CHILDHOOD OBESITY Asia Jackson ENGL 122 English Composition11 Jason Vinson December 17, 2012 Childhood obesity is an ongoing epidemic in the United States. Today in America every one and three children are obese. Obesity is defined as an excessively high amount of body fat in relation to lean body mass. Schwimmer, J.B., Burwinkle, T.M and Varni, J.W., (2003), Ch ildhood obesity is now the number 1 health concern among parents in the United States. Child obesity is a very serious matter.
General Purpose: To Inform Specific Purpose: To define the listeners the seriousness of obesity in children and adults I.Did you know 1/3 of children in America between the ages of 2 and 19 are overweight or obese. II.What is Obesity? A) is an abnormal accumulation of body fat, usually 20% or more over an individual's ideal body weight. B) obesity is associated with increased risk of illness, disability, and death. (www.thefreedictionary.com) Body: I.
There are several contributing factors involved with obesity in children and many components that may influence its development and onset including family lifestyle, family history, psychological factors, socio-economic factors, and many more. Obesity does not happen overnight; it is the result of a chain of bad habits, poor nutrition, and lack of exercise (Zeratsky, 2011). In today's fast paced society, time management has become extremely important. This may be a factor that contributes to why some children have poor nutrition; they are simply not eating healthy because there may not be ample time to cook nutritious meals (Zeratsky,
Childhood obesity is increasing at rates of epidemic proportion across the globe and is becoming a significant health problem. The current obesity rates in Australian children are among the highest in the developed world. ‘In 2007–08, one-quarter of all Australian children, or around 600,000 children aged 5–17 years, were overweight or obese, up four percentage points from 1995 (21%). According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABOS) (2009). ‘Research indicates an annual increase of this figure of 1-1.5%, a trend that suggests half of all young Australians will be overweight by the year 2025’ (Tipping the scales: Intervention and management of childhood obesity 2007).
Such stressors include increased exposure to television advertisements for unhealthy foods, unsafe neighborhoods which inhibit outdoor play and exercise, and limited availability of healthy, fresh foods in low socioeconomic residential areas (Galvez 2003). These are just a few of the factors that contribute to obesity in minorities, which cause concern for the overall health of minority youth. Obesity-related health problems reported by Kumanyika and Grier (2006) which can be "seen in children include precursors of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and sleep disordered breathing. Ethnic minority and low-income children appear to be more likely to experience some of the obesity-related health problems" (p. 191). In effect, the largest threat to the overall health of American minority groups
This is part of the reason that once a person gains a large amount of weight it is so much harder to loss it. How can someone determine if they are overweight? According to the U.S. obesity rates report, an estimated 119 million Americans are overweight or obese, that’s 64.5 percent of adults. This report further mentions that the States with the highest obesity rate are most southern States such as Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Texas, it further suggested Michigan, Kentucky, Indiana, West Virginia and South Carolina because these States all have rates of 25 percent or
Cynthia Holland English 102 Professor Myers 2 March 2011 Word Count 1,184 How the Epidemic of Obesity is Taking Over America According to Barbara Mantel, the rate of obesity “has increased dramatically over the last 40 years, and in 2001 the nations surgeon general went so far as to call obesity an epidemic” (Mantel par. 1). The obesity epidemic has affected millions of live across the United States. There are important factors as to why obesity is such a problem in America, too many people are eating excessive portions of fast foods, people are getting less exercise, and with new technology being developed people are becoming more sedentary. The rate of obesity among the people of the United States has become alarmingly overwhelming.
The increase in “eating out” dining may be a contributor to the overweight problem in children and adolescents. Fact: foods from restaurants and fast food eateries tend to be higher in fat and saturated fat than foods prepared at home (Newby). Fast food restaurants are one of the most convenient methods of "eating out" dining, but do not provide proper nutrients to children’s diets. Is lack of time and a busy lifestyle a factor to blame for the rise in childhood obesity or should the finger be pointed in another
Childhood Obesity Majority of children in today’s society are decreasing the time spent in physical activities as they are spending more time playing video games and watching TV. Due to their sedentary behavior they are increasing the level of excessive body fat to their weight (Whitker, Robert). This issue of childhood obesity has become an epidemic in America. The Colorado University research shows that within last couple of decades the obesity level among children and adolescent has doubled (P. Kendall). The increase in excessive body fat leads to serious health problems such as high blood pressure, type two diabetes, and other serious health risks (Estarbrooks, Paul).
Overweight children and adolescents are more likely to become obese adults. For example, one study found that approximately 80 percent of children who were overweight at 10 to 15 years old were obese at 25. (Bellows)Innocent kids deserve a healthy and long life in the future. What are the causes of childhood obesity? There is not one single cause, rather a combination of few.