Facing the Fat

Childhood obesity has more than tripled in the past 30 years, with no signs of decreasing. Several factors have contributed to the rapid increase of childhood obesity over the past few decades. Today's society is becoming more and more focused on convenience and speed than ever before. Fast food chains are booming, even in this though economy. Technology is at the fore front of global operations and has begun to take over everyday American life. If a change in children’s habits is not made quickly, obesity will soon be normal.

Obesity is not only physically unhealthy, but it is also not mentally healthy. It is obviously not physically healthy because serious health problems could arise and the child may be in great danger for their life in the future. It is mentally unhealthy because children cannot live their life normally. Studies show that in school, these obese children get bullied and made fun of. They also cannot play sports like normal students. All these effects of obesity put children’s self esteem extremely low. Studies have shown that obese children are four times more likely to suffer from depression than their classmates of normal weight.

Another shocking statistic is that thirty percent of children today eat fast food at least once a day, if not more. This fact is astonishing and unbelievable to think about considering fast food industries were first introduced in the 1960s. Whatever happened to eating a good home cooked meal? The cause of eating such unhealthy food is because of the convenience of fast food restaurants. They are popping up on every corner of every street. This shows that it is not just the child that takes initiative, but the parental figure as well. Parents have the main opinion in their child’s life. If they do not guide their children in the right direction, then who is to do so?

Technology has been a growing factor of obesity throughout the world. It is amazing how rapid technology has spread over the past few years. Although it is a great for many reasons, there are also a few downsides to technology too. With Playstation, Nintendo, the internet, television, etc., there are many more options to choose from other than just playing kickball or riding your bike outside. With this said, children are not seen playing outside hardly at all. The typical place where you would find children today is in their room with their eyes glued to the television. Whether they are playing the newest video game or watching their favorite show, they aren't getting the amount of exercise needed daily.

With obesity sweeping the nation, we have seen an increase in health problems among children. Today’s society is to blame for the increase. Technology is more prevalent than ever before and is therefore causing increased waist lines. Fast food is taking over "mom's home cooking" and is also another major factor contributing to childhood obesity. America needs to realize the dangerous environment we are putting in place for our youth and start making some drastic changes.

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Works Cited
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Skye, Thomas. "Statistics on Obesity in Children - 3 Very Shocking and Surprising Statistics!" EzineArticles Submission - Submit Your Best Quality Original Articles For Massive Exposure, Ezine Publishers Get 25 Free Article Reprints. Web. 06 Oct. 2010. .