Childhood Obesity
ANSWERS
Children and adolescents are affected by a significant medical disease known as childhood obesity. It’s especially concerning because childhood obesity frequently sets kids up for health issues like diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol, which were formerly thought to be the domain of adults. Additionally, sadness and low self-esteem in children can result from obesity.
Improving your family’s food and exercise habits is one of the best ways to combat childhood obesity. Obesity in children may be treated and prevented, which helps safeguard your child’s and future health.
Symptoms
Not all overweight children have excess weight. Some kids have bigger-than-average frame sizes. Children typically have varying body fat levels depending on their developmental stage. Therefore, it’s possible that you need to find out if your child’s weight is a health risk from how they appear.
The established indicator of overweight and obesity is the body mass index (BMI), which offers a weight-to-height ratio. Your child’s doctor can help you determine whether your child’s weight could cause health issues by using growth charts, the BMI, and, if necessary, another test.
Causes
The leading causes of childhood obesity are lifestyle factors, such as insufficient exercise and a diet high in calories. However, hormonal and genetic factors may be as well.
risk elements
Your child’s chance of being overweight is influenced by several factors, which typically act together:
Diet. Your child may put on weight if they consume high-calorie foods regularly, like fast food, baked goods, and vending machine snacks. In addition to candy and desserts, there is growing evidence that sugary beverages, such as fruit juices and sports drinks, are to blame for some people’s obesity.
Exercise inactivity Because they don’t burn as many calories, kids who don’t exercise a lot are more likely to gain weight. The issue is also exacerbated by spending too much time doing sedentary activities like watching television or playing video games. TV programs frequently include ads for unhealthy foods.
Family determinants. Your child may be more likely to gain weight if they come from a family of obese people. This is particularly true when calorie-dense foods are constantly available, and physical activity is discouraged.
Psychological determinants. Stress on the individual, the parents, and the family can raise a child’s risk of obesity. Some kids binge eat to deal with issues, manage emotions like stress, or eliminate boredom. Similar tendencies in their parents may exist.
Socioeconomic elements Some communities’ residents have few resources and scant access to supermarkets. As a result, they might purchase shelf-stable convenience foods like frozen meals, crackers, and cookies. Additionally, residents of low-income areas might need access to a secure gym.
Specific medicines. Some prescription medications can raise the risk of becoming obese. They consist of propranolol, lithium, amitriptyline, paroxetine (Paxil), gabapentin (Neurontin, Gralise), and prednisone.
Complications
Child obesity frequently adversely affects a child’s physical, social, and emotional health.
Physical difficulties
The following physical issues can result from childhood obesity:
Diabetes type 2. This long-term illness affects how your child’s body utilizes sugar. The risk of type 2 diabetes is increased by obesity and a sedentary lifestyle.
High blood pressure and high cholesterol. Your child may develop one or both of these conditions due to a poor diet. These elements may help plaque accumulate in the arteries, narrowing and hardening the arteries later in life, possibly resulting in a heart attack or stroke.
Painful joints Additional weight puts additional strain on the knees and hips. Hips, knees, and back pain are two common side effects of childhood obesity.
Breathing issues Children who are overweight are more likely to have asthma. Additionally, obstructive sleep apnea, a potentially dangerous condition in which a child’s breathing repeatedly pauses and resumes while they sleep, is more likely to develop in these kids.
Alcohol-unrelated fatty liver disease Fatty deposits accumulate in the liver due to this disorder, which typically has no symptoms. Liver damage and scarring can result from NAFLD.
Issues of a social and emotional nature
Children who are obese may be teased or bullied by their classmates. Loss of self-esteem and an elevated risk of depression and anxiety can follow from this.
Prevention
To help your child avoid gaining too much weight, you can:
Lead by example. Make eating well and frequently exercising a family affair. Everyone will gain, and nobody will experience discrimination.
Make wholesome snacks accessible. Options include whole-grain cereal with low-fat milk, fruits with low-fat yogurt, baby carrots with hummus, and air-popped popcorn without butter.
Offer new foods repeatedly. Don’t give up if your child doesn’t like fresh food immediately. Food typically requires several exposures before it is accepted.
Pick rewards that aren’t food. It’s not a good idea to reward good behavior with candy.
Make sure that your child gets enough rest. Some studies say obesity risk may be increased by insufficient sleep. Hormonal imbalances brought on by lack of sleep can increase appetite.
Childhood Obesity
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