Child Obesity in America – The Importance of Overturning this Trend

 Believe it or not, child obesity in America is actually malnutrition, and it has been linked to poverty. In a 2003 article titled Poverty and Obesity: The Role of Energy Density and Energy Costs Adam Drewnowski, world-renowned leader in ground-breaking research advances for the prevention and treatment of obesity, and Director of the Nutritional Science Program at the University of Washington in Seattle, said “Genetics and family history can predict whether you will become obese but then so can your ZIP code.”

 

Health experts have portrayed child obesity in America as a national epidemic. Not only is the pediatric population as a group getting fatter, but the fatter children are also getting more obese, with super-obesity having risen approximately one hundred percent over the past two decades. Insulin resistance, elevated blood lipids, and high blood pressure are just some of the problems connected to obesity in childhood.

 

Fattening foods laced with high fructose corn syrup are usually cheaper than fresh produce, and with so many families cutting back these days, it’s not surprising that childhood obesity rates are rising. You can buy a burger with fries and a large soda for less than it costs to purchase a salad and bottled water. Today, we devour more than five hundred calories more per day than we did a quarter century ago.

 

Not enough seems to be taking place with child obesity in America to make the difference that the next generation needs to see, even with all of the media awareness on the increase in mass and the decline in activity of children all across the country. Education for parents, teachers, the public, and also for the nation’s children, is key. The more you can learn about child obesity in America, the more you can do to assist in stopping it.