Childhood Obesity
Facts and News related to Obesity in Children
- What Do You Think?
Childhood Obesity is related to bad eating and drinking habits, caused by the misinformation of the parents by food factory marketing strategies.
It is a fact that many children and their parents are attracted to eating fast, processed foods with delicious artificial flavors and sipping colas or other colored artificially flavored and sweetened drinks, which are in fact marketed as "healthy", "natural" and "low calorie"
A big concern on child health and development the misunderstanding
of the child needs when it comes to: nutrition, hydration and exercise, leading to an increasing number of obese children.
If no
intervention is made, 80% of them will remain overweight as adults,
with risk of many medical problems in the future, including:
- diabetes,
- osteoporosis,
- high blood pressure,
- high cholesterol,
- sleep disorder,
- Childhood Obesity can also adversely affect their self-esteem.
I put together some articles I found to be quite stunning regarding this major problem which is obesity in children. What do you think? Do you have anything to add to this alarming information? You can do it here, by inserting your own facts and comments.
Child Nutrition Facts
Artificial Flavoring in Childhood Obesity:
Do you know that: America's favorite ice cream is flavored with wood pulp, and many soft drinks owe their sweetness to coal? There are hardly ever any cherries in a cherry lollipop, or bananas in banana cake. Maple syrup need not come from the tree that bears this name, and a chocolate cookie can contain only a trace of chocolate...
If this information comes as any surprise to you, just read the list of ingredients printed on soda bottles, candy bars, cookie boxes or packages of prepared foods. Down in the small print you are almost sure to read the words, "artificial flavoring."
Fast Food Facts in Childhood Obesity
HOT DOGS are one of the children's favorite foods
"Children who eat hot dogs once a week double their risk of a brain tumor. Youngsters eating other cured meats, such as ham, sausage and bacon, had an 80 percent higher risk of brain cancer. This study was done at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Kids eating more than twelve hot dogs a month (that's barely three hot dogs a week) have nearly ten times the risk of leukemia as children who ate none. This research was done at the University of Southern California School of Medicine in Los Angeles. But here is the very important good news: Children who ate hot dogs and other cured meats, but who also took supplemental vitamins, had reduced cancer risk." (Jean Carper's syndicated column in Lancaster, PA Intelligencer-Journal, Weds., June 22, 1994. Published on Stealth Food)
The misunderstanding of a good nutrition leads to an alarming increase of children obesity. Read more about Fast Food Dangers
Childhood Obesity is clearly a public health crisis states NIH
"Sixteen percent of children in the United States are carrying
around excess weight " that's 9 million children who are
at increased risk for chronic illnesses such as heart disease, diabetes,
and asthma," Secretary Leavitt said today at the Environmental
Solutions to Obesity in America's Youth conference organized
by the NIH's National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
"We need to act now to prevent obesity in our children," said NIH Director Elias Zerhouni, M.D. "Obesity is a high priority of the NIH. This year, we will spend about $440 million on a wide range of research on this important problem."
The science-based We
Can! program helps parents teach their children to:
- Eat a sufficient amount of a variety of fruits and vegetables per day
- Choose small portions at home and at restaurants
- Eat fewer high-fat foods and energy-dense foods that are low in nutrient value such as French fries, bacon, and doughnuts
- Substitute water or fat-free or low-fat milk for sweetened beverages such as sodas
- Engage in at least 60 minutes of moderate physical activity on most, preferably all, days of the week
- Reduce recreational screen time to no more than two hours per day
Childhood Obesity in the news: Bing
Have A Comment or Your Own Story About Childhood Obesity?
Share it here with us! Other parents will be grateful to learn from your experience how to protect their own children.
