If you were to take a walk through the neighborhood park twenty years ago you would see happy, healthy children running all around. If you were to walk in that same park now, you would more than most likely find half the number of children and a good number of them would be considered overweight. Childhood obesity is a very dangerous epidemic with potential catastrophic effects on the health of our future. This report will analyze what causes childhood obesity and what can be done by schools, parents, and communities to help our children grow up happy and healthy.
Purpose, Scope and Limitations In a perfect world every child would be in perfect health and ready to start their life in the most optimal conditions. In reality, …show more content…
Obesity in children has nearly doubled for preschoolers and more than tripled for children aged six to eleven during this time period and there is no end in sight. There are nearly one third of children and adolescents between the ages of 6 and 19 that are overweight or are in great risk of becoming obese. This means that nearly 1 out of 3 kids is nearing or considered obese! Also, there are some groups of children that are more prone to becoming overweight. The most likely group to become obese is Mexican American boys with 42.8% of them aged 6 to 19 overweight. In females 40.1% of African American girls are overweight or at risk of becoming …show more content…
One of the most prevalent ones is diabetes. More and more children are getting diagnosed with this harmful disease. According to a CBS news report, children with diabetes get all of the symptoms that an adult would have. It puts them at a much greater risk for cardiac complications, kidney problems, and can greatly harm their eyesight. Children that are considered overweight are also a greater risk for developing asthma. The Center for Health Care in Schools states that the risk of new-onset asthma is higher among children who are children who are overweight. Another illness that overweight children can incur is cardiovascular disease. The Center for Health Care in Schools stated that approximately 60% of obese children aged 5-10 years old had at least one cardiovascular disease risk factor. Other conditions that can arise are sleep apnea, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol