Immigration Persuasive Essay

Informative Speech
Obesity in Children As we know obesity and overweight among children are a significant health problem among the United States. Obesity means having too much body fat. It is not the same as overweight which means weighing too much. A person may be overweight from extra muscle, bone, or water, as well as too much fat. Both terms mean your weight is higher than what is thought to be healthy for your height.
Being overweight during childhood and adolescence increases the risk of developing high cholesterol, hypertension, respiratory problems, orthopedic problems, depression and diabetes type 2 as a youth.
All these conditions are linked to obesity and overweight and it has increased tremendously in children and adolescents, particularly in:
-American Indian
-African American and
-Hispanic/Latino Populations.
Looking at the long term consequences, overweight adolescents have a 70% chance of becoming overweight or obese adults, which increases to 80% if one or more parent is overweight or obese.
In 2000 the total cost of obesity for children as adults in the United States was estimated to be $117 billion which is $61 billion dollars in direct medical costs.
Understanding the causes of childhood obesity can provide the opportunity to focus resources, interventions, and research in directions that would be most beneficial in addressing the problem.
When children eat more than they need, their bodies store the extra calories in fat cells to use for energy later. If this pattern continues over time, and their bodies do not need this stored energy, they develop more fat cells and may develop obesity.
Overweight in children and adolescents are also caused by a lack of physical activity.
Physical inactivity and sedentary behaviors have contributed to children’s obesity now days. Watching television, using the computer, texting and playing video games occupy a large percentage of children’s leisure time and require very little energy, influencing their physical activity levels. Usually when kids watch television, they often crave the unhealthy high-calorie snacks they see on commercials.
It is estimated that children in the United States spend 25% of their waking hours watching television and statistically children who watch the most hours of television have the highest incidence of obesity.
Trend date states that children and adolescents are eating more food away from home, drinking more sugar-sweetened drinks, and snacking more frequently.
Convenience has become one of the main criteria for American’s food choices today, leading more people to consume “away from home”.
The nutritional composition of children’s diets as well as the number of calories consumed is of interest to determine the effect of food consumption in childhood obesity.
Other studies indicate that children are not eating the recommended servings of good featured in the USDA food pyramid and that there have been significant changes in the types of beverages that children are consuming.
Studies show that only 21% of young people eat the recommended five or more servings of friouts and vegetables per day.
-Soda consumption increased dramatically in early 1990’s 32% of adolescent girls and 52% adolescent boys consume three or more 8oz servings of soda per day. Soda consumption has nearly tripled for adolescent boys from 7oz to 22oz while milk consumption has decline.
Some signs and tests to find out if your child is overweight or obese are:
-have your health provider perform a physical exam and be honest when he asks about eating patterns and exercise routine.
-Do a blood test to look for thyroid or endocrine problems that could lead to weight gain as well for your kid’s cholesterol to make sure his levels are normal.
-Ask questions about his weight to make sure he is healthy and has the right weight for his age.
-Also your children’s BMI should be estimated to know how much body fat your child has.
T he treatment to obesity is to consult your doctor. He can set healthy goals for weight-loss and help with monitoring and support.
-Always support your children on anything they need to do to lose weight.
-Try to get the whole family to join a weight-loss plan, even if weight loss is not the goal for everyone.
-Change your life style and include healthy food on every meal. Eat smaller portions and increase the family’s activity time.
- Avoid sodas, junk food, sport drinks, and flavored waters specially the ones with sugar and corn syrup.
Obesity affects not only our health but also our socioeconomic status. It is always important to check for obesity signs and eating behaviors on our children to avoid them risking their lives for bad habits later on in life. It is also important to remember that parental influences affect children tremendously and increases the chances of them becoming obese not only while they are in childhood but adulthood as well.