Robert Richards
Ms. West
English II Honors
17 September 2002
Too Many Kids Are Overweight
Problem
In 1999, the United States government estimated that six million children were fat enough to endanger their health, and another five million were on the threshold (“Generation XXL” 2). There could be many reasons why children become overweight. One possibility is not enough exercise. Yet another reason could be the fact that schools, stores, and other public places advertise and sell too much “junk” food. Also, parents could be responsible for teaching their children bad eating habits at a young age. Whatever the cause may be, children in America are simply too fat.
At the beginning of the 1990s, 42 percent of children were enrolled in daily physical education classes; at the end of the decade, only a measly 29 percent were enrolled (“Generation XXL” 3). This is due to the fact that most schools are excising gym classes from their mandatory curriculum. Virginia is the only state that requires that recess be included in every school day, whereas the Atlanta school system banned recess in hopes that children would get better grades (“Generation XXL” 3). Another way to blame the school systems is to say that teachers give too much homework. Melinda Sothern, a founder of Committed to Kids, states, “Kids spend 48 percent of their waking hours in school and three hours a night on homework. It’s too much sitting. Homework is the number one reason parents and kids say they can’t fit exercise into their day” (“A Fat Nation” 6).
However, school is not the only source to blame for lack of exercise. Children between two and eleven spend twenty hours a week in front of a TV, which also tends to encourage eating by advertising (“Too Heavy, Too Young” 3). In addition, sitting in front of a TV screen is another opportunity for kids to eat junk food. Moreover, with the technology these days, kids are spending even more time playing video games, chatting over the Internet, or surfing the web. All of these aspects are diminishing the amount of time children have to exercise.
In addition to lack of exercise, children nowadays have so much access to fattening snacks. It is human nature to eat more food if an excess is available. Studies at Pennsylvania State University show that when lean young men were given sixteen ounces of macaroni and cheese, the ate only ten. But when given the “jumbo” portion of twenty five ounces, they ate fifteen (“A Fat Nation” 4). What is more is the fact that schools now have vending machines throughout the halls; more than 98.2 percent of senior high schools have either snack machines or soda machines (“A Fat Nation” 7). Furthermore, McDonald’s offers to “Super Size” your meal for an extra seventy nine cents. For that extra money, one is obtaining more than 1,340, or 660 extra calories, which is more than half of an adolescent’s recommended caloric intake (“Let Them Eat Fat” 3-4). If children cannot burn off the extra calories, they will turn to fat.
Finally, parents could play a role in their child’s obesity. Leann Birch, a psychologist a Pennsylvania State University, says “There are things parents do with the best of intentions that turn out to be counterproductive.” For instance, if parents make children clean their plate before they leave the table, that could possibly teach kids to eat when they are not hungry. Sometimes parents bribe their children into eating vegetables by offering them a desert afterwards. “If kids are given one food as a reward, they will learn to prefer that food,” emphasizes Birch (“Too Heavy, Too Young” 2). Further, if the parents in the household are overweight, it is more likely that any children in the household will be overweight because the “body’s natural appetite-regulating mechanism can be upset by family overeating…” (“Causes of Excessive Weight Gain” 1). Children can essentially be “brainwashed” into thinking that they have to overeat just because there is still food on the plate.
Overall, American children are becoming overweight. Lack of exercise may be one problem that faces them. Another may be the overwhelming amount of high calorie and high fat foods that are available today. Additionally, bad eating habits and lack of exercise can lead to an amount of calories that is unhealthy for children. Lastly parents help children develop incorrect eating habits during their pre-elementary life. All contribute to the obesity of America’s youth, but what can be done to solve the problem?
Proposal
When facing the issue of childhood obesity, many different solutions come to mind. One would reason that making physical education mandatory in all schools would alleviate the problem of no exercise. Equally important is the lessening of junk food vendors in America. Another way to allow kids to be healthy is to educate the parents as well as children on what to eat, how much to eat, and when to eat. All in all, many different routes can be taken in order to make America’s young people healthier.
Children in today’s world are not getting enough exercise. Part of this is due to the increase of technological advances that pertain to kids. The other part is due to the fact that schools do not require children to take physical education classes throughout high school. If physical education was made mandatory by all schools across the nation, every other day from first grade all the way up through twelfth, then kids would obtain the recommended amount of exercise as long as they participate in class.
Another leading cause of being overweight is an excess of food. Food is not necessarily bad. Actually, people need food to survive, but too much of the wrong kind of food can be detrimental to one’s health. As long as they are consumed to a minimum with a healthy meal, snack foods are not all that bad. But eating a couple of Twinkies and a bag of Grippo’s barbecue potato chips for lunch every day is definitely the wrong way to go. This is why schools should stop selling candy and chips in vending machines.
Also, parents sometimes force their kids into bad eating habits. “Kids know when they are hungry and when they are full” (“Too Heavy, Too Young” 2). If parents force their children to finish everything on their plate, they will learn to ignore the inner reasoning because they believe they must eat everything given to them. Instead, parents and their young should be educated on how to eat. They should be taught not to force children to eat, not to bribe them with dessert, and make sure that the entire family is eating healthily (“Causes of Excessive Weight Gain” 1). This would surely help parents become aware why their kids are becoming fatter.
If any or all of these changes are made, then America will be looking at a leaner and healthier society in the future. Children will be exercising more due to enhanced curriculums in schools that require physical education. Kids would also be eating less junk food and more healthy foods. Finally, both parents and children would become more educated as to what should be eaten and how much should be eaten, and when to stop eating. In general, these three easy guidelines will serve as a template for a healthier America.
Justification
With America’s children being 20 percent heavier than they were ten years ago (“Too Heavy, Too Young” 1) something certainly needs to be done. It would benefit society in many ways; when these healthy children grow up, they will grow up to be healthy adults. They will also be less likely to get diseases like cardiovascular diseases and some cancers. That is why it is imperative for children to eat less and become more physically fit.
The Center of Disease Control (CDC) states “Low levels of activity, resulting in fewer kilocalories used than consumed, contribute to the high prevalence of obesity in the United States” (Shalala 2). A study shows that about 58 percent of overweight children have a risk for heart disease (“A Fat Nation” 1). Also, obese kids are nine times more likely to develop hypertension (“Too Heavy, Too Young” 4). If people are coming down with these types of diseases in their youth, then they are most likely going to have them in their adulthood; Time magazine says three-quarters of obese children will grow up to be overweight adults (“Too Heavy, Too Young” 4).
Studies show physical activity will also help distribute body fat evenly (Shalala 1) meaning beer bellies, flabby arms, and flabby thighs will lessen, giving one a better self-image. In the same study, the Donna E. Shalala, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, explains “physical activity appears to improve health-related quality of life by enhancing psychological well-being…” (3). Basically, people who are in better physical shape will have a better self-esteem than those who are overweight, and therefore will improve their quality of life.
Many different aspects of life will improve if people get in better physical shape. Being fit decreases the risk of hypertension as well as heart disease. Colon cancer is also prone to decline if the level of one’s physical fitness increases. Furthermore, the well-being and self-esteem of a physically fit person will be generally better than that of an obese person. Those are major reasons why children should try to become better fit.
Works Cited
“Causes of Excessive Weight Gain in Children.” Backgrounder 26 November 1997: n.p., NewsBank CD-ROM.
“A Fat Nation.” U.S. News & World Report 19 August 2002: 40, General Reference Center Gold.
“Generation XXL: Childhood obesity now threatens one in three kids with long-term health problems, and the crisis is growing.” Newsweek 3 July 2000: 40, General Reference Center Gold.
“Let Them Eat Fat.” Harper’s March 2000: 41, General Reference Center Gold.
Shalala, Donna E. “The Effects of Physical Activity on Health and Disease.” Physical Activity and Health: Chapter 4 Conclusions 17 November 1999. Center for Disease Control. 11 September 2002. <http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/sgr/conc14.htm>.
“Too Heavy, Too Young: Obesity is rapidly becoming the major health crisis of the next generation. What parents can do to help kids control their own weight.” Time 21 January 2002: 88+, General Reference Center Gold.
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