A child is considered obese when their BMI (body mass index) is 30 or higher. Once the body’s BMI reaches this point, a child’s potential for severe health issues accelerates. Childhood obesity has tripled in the past 30 years. In 1980, for children as young as six to eleven years, the obesity rate was at 6.5%. In 2008, this rate had tripled to 19.6%. Even for toddlers and preschoolers aged two to five, obesity levels have risen from 5% to 12.4% in this same amount of time.
A number of serious health conditions can accompany childhood obesity and its challenges to a child’s heart, arteries and overall physical body. Children from an early age can be confronted with heart disease, type 2 diabetes, arthritis, gall bladder disease and asthma. If both parents are overweight, the child’s chances of sharing in the condition of obesity are increased by anywhere from 60% to 80% and their chances of growing into an obese adult are about 70%. Thus, their potential for growing into unhealthy adults grows exponentially, as well.
Heart disease is one of the number one killers in our country. The medical community is recognizing that the prevention of heart disease is important and should begin at an early age. While the public thinks of heart disease as an adult problem; obese children can be the ones who grow into the obese adults that suffer from increased risks of heart and pulmonary disease. Another malady that continues to grow in our country is Type 2 diabetes. With an unhealthy lifestyle that often partners a significant lack of physical exercise with obesity, our children are more at risk of developing the physical problems and medical symptoms associated with this disease. While arthritis sufferers are generally older; obese children can also develop this disorder, due to excessive weight and pressure on growing joints and bones. Obesity can also cause an impact on lung capacity, with an inability to properly fill the lungs with life energizing oxygen. The results can grow into debilitating bouts of asthma.
These medical problems are but a few of the effects that extreme obesity can have on the bodies of our youth. Continued excessive overweight issues can also contribute to fatty liver disease, sleep apnea, gall bladder disease, severe pancreatitis and may even lead to cancer. Gout, phlebitis, and cataracts have also been traced to extreme obesity in younger and older patients. The physical costs of treating symptoms related to obesity are high. Because of this, families of obese children and adults can pay an average of 30% more in health costs and as much as 77% more in medication costs. More money is also spent on foods that contain no nutritional value, with high levels of “empty” calories for energy; and larger meals that are more expensive by nature become necessary.
Recognizing the impact these issues are having on our young people, in general; and a member of your family, in particular, may be important. It may be time to act on your concern for the health of one or more members of your family who may be dealing with an overweight problem. It is time to seek solutions for an altered lifestyle of healthy food and exercise, in order to help them avoid being a member of the national statistics for obesity.
Distributed by Client Initiatives
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Company Name: Phoenix Weight Loss
Contact Person: Debra
Email: doctor@phxweightloss.com
Phone: 602-274-3438
Address:202 E. Earll St, #160
City: Phoenix
State: AZ
Country: United States
Website: phxweightloss.com