Obesity is a problem that can affect any age. It is now considered very responsible to start watching out for obesity at the most vulnerable stage of life, childhood. It is during childhood that a variety of food gets introduced to a person's taste buds. Their preferences also can be easily influenced by their playmates, that's why even if parents do employ certain measures to keep good watch of their kids' diet, they can't be too sure. Thus, this stage of life may or may not become erratic with regards to eating habits and food preferences.
Parents, especially mothers, do tend to overdo their care for their kids. Despite the fact that some parents were taught by their pediatricians about proper nutrition and weight management, obesity in kids has reached epidemic levels. It is a natural tendency for parents occasionally to occasionally give in to their kids' whims and wishes.
Experts estimate that 15% of kids are overweight and another 15% are at risk of becoming overweight. Because kids are cute when they look a little chubby and round as compared to when they look skinny and sickly, parents do sway their goal of care towards that desired end result. This is fine as long as parents know how to distinguish between healthy and obese because based on the statistics two thirds of overweight kids will become overweight adults. Weight consciousness is encouraged as it is a responsible action to promote health.
Parents and caregivers do need to be aware that nowadays the trending of diseases have significantly changed, especially with regards to the early onset of illnesses. Diseases that were commonly thought of as primarily affecting adults have been seen in the younger population. Parents need to realize as well that besides the increasing risk of illnesses for children, other effects of obesity have long been ignored. Effects such as signs of poor self esteem, social discrimination, the teenage psychological problems like anorexia and bulimia have since been determined as related to childhood obesity.
Physiological Effects of Childhood Obesity
An overweight child is at risk for many diseases that were once thought to affect only overweight adults. For example, there are some children who are exhibiting high blood pressure at a very young age, and this is quite alarming.
Being overweight raises a child's risk of the following illnesses:
- type 2 diabetes
- cardiovascular disease
- sleep apnea characterized by loud snoring, labored breathing, and poor sleeping
- hepatic steatosis or fatty degeneration of the liver
- slipped capital femoral epiphysis that causes hip pain in children between the ages of 10 and 16, especially boys who are overweight.
- cholecystitis (gallballader disease and gallstones, with abdominal pain, fever and jaundice)
- pancreatitis manifested by upper abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and fever
- pseudotumor cerebri, also called idiopathic intracranial hypertension, which can cause headaches and vision disturbances
A lingering problem that goes unnoticed are the emotional sufferings a child may experience. Emotional suffering, one of the most painful parts of obesity, could have long term psychological effect on the kid's behavioral development. Feeling of unattractiveness may harbor and may form certain personality traits that falls under personality disorders which, without help, will affect a child's development.
A concerned parent should be well educated by the personality traits that could progress into destructive disorders such as borderline disorder, which is characterized by self infliction of pain or even suicidal at the worst. Depression is also a major concern because uncontrolled and prolonged depression will lead to serious mental illness.
Parents are not prevented from loving their kids too much nor are they encouraged to deprive their kids with abundance and availability of food. Parents are encouraged to love their kids the right and healthy way. It is in making sure that they are healthy and fit that parents make their love more felt and sooner or later kids will affirm that love they received once they have matured.
Reference:
Pediatrics.About.com "Effects of Obesity" (Accessed last April 3, 2010)
Joanne De Leon - Joanne Yu De Leon always wanted to be a nurse, seeing prestige and honor in the nursing profession. So she took up Bachelor of Science in ...
