Child Obesity essays

Child Obesity essays Childhood obesity is more prevalent today than ever before. Our children for the future are being failed. Healthy living needs to be taken more seriously. More and more households have both parents working full-time jobs to provide shelter, food, and clothing for their families. Providing the basic necessities is not enough for a healthy family. Parents need to become more involved with their child's life. Child obesity has been medically proven to increase the risk of long-term life altering illnesses. A more positive role by our nations parents should be taken to lead our children to a healthier future. "Typically children who are about 25 lbs. above their ideal body weight are considered overweight, and those 40-50 lbs. above their ideal body weight are considered obese." (Strauss 2). To determine if a child is considered obese or over weight a family doctor factors in the child's age, sex, and body build. The total number of fat cells in the body is the major factor in causing obesity. Each individual person has a unique number of fat cells in their body. Fat cells reproduce during early childhood and puberty of ones life cycle. Once fat cells have been created there is no way to reduce them. Eating unhealthy amounts and types of food during reproduction of these fat cells along with low physical activity will cause more cells to reproduce. Therefore, it is critical that a person is eating the right types and amounts of food and getting the right amount of physical activity during these stages of his/her life. Food provides the major source of energy the body needs to function. If the input (intake of food) is greater than the output (physical activity) excess body fat will be stored in the fat cells, which causes obesity. Energy that is not used by the body will be stored as fat. The imbalance of energy can be caused by genetic and environmental factors. "Genetic differences account for 25-40 percent obesity...