Obesity | Child Health and Prevention

Obesity In Children ? Best Way To Protect Health Is To Avoid The Problem

July 16, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Many parents make the mistake of thinking that obesity in children is no different from obesity in adults. Being obese for a long time will lead to health complications. Different organs of the body will start giving trouble and one may even face heart problems. However, obesity in adults will not have the same harmful consequences as the obesity in children. Why? Well, a person who has suffered the heart attack at age of 30 will obviously face a drastic change in lifestyle as compared to a person who suffers a heart attack at the age of 55 years.

Do you think the 30-year-old person can manage the highly stressed workplaces that exist today? The 55-year-old person can retire and rely on his or her life’s savings to lead a peaceful and relaxed life. However, can a 30-year-old person who is a father of a two-year old child think of retiring?

Instead of allowing your child to become obese and then trying to find a solution to the problem, it makes sense to prevent the problem from occurring. Many persons treat obesity as the common cold. Simply popping a few pills will not make the problem go away. The moment your child becomes obese, the body will suffer and the health will degrade.

One may recover the lost ground to a certain extent once obesity is successfully tackled. However, one will never become completely fit quickly. It is only when one focuses on fitness for a long time after obesity can on recover perfect health. It is better to prevent your child from suffering such a problem than finding a cure for the same.

Filed Under: Health Tagged With: Children, Health, Obesity

Prolonged Bottle Use Makes Obese Kids With Bad Teeth

May 23, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

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Researchers are finding that childhood obesity is the cause of many serious side-effect maladies that can change life (for the worse) for a child. They believe there is evidence that shows babies who are allowed to stay on the bottle over a year are at risk of being overweight and having dental health problems later on.

The researchers from Temple University offer the suggestion that the bottle should be taken away from the baby at the age of 12-14 months. Actually, as soon as the child can drink from a cup is a more accurate answer.

It’s Tough to Wean a Toddler, but it’s Healthy for Them

It’s easy to give in to an angry one-year-old who screams for their bottle, and they can scream much longer than we think they can. It would behoove a parent to think of other ways to soothe the child ahead of time, so they aren’t caught off-guard by the amount of crying that weaning ensues.

The Temple Center for Obesity Research and Education conducted a study (one of many) with 6,750 Ohio children who were born in 2001. Their findings were:

1 in 5 kids used the bottle until age two; mainly for drinking and at bedtime.
All the children were measured at age 5 ½ and 23% of them were already obese.
Of the group of children that were weaned off the bottle much earlier, only a little over 16% began the struggle with obesity.

So there does seem to be some correlation between obesity, poor dental health and prolonged bottle usage.

Filed Under: Child Care, Health, Parenting Tagged With: Child, Obesity, Temple University

Obesity Can Cause Serious Health Hazards

March 28, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Obesity means the condition of the body where excess amounts of fat is accumulated and will lead to many dreadful diseases. This can increase the chances of getting various diseases like diabetes, heart and even cancer. In the current society, chances of becoming obese are very high, because in this busy life, majority of the people prefer eating junk foods and snacks. Everywhere you can see fast food joints. Eating more food especially junk type food and not performing any exercise together will make you obese and will welcome many dreadful illnesses towards you. Obesity can be controlled by reducing the body weight, through dieting and regular exercise.

Diabetes is a very common disease seen in individuals who are obese. Increase in weight will start developing cells which are resistant to insulin. People having diabetes, will also face other risks like heart attack, strokes and vision related problems. Regular exercise and intake of healthy food which contains fewer amounts of sugar and carbohydrate contents will reduce the danger of diabetes. High Blood pressure is another common illness seen in majority of the obese people. This is also a major factor for many cardiovascular problems.

Many studies have proved that danger of obesity is much greater than danger with other bad habits like drinking and smoking. This affects almost all the organs of the human body. Many psychological problems like depressions, low level of confidence, and problem while eating are seen in obese people In obese ladies problems like hormonal imbalances and many disorders related to gynecology can be seen.

In today’s society, most of the children are found to be obese, due to their bad food habits and not having proper body movements. Majority of the children sit at home watching TV, computer and will not go out for any outdoor games. These factors will make them obese and they will have to face many emotional problems. Some of the problems that obese children have to face teasing and harassments in schools, and will be lonely at the play area and this might lead to nervousness.

Filed Under: Health, Nutrition Tagged With: Diabetes mellitus, Hypertension, Obesity

Child Obesity – Dangers Involved

February 8, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

When you see children who are maybe 10 years or below and teenagers of present generation, their unusual size and height must’ve surprised you. This abnormal growth of children is the result of changed lifestyle and eating habits. We still remember enjoying our mother’s cooking during childhood, but today’s kids dream about sandwiches, pizza, KFC, French fries and such junk foods. This unhealthy food habit has resulted in more and more children becoming obese from childhood itself. It is not good for their health and will eventually lead to lifestyle disorders and diseases like diabetes, heart problems and blood pressure when they reach the age of 30.

Unnecessary piling up of fat in the body causes diseases and weight loss becomes difficult as age goes up. Even though juvenile diabetes and blood pressure in youngsters maybe due to genetic factors, lifestyle and food habits add to the misery. It is the duty of parents to ensure that their children are getting enough nutrients from food and required physical activity at their age. Fat body not only is a disaster to physical appearance, but also takes away the confidence in children. They will be generally lethargic and won’t be active in their daily activities.

The first thing is to teach your children about the problems of obesity and discourage them from eating fatty foods and junk foods. Parents should deliberately include exercise sessions or gymnastics or aerobics classes so that exercise becomes fun for them. Children should be allowed to play with other kids. Schools should encourage sports and games and hunt talents hidden in children. If lifestyle has changed, we should make necessary changes to maintain health and fitness. This is not difficult.

Filed Under: Child Care, Excercise Tagged With: French fries, Junk food, Obesity

Some Causes of Childhood Obesity

December 17, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

In the United States, the obesity rate amongst children is at an alarming number with one out of five children categorized as overweight. Although children have less weight related medical and health problems than adults do, they are still at risk of turning into overweight adults which can place them at risk of developing a host of chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease later on. They are also known to have greater ratios of low self-esteem and stress related issues.

The Causes of Child Obesity

There are a number of reasons that a child may become obese, just like there may be a host of reasons a person may have to seek help form a place like Rehab-International.org for their drug abuse problems. Some common causes of obesity amongst children include poor eating habits, a lack of physical activity, genetic factors, or a combination of any one of these. There have also been some rare cases in which a child was overweight as the result of a medical condition regarding a hormonal problem. Doctors can order a blood test to see whether a medical condition may be the cause of the child’s obesity.

There may be times that families have a history of weight problems, but even when this is true, not all children will become overweight. Children may be at an increased risk of becoming over weight when family members are overweight mostly due to the shared family behaviors. The activity level and diet of a child plays a vital role in how a child’s weight is determined. With things like video games and hours spent in front of the television, children are prone to be inactive. Some diseases that are associated with childhood obesity include diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, skin conditions such as acne, fungal infections, heat rash, bone problems, and early heart disease.

Filed Under: Child Care, Health, Nutrition Tagged With: Childhood obesity, Heart disease, Obesity, United States

Develop a Fun Fitness Plan for Your Child

September 1, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

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According to a United States Preventive Services Task Force report in Pediatrics journal, obesity rates have increased up to 18 percent for two to 19 year olds. Obesity in children puts them at greater risk of developing early diabetes and elevated blood pressure. Whether your child is mildly obese or severely obese, check with your child’s pediatrician to screen for medical problems. Fortunately, parents can help guard against childhood obesity by implementing some fun fitness plan ideas into their child’s day.

The most important thing in getting your child to “buy into” a fitness plan is to make the activity fun. Rainy days can be more challenging, but if you come up with some creative ideas to incorporate into inside activities, your job will be easier. Kids love board games, but that doesn’t mean that they have to be sedentary while playing. For example, instead of playing with money in Monopoly, play with jumping jacks or sit-ups. Similarly, use push-ups in the game of Sorry for each person that is knocked off the board.

If your child loves the outdoors (what child doesn’t?), then your task of implementing a fun fitness plan is easier. Riding bicycles is a great way to burn calories and build a stronger respiratory system and leg muscles. Simple backyard badminton net is an inexpensive way to add some fun fitness activity for your child that is close to home. If you prefer to get out and about with your child, many parks now offer extensive playground equipment, which is great fun for the child and keeps them moving. Best of all, it is free. Even taking a trip to the Zoo can help to burn off calories with the extensive walking that is needed to see all the animals. Swimming is another fun fitness activity that your child will enjoy. Swimming requires the use of multiple muscles and is a great calorie burning activity. The good news is that your child will be having so much fun that they won’t realize they are exercising.

Filed Under: Child Care, Parenting Tagged With: Child, Obesity, Pediatrics, Physical exercise

Keeping your child close to health and away from obesity

July 1, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

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Cases of childhood obesity are growing in the US with one in every five children being over weight. Being over weight at a young age not only impacts a child health and growth but also takes a toll on their self confidence and character development. Obesity hampers physical development and restricts a child on indulging in sports and activities. It is difficult to control your child’s weight once it has crossed the threshold of obesity which is why it is all the more important to manage your child’s weight in the early stages.

It is good news for your child if obesity does not run in the family. Genetics play a major role in weight management and non-genetic obesity is easier to rectify. Childhood obesity is generally caused by lifestyle habits. The kind of food your child consumes and his/her level of physical activity play a big part in your child’s health and weight. With fast foods being the rave amongst children, having a healthy diet is vital for managing weight. It is not the quantity but the quality of food being consumed that determines weight gain in children. Experts advice parents to ensure that the food their children consume is low on calories and high on nutrition. Avoid foods that are rich in fats, carbohydrates and sugars. This would include most fast foods, food that has been fried chips, fizzy drinks and sodas and so on. Although it is tough to keep a child completely off such foods since they love them so much, kids should be encouraged to have salads, vegetables and fruits so that the quantity of fattening food is reduced. This ensures a more balanced and nutritious diet that helps control weight.

Parents should also encourage their kids to take up more of sports and outdoor activities from an early age. TV and video games are popular among kids and though they provide entertainment, require minimum physical activity. A balance of diet and physical workout will promote good health in your child.

Filed Under: Child Care, Health, Nutrition, Parenting Tagged With: Nutrition, Obesity, Weight loss