Effects Of Childhood Obesity

Effects of child obesity in our children's physical and mental well-being
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Childhood obesity has increased rapidly since last three decades increasing the prevalence of effects of obesity in children and adolescents that had been rare in the past. Lately, school nutrition programs have also been failing. Many schools ( see childhood obesity in schools) have vending machines filled with candy bars, desserts, fried foods, and soda. The schools themselves usually serve high-calorie, high-fat foods (see childhood obesity fast food) with no healthy alternatives. Even though many state legislatures and communities are trying to limit the influence that large corporations have in the schools, the schools often depend on the revenue from these snack shops and vending machines.However, causes of childhood obesity (see childhood obesity causes) cant just be limited within schools as our whole environment (see environmental causes of child obesity) influences the sedentary lifestyles.

As the rates of obesity in children continue to rise, children are now suffering from diseases that were once thought to only plague adults. Pediatricians and child obesity researchers are reporting numerous cases of obesity-related diseases such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure, arthritis, fatty deposits in the liver, cancer and type 2 diabates etc (see health effects of childhood obesity). Obese kids may also be prone to low self-esteem by being teased, bullied, or discarded by peers (see psychosocial effects of child obesity). They may develop unhealthy dieting habits, eating disorders, such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia. Young adolescents with eating disorders often start developing their restrictive eating patterns in order to avoid these strong negative images associated with being overweight..They may also be more prone to depression, as well as substance abuse.

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Health Effects Of Childhood Obesity Some of the health effects of child obesity include type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and sleep apnea etc.[Read more]

Psychosocial Effects Of Child Obesity The most immediate effect of obesity in children is social discrimination. This is associated with poor self-esteem and depression.[Read more]

► According to an article published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, the arteries of overweight children act like those of middle-aged smokers, increasing their risk of an early heart attack or stroke. ► One study found that obese children are three to five times more likely than normal-weight children to suffer a heart attack or stroke before age 65.

Persistence into adulthood
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The biggest concern now has been is the persistence of obesity into adulthood. Children who are considered obese are 70 percent more likely to continue being obese into adulthood, with all of the health, social and psychological ramifications, increasing to 80 percent if both parent are overweight Three important factors are age of onset, severity, and parental obesity. Studies have found that the risk for adult obesity was greater among children who had extreme levels of childhood obesity.

Whereas doctors know how to treat the complications of obesity in adults with a variety of medications, the treatment (see childhood obesity treatment) is more difficult in children. We lack knowledge about the short-term and long-term side effects of these medications when used in children. Many physicians, therefore, choose to advocate weight loss, which can often reverse these medical problems in children. However, just as with their parents, weight loss is often difficult to achieve..

Tips for parents ► What can you do as a parent or guardian or caregiver to help preventing childhood obesity? We have some ideas in our Childhood Obesity Prevention section.

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Long Term Effects Of Childhood Obesity The long term effects of child obesity are numerous. High cholesterol, high blood pressure, and the development of diseases such as type 2 diabetes are all major childhood obesity effects.