Childhood Obesity

The issue i have chosen to do my research paper on is obesity in america. i have seen obesity become a growing problem especially childhood obesity. Being a Nutritional Science major, studying the factors of obesity and also the prevention to it is very interesting subject to me. Parents being busy with work and life in general, they introduce their kids to fast food at an early stage. When kids constantly eat fast food and don't have enough physical activity during the day, being overweight, obesity and many diseases come along. Besides fast food, the rise of technology, internet usage and video games contribute to childhood obesity in America. The causes of childhood obesity are multi-factorial. Overweight in children and adolescents is generally caused by a lack of physical activity, unhealthy eating patterns resulting in excess energy intake, or a combination of the two. Genetics and social factors - socio-economic status, race/ethnicity, media and marketing, and the physical environment – also influence energy consumption and expenditure. Most factors of overweight and obesity do not work in isolation and solely targeting one factor may not going to make a significant impact on the growing problem. In United States today,we have an epidemic of childhood obesity. When we think about this problem, we point fingers at restaurants like McDonalds, saying their foods and serving sizes are to blame. However, I would argue that our busy lifestyles are really to blame. The amount of families eating fast-food and parents who do not encourage physical activity among their children, is at an all time high. A study made by Katie Bogue, a registered Dietitian found that on average, American families eat out four to five times a week. We are so busy with work or school that we go to fast food restaurants instead of eating healthy, home cooked meals.Children who eat fast food too often are at risk of becoming obese due to the amount of calories and fat in this kind of