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Childhood Obesity In America

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Childhood Obesity In America
Childhood Obesity in America
Jane Doe
English Composition II
Sarah Collins
November 3, 2012
Abstract
More and more American children are becoming overweight or obese. Years ago an elementary classroom may have one kid who was overweight but today that has drastically changed. We have a whole new generation of kids who are consuming much more “junk food” and eating fast food 3 or 4 nights a week and they are not as active as kids used to be. These kids are consuming things like Monster energy drinks, Starbucks coffee, Mountain Dew, chips, candy bars and more on a daily basis. Many of them are coach potatoes, video gamers, social networkers, texters, etc. We need to get this new generation of children to become more active. They also need to be educated on how to be aware of what they are eating and teach them to eat the so called “junk food” in moderation and incorporate more nutritious foods in his or her diet as well as maintain an active lifestyle. Childhood obesity is on the rise due to the many changes in our society and we need to do something to prevent it before it gets out of hand. Keywords: obesity, children, overweight Childhood Obesity in America
Childhood obesity is becoming a problem across the globe and has been declared an epidemic in America. Children are consuming more calories than ever and many are not as active as earlier generations. For the first time in the history of this country, young people are less healthy and less prepared to take their places in society than were their parents. Diabetes is on the rise, American kids are getting sicker, becoming sadder and getting fatter. (W. Sears, M.D., M. Sears, R.N., J. Sears, M.D., R. Sears, M.D., 2006)
Many of you probably remember running around the neighborhood when you were younger playing things like tag, hide and seek, capture the flag and many other outdoor games. Then you would get called in to eat, only to go right back out to play until it was time to come in



References: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2012). Obesity rates among all children in the united states. Retrieved September 30, 2012, from www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/childhood.html Hassink, S. (Ed). (2006). A parent’s guide to childhood obesity. United States: American Academy of Pediatrics Parekh, N., (July 13, 2012). Childhood obesity prevention tips. Prevention is better than cure. Retrieved September 30, 2012, from http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/6-7-2004-55178.asp Ray, R., (2012). Rachael ray’s yum-o cook feed fund. Retrieved September 30, 2012, from http://www.yum-o.org/ Schraffenberger, L.A., (2012). Basic ICD-10-CM/PCS and ICD-9-CM Coding, Chapter 6, Page 123 Sears, W., Sears, M., Sears, J., Sears, R., (2006) The healthiest kid in the neighborhood. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company Wang, Y., (2011). Disparities in pediatric obesity in the united states. Retrieved October 21, 2012, from advances.nutrition.org/content/2/1/23.full.pdf+html

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