Obesity Indicators

Childhood obesity has more than tripled in American adolescents in the past decade. Nearly 32% of American children are overweight or obese.

            Obesity has rapidly increased in children ages 1-18 and is continuing to grow. One’s body weight is measured as a BMI, which means body mass index and also depends on the person’s height, not just their weight. In general, being “overweight” is measured at a BMI of 25-29.9 and being “obese” is measured at a BMI greater than 30. Of the large population of adolescents, 80% of children who are considered overweight or obese are ages 10 to 15. Obesity is a huge problem within itself, but it also can lead to greater issues like, heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, etc. Through active surveillance, it’s clear that child obesity is an epidemic. The USDA notes the on energy intake, energy expenditure, and "energy balance," who eat more "empty calories" and expend fewer calories through physical activity are more likely to be obese than other children.

            There really is a wide array of direct indicators for why obesity is so prevalent in our modern society. “Many kids are spending less time exercising and more time in front of the TV, computer, or video-game console. And today's busy families have fewer free moments to prepare nutritious, home-cooked meals.” From fast food to electronics, quick and easy is the reality for many people. The technology era has more than taken over our social lives, but now has taken over our ability to maintain a healthy diet for the children. Another potential direct indicator could be the media. While kids are sitting down watching TV, they experience dozens of commercials about fried and greasy foods that are psychologically designed to make you want to have them.

            In contrast, indirect indicators do not directly measure the problem, but instead measure related factors. Some factors that can help contribute to the obesity are the change in children's environment over the past three decades to distraught the energy balance equation. In particular, the USDA examines changes in the food market in schools and childcare settings, and in the role of parents—paying attention to the timing of these changes. In supermarkets and in some, not all, school cafeteria foods, the healthy foods are priced higher than the sweet and salty snacks. These types of underlying factors can also lead to obesity.

            Both indirect and direct indicators can be widely varied as well as their significance to contributing to obesity. The USDA’s statistics are reliable because they preformed control studies over a period time to gain the data. But, statistics showing sample size studies can’t always be accurate because they can be biased based on certain parts f the region, race, culture, etc. 

Work Cited:

http://www.childrensdefense.org/policy-priorities/childrens-health/child-nutrition/childhood-obesity.html

http://www.vaxa.com/childhood-obesity-statistics.cfm