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Childhood Obesity


             Families eating dinner together has become a rarity in America. Due to the increase of single parent families and women working outside the home, finding time to sit down together can be hard. Unfortunately, fast food is part of the busy life and can be a challenge trying to avoid the convenience. The family meal ritual has been hovering on the verge of extinction in many households; the competing schedules of parents and children often do not allow for a get-together at dinnertime. Experts now believe that every time a child sits down in front of the TV with food, he may be missing out on a daily infusion of values and traditions that are vital to emotional well-being (CDC). The demise of the family dinner is part of a wider trend of parents not spending as much time with youth as they once did. Research has shown that American children spend almost 40 percent less time with their parents than they did in 1965 (Childhood Obesity: Causes and Prevention). Mealtime means more than refueling a youngster with nutrients. One also gets a hefty dose of emotional and intellectual nourishment. Gathering for meals instills a sense of security in children, and helps them to understand and appreciate the complicated dynamics of family life. Adolescents who eat as a family also likely to eat a healthier diet, say nutritionists (Childhood Obesity: A Food and Nutrition Resource List ). Families who sit down and eat together most likely eat proper meals. Obesity can be genetic or a learned lifestyle. Parents with poor diet and lifestyles habits, inevitably pass these traits on to their children. However, genes and environment do not have to destine people to a lifestyle of obesity. .
             The increase in fast food restaurants has added to the incline of obesity. The busy lifestyles of American's have made eating at fast food restaurants more convenient than eating at home. Many fast-food chains encourage customers to order "super-sized" items, pointing out that they get more value for their dollar.


Essays Related to Childhood Obesity

1. Generation Obese: Childhood Obesity in South Carolina

... our generation. We wanted to investigate if disruption to any dimension (physical, intellectual, emotional, social, environmental, spiritual or occupational) had a correlation to the spike in the prevalence in childhood obesity in America. The dimensions that apply to children are the emotional, social, environmental, and physical. Ideally, we believe that life experiences shape and define how people view life. When ... children on whether they classified under the normal/ recommended or overweight classification. The chart below indicates that there is an increase in overweight children...

  • Word Count: 2425
  • Approx Pages: 10
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

2. Term Paper - Childhood Obesity

... they commonly have medical problems like high blood pressure (Papalia & Feldman, 2012). Preventing and treating is mainly concerned with getting exercise and watching fat and calorie intake. Theoretical Perspective Childhood Obesity is related to the learning perspective because as children we seem to think what ever our parents do is correct and Papalia & Feldman (2012) say that children who have ... also being physically active is just as important. The authors made it very clear of their intent and got the message across that being obese can have very serious consequences. Childhood ...

  • Word Count: 1396
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

3. Childhood and Adolescent Obesity

... but are becoming more common with the prevalence of severe overweight rises [Mus, 99]. There are many factors and influences that work together to create the causes of childhood obesity and ultimately health risk factors. Convenience of fast food, take-out and vending machines gives parents an alternate pathway to feeding their children instead of healthy cooking, ... Cow, 14]. Children that are obese having feelings of being socially discriminated against and often branded by their peers and adults within their surroundings. Factors of Obesity The occurrence of childhood obesity is grow...

  • Word Count: 2886
  • Approx Pages: 12
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

4. The American Epidemic of Obesity

... comorbid consequences. These include the prenatal period (when intrauterine exposures may influence adiposity), early childhood, and adolescence. Some evidence suggests that breast-feeding may protect against later obesity. Likelihood of persistence in adulthood of obesity from childhood is related both to age at onset and severity. Sequelae Childhood obesity has a number of immediate, intermediate, and long-term health consequences (Must & Strauss, ... account for a large proportion of those servings. A number of other dietary variables, including soft drinks, snacking, and portion size...

  • Word Count: 1512
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

5. Creating a Program to Prevent Childhood Obesity

... overweight children. Over the past 15 years, the number of obese children has doubled. This has led to the need to have programs to prevent childhood obesity. This leads to the question what is childhood obesity? Obesity can be defined as a Body Mass Index at or above the 95th percentile for children of the same sex and age. Overweight, on the other hand, can be ... body mass index does not measure the child's fat directly, but it is used as a reasonable indicator of body fatness for most children and teens. Consequences of Childhood Obesity The problem of childhood obesity can be seen ...

  • Word Count: 1386
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

6. Causes of Childhood Obesity

... playing sports or participating in as many extracurricular activities. According to the CDC in 2009 only about a third of children participated in physical education classes on a daily basis (Childhood Obesity Causes & Consequences, 2013, para 1). This obviously indicates that children are not participating in physical education, nor are they meeting the recommended amount of daily physical exercise. ... less healthy foods. . . students have access to sugary drinks and less healthy foods at school throughout the day from vending machines and [from extracurricular school activities]" (Ch...

  • Word Count: 842
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

7. Childhood Obesity in America

... commercials lure children into purchasing unhealthy food and drinks rather than natural and nutritional food. In conclusion, unsuccessful government policies and unaccountable commercials are both social factors which trigger childhood obesity. Finally, sedentary lifestyle resulting lack of physical activities and sedentary leisure is known to be a major cause of children being obese in particular. In the first place ... , lack of physical activities results in childhood obesity. According to the data published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2011), children between t...

  • Word Count: 1184
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

8. Contributing Factors of Childhood Obesity

... food advertisements per year. (U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services, 2011). Most of these advertisements promote fast food. Therefore, the expanding fast-food industry is another cause for the rising childhood obesity epidemic. Fast food companies like McDonald's or Burger King are not only selling their food, but also have a way of marketing which is not fair to consumers. Most fast food ... to get around. Suburban neighborhoods too lack resources for physical recreation and many suburban neighborhoods do not include sidewalks. Genetics and DNA are also contributing factors in the cau...

  • Word Count: 1726
  • Approx Pages: 7
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

9. Obesity

... , including African-Americans and Hispanic Americans are especially high (AOA 2000). There is also a marked increase in obesity among children. The early years of a person's life are arguably the most important part of a person's life. The majority of critical development occurs during the childhood and adolescent years. If there is a factor or factors present that would ostracize a person from their peers ... , then there is a much higher risk of said person not developing correctly. Obesity can and does act in this way. Fat children are constantly barraged with the pressure to ... obses...

  • Word Count: 4143
  • Approx Pages: 17
  • Grade Level: High School

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