There are roughly 12.7 million of America’s youth that suffer from obesity. These numbers continue to drastically grow with each passing year (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). This epidemic can be prevented, if adults set good examples to create healthy habits in children to carry into adulthood, and by not setting healthy examples adults endorse bad habits. These poor health choices like, not being physically active, and making deleterious diet choices can create an abundance of health issues; which is not limited to children who already suffer from obesity due to medically related predicament.
In the 20th century it has been increasingly easy to utilize any free time with new and developing technology. There are vast new ways …show more content…
Creating good eating habits is solely an adult’s responsibility; a small child could not very well prepare its own meal. They require an adult to feed or cook for them, and then possibly need the encouragement to eat the healthy food. The majority of people young or old love the taste of sugary sweetness. It gets the taste buds to go crazy, and sets off a “feel good” response in the brain ("Is Sugar really addictive?"). This response that people have in general to sugar is the same response addicts have towards cocaine ("Is Sugar really addictive?"). Bartley Hoebel, PhD, demonstrated this addiction to sugars by giving rats concentrated soda along with their meals for an extended period of time. Eventually, the rats would go to the soda first and consume more of it then they would their regular food. Once Bartley removed the soda from their diet the rats demonstrated withdrawal symptoms, like teeth chattering ("Is Sugar really addictive?"). Sugary foods are what adults tend to feed children. Most do not realize the harm they are doing to the child, or that their child is overweight. Some adults find it difficult to create healthy eating habits because it is easier and to them cheaper to swing by a fast food restaurant to grab a happy meal instead of going grocery shopping and taking the time to prepare a meal. Which, is all well and good in moderation, but when it becomes an everyday event it is a huge issue. …show more content…
A short term effect of childhood obesity could be self-esteem. This can result in being bullied because of the appearance of the child’s weight, or because they cannot do the same things as a child who is more physically active and healthy. If nothing is done about the bad habits the child has this can result in a long term self-esteem issue that could easily lead into depression. Another health issue related to obesity in children is type 2 diabetes. This medical condition is very dangerous; it can lead to loss of eyesight, amputation, and death. In the 1980’s type 2 diabetes has tripled, and now about 3,600 kids in the United States are diagnosed with it each year
In the 20th century it has been increasingly easy to utilize any free time with new and developing technology. There are vast new ways …show more content…
Creating good eating habits is solely an adult’s responsibility; a small child could not very well prepare its own meal. They require an adult to feed or cook for them, and then possibly need the encouragement to eat the healthy food. The majority of people young or old love the taste of sugary sweetness. It gets the taste buds to go crazy, and sets off a “feel good” response in the brain ("Is Sugar really addictive?"). This response that people have in general to sugar is the same response addicts have towards cocaine ("Is Sugar really addictive?"). Bartley Hoebel, PhD, demonstrated this addiction to sugars by giving rats concentrated soda along with their meals for an extended period of time. Eventually, the rats would go to the soda first and consume more of it then they would their regular food. Once Bartley removed the soda from their diet the rats demonstrated withdrawal symptoms, like teeth chattering ("Is Sugar really addictive?"). Sugary foods are what adults tend to feed children. Most do not realize the harm they are doing to the child, or that their child is overweight. Some adults find it difficult to create healthy eating habits because it is easier and to them cheaper to swing by a fast food restaurant to grab a happy meal instead of going grocery shopping and taking the time to prepare a meal. Which, is all well and good in moderation, but when it becomes an everyday event it is a huge issue. …show more content…
A short term effect of childhood obesity could be self-esteem. This can result in being bullied because of the appearance of the child’s weight, or because they cannot do the same things as a child who is more physically active and healthy. If nothing is done about the bad habits the child has this can result in a long term self-esteem issue that could easily lead into depression. Another health issue related to obesity in children is type 2 diabetes. This medical condition is very dangerous; it can lead to loss of eyesight, amputation, and death. In the 1980’s type 2 diabetes has tripled, and now about 3,600 kids in the United States are diagnosed with it each year