- lack of exercise. kids in north america spend on average of 8 hours on screen time. leisure time is used on watching television , surfing the web, and playing video games instead of physical activity and sports.
- psychological factors. Many kids in North America overeat to cope with problems or to deal with emotions such as stress or to fight boredom. when the human body is under emotional stress, it releases a chemical called cortisol which makes us crave high calorie foods. when …show more content…
packaged foods that are high in fat, salt , sugar. are usually cheaper and won't spoil as easily compared to fresh, healthier foods. this hugely impacts the middle class families in North America (consists of 330 million people) as the parents can afford food, but are still on a tight budget.
- type 2 diabetes. effects the body's ability to metabolize glucose. leads to a shorter life expectancy by 10 years.
- high cholesterol and blood pressure. this can lead to heart attacks and failures later in life.
- asthma and breathing problems. excess weight results in an overstressed heart and lung development problems.
-sleep disorders. pressure on lungs cause obstructive sleep apnea, which is the shallowness of breath. this makes it difficult for a child to enter his or her deep sleep cycle
-liver disease. obesity causes fat deposits to build up in the liver. this can lead to scarring of the liver and liver damage.
- behaviour and learning problems. overweight children tend to have more anxiety and poorer social skills than normal-weight children have. although there are many more factors that affect a child's behaviour than obesity
- depression. low self-esteem can create overwhelming feelings of hopelessness in some overweight children. depression can lead to more overeating due to the cortisol chemicals mentioned