Are Your Children at Risk for Obesity?
by Christian Goodman
There are a lot of articles written about weight loss and numerous weight loss programs around, but only a few of those address the fact that our children are also overweight.
This is very sad considering that the number of obese children and teenagers has tripled in the last twenty years and those numbers are increasing.
From 4% in 1974, the percentage of overweight children from 6-11 years has risen to 17.5% in 2004. The same is true for teenagers. Overweight teens aging from 12 to 19 have increased from 6% in 1974 to 17% in 2004.
Today, 32% of children are overweight. 16% are obese. And 11% are considered extremely obese.
Children are under even more peer pressure about their weight than most adults can imagine. Adolescent girls, as young as 13 years old, are begging for, and some are actually having, gastric surgeries to reduce their weight quickly. Some see bulimia or anorexia as their only solution.
The biggest threat with childhood and teenage obesity is these children are much more likely to become obese adults. The difference is they’re being affected at a much younger age with the same health issues that plague obese adults.
It has been foreseen that the children of this generation will be the first in history to have a shorter life span than their parents.
We continuously feed them junk food instead of healthy, nutritious meals. Instead of oatmeal for breakfast, we feed them sugar induced cereal.
They eat too many overly processed, nutritionally lacking, calorie-laden snacks instead of fruits and vegetables. There are also too many fast food, too much and too often.
To add to that, we’ve stopped encouraging our children to go outdoors and be active. It’s too easy to let them spend one mind-numbing hour after another in front of a TV screen or a computer monitor.
They’re growing up so sedentary that even playing outside seems like work. What have we done to our children
If you have a child suffering from obesity, it is time to be accountable for it and step up to the plate. The effect is only on their physical body, but on their emotional state as well.
Children shouldn’t have to suffer with issues like depression and a lack of self-esteem. They shouldn’t have to endure the daily teasing and rude comments from thoughtless classmates that chip away at their self-image.
It is not fair to let your children’s body struggle with the added demands of carrying around excess weight when they are just starting to develop. I am asking all parents and grandparents who have overweight children to do something about it.
Involve your child in physical activities. Make sure that they eat healthier meals and snacks. And use my Weight Loss Breeze Program to reduce your child’s weight to a normal, healthy level. My program is a natural, reasonable approach to weight loss. But most importantly, it works.
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Christian Goodman is a well known natural health researcher and the creator of the natural health Blog. His most recent work is the Weight Loss Breeze, which is one of the best weight loss exercise programs. It has helped thousands reduce weight naturally.
