Non Obese O Obese Children And Adolescents example essay topic

Obesity in children and adolescents is a serious issue with many health and social consequences that often continue into adulthood. Implementing prevention programs and getting a better understanding of treatment for youngsters is important to controlling the obesity epidemic. There are many factors that contribute to causing child and adolescent obesity - some are modifiable and others are not. Modifiable causes include: . Physical Activity - Lack of regular exercise... Sedentary behavior - High frequency of television viewing, computer usage, and similar behavior that takes up time that can be used for physical activity...

Socioeconomic Status - Low family incomes and non-working parents... Eating Habits - Over-consumption of high-calorie foods. Some eating patterns that have been associated with this behavior are eating when not hungry, eating while watching TV or doing homework... Environment - Some factors are over-exposure to advertising of foods that promote high-calorie foods and lack of recreational facilities.

Non-changeable causes include: Genetics - Greater risk of obesity has been found in children of obese and overweight parents. Health Effects Many adverse health effects associated with overweight are observed in children and adolescents. Overweight during childhood and particularly adolescence is related to increased morbidity and mortality in later life. Asthma o Prevalence of overweight is reported to be significantly higher in children and adolescents with moderate to severe asthma compared to a peer group. Diabetes (Type 2) o Type 2 diabetes in children and adolescents has increased dramatically in a short period. The parallel increase of obesity in children and adolescents is reported to be the most significant factor for the rise in diabetes. o Type 2 diabetes accounted for 2 to 4 percent of all childhood diabetes before 1992, but skyrocketed to 16 percent by 1994. o Obese children and adolescents are reported to be 12.6 times more likely than non-obese to have high fasting blood insulin levels, a risk factor for type 2 diabetes. o Type 2 diabetes is predominant among African American and Hispanic youngsters, with a particularly high rate among those of Mexican descent.

Hypertension o Persistently elevated blood pressure levels have been found to occur about 9 times more frequently among obese children and adolescents (ages 5 to 18) than in non-obese. o Obese children and adolescents are reported to be 2.4 times more likely to have high diastolic blood pressure and 4.5 times more likely to have high systolic blood pressure than their non-obese peers. Orthopedic Complications o Among growing youth, bone and cartilage in the process of development are not strong enough to bear excess weight. As a result, a variety of orthopedic complications occur in children and adolescents with obesity. In young children, excess weight can lead to bowing and overgrowth of leg bones. o Increased weight on the growth plate of the hip can cause pain and limit range of motion. Between 30 to 50 percent of children with this condition are overweight. Psychosocial Effects & Stigma o Overweight children are often taller than the non-overweight. o White girls, who develop a negative body image, are at a greater risk for the subsequent development of eating disorders. o Adolescent females who are overweight have reported experiences with stigmatization such as direct and intentional weight-related teasing, jokes and derogatory name calling, as well as less intentional, potentially hurtful comments by peers, family members, employers and strangers. o Overweight children and adolescents report negative assumptions made about them by others, including being inactive or lazy, being strong and tougher than others, not having feelings, and being unclean.

Sleep Apnea o Sleep apnea, the absence of breathing during sleep, occurs in about 7 percent of children with obesity. Deficits in logical thinking are common in children with obesity and sleep apnea. Establish policies that promote enjoyable, lifelong physical activity... Schools should require daily physical education and comprehensive health education (including lessons on physical activity) in grades K-12...

Schools and community organizations should provide adequate funding, equipment, and supervision for programs that meet the needs and interests of all students. 2. Environment Provide physical and social environments that encourage and enable young people to engage in safe and enjoyable physical activity... Provide access to safe spaces and facilities and implement measures to prevent activity-related injuries and illnesses... Provide school time, such as recess, for unstructured physical activity, such as jumping rope... Discourage the use or withholding of physical activity as punishment...

Provide health promotion programs for school faculty and staff. 3. Physical Education Curricula and Instruction Implement sequential physical education curricula and instruction in grades K-12 that. Emphasize enjoyable participation in lifetime physical activities such as walking and dancing, not just competitive sports... Help students develop the knowledge, attitudes, and skills they need to adopt and maintain a physically active lifestyle... Follow the National Standards for Physical Education...

Keep students active for most of class time. 4. Health Education Curricula and Instruction Implement health education curricula and instruction that. Feature active learning strategies and follow the National Health Education Standards...

Help students develop the knowledge, attitudes, and skills they need to adopt and maintain a healthy lifestyle. 5. Extracurricular Activities Provide extracurricular physical activity programs that offer diverse, developmentally appropriate activities both noncompetitive and competitive for all students. 6.

Family Involvement Encourage parents and guardians to support their children's participation in physical activity, to be physically active role models, and to include physical activity in family events. 7. Training Provide training to enable teachers, coaches, recreation and health care staff, and other school and community personnel to promote enjoyable, lifelong physical activity among young people. 8.

Health Services Assess the physical activity patterns of young people, refer them to appropriate physical activity programs, and advocate for physical activity instruction and programs for young people. 9. Community Programs Provide a range of developmentally appropriate community sports and recreation programs that are attractive to all young people. 10. Evaluation Regularly evaluate physical activity instruction, programs, and facilities. Easy access to junk food.

Gargantuan portion sizes. Little if any exercise. These are among the reasons why twice as many American children are fat these days compared with 30 years ago, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The incidence of childhood obesity has doubled since the 1970's, with 13 percent of children and adolescents obese and an additional 15 percent considered overweight. Portion sizes are a huge problem. Restaurant meal portions have grown over the past few decades because food has become so cheap and abundant.

It's inexpensive and easy for restaurants to provide large meals, which attracts consumers, who equate a bigger portion with a better deal. Twenty years ago, the average fast food cheeseburger had 333 calories, according to the CDC. Today, that cheeseburger contains nearly 600 calories. A portion of french fries used to weigh 2.4 ounces and contain 210 calories. Today, the average portion weighs nearly 7 ounces and has 610 calories. The typical spaghetti and meatball meal used to contain 500 calories.

Now, restaurant patrons get approximately 1,025 calories from the dish. Larger portion sizes plus a lack of daily exercise compounds the problem of childhood obesity, pediatric specialists say. Children don't run around outside as much as they used to because of safety concerns, nor do many of them get adequate exercise during the school day.