthy appearance in your family. You do know that fat children develop breathing problems, heart problems (blood pressure either too high or too low) and they are tired most of the time.

Now is the time to really act and stop this from ruining the next generation.

Childhood obesity is a world-wide problem. The more junk food we consume the more unhealthy we become. And if it is okay for us to eat, then so it will be for our children. We even force them to finish their soda, because you paid for it and hate it when they waste food that you have paid for. Continue reading »

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Childhood Obesity – Food Does Not Equal Love

 Global Child Health  Comments Off
Nov 082011
 

Are you a parent that is afraid to say no? Do you need the affirmation of your children or loved ones to build up your own self esteem?

There is nothing cuter than a plump and healthy baby or a chubby-cheeked toddler. We all have different bodies and body types. A tall slender parent can have a short stocky child and a short stocky parent can have a slender child. There is no need to think your child should look like you and have the same shape of hands, feet, or body as you had at that age. However, you have to be realistic about your child’s health.

Don’t be the parent that enables their children and poor eating habits

There are some parents who want to put their tiny children on a diet for no reason than the parent is obsessed with food and diet and appearances. And there are some parents who do not recognize that their child is obese. If you said to a mother, your child is at risk of diabetes or heart disease because of her weight, chances are good that you would hear a very rough review of how you should mind your own business.

Even harder than that is assessing your own child’s health. You see the little person you would die for and in your eyes she is perfect. Maybe she just has a little baby fat but we all know that goes away. Even if she becomes a little chubbier, you don’t want to deny her the things she loves like fast food burgers and big gooey brownies. It never seems like one little treat will do anything long term negative to her health so why punish her by saying no?

Sometimes real love means that you need to be the tough guy

Well, if every mother felt this way, some would have to be in denial. Studies have shown that in the United States, children who were often fed fast food were taking in way more calories than are healthy for them. Included in these calories are unhealthy levels of saturated fats and carbohydrates. Children are at the mercy of the people who make them their meals and as easy as it is to be loved as the food provider, you have a higher duty to your children. You have to safeguard their health. Continue reading »

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