Over the course of the semester I feel like I have grown significantly as a writer. I think that the 2 most important things I took away from ENGLISH 21003 was how to use online databases to find sources for my projects. I think that I was able to effectively use ‘Academic Search Complete’ and ‘Opposing Views in Context’ in order to access peer reviewed sources for my assignments. More specifically I would like to highlight my final research project where I used ‘Academic Search Complete’ to find 5 academic peer reviewed sources that I used in my essay. I have used databases for other classes however, she taught us that we should be as specific as possible to narrow down our options for articles and practicing this skill was very helpful.
Another important skill that I took away from this class was how I used sources (how to properly quote, paraphrase, and cite sources). Before I took this class I had no idea what a block quote was and now I know what it is and how to use it. I also know how to properly cite a block quote which I used in my final research project. I also learned how to make reference to images and other external sources in my writings. I would like to highlight my personal memorandum where I used an external source and referred the reader to the external source.
Overall, This class was a very informative one where I learned a lot and improved on things which I already knew. Moreover, this class gave me an outlet to write about topics that I find really interesting like the private sale of fossils and the permian extinction. I know that I can take everything Professor Matyakuboya discussed in class and apply it to my life even after this class is over. I feel like I have refined my skills and refreshed my memory on how to write with proper MLA citations.
Deinonychus
Tuesday, December 17, 2024
Final Reflection
Monday, December 16, 2024
Final Research Project
Nurturing Healthy Habits
In data collected by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) in 1988-1994 13% of children were classified as overweight and 10% were classified as obese. In 2017-2018 16.1% of children were classified as overweight and 19.3% of children were classified as obese. The rise of obesity in children and adolescents is extremely alarming; obesity is a chronic disease in which a child's body mass index (BMI) is at or above the 95th percentile for age and sex (CDC). BMI is a way to measure obesity by looking at weight relative to height and is used worldwide (CDC). Obesity is connected with an increased risk of having other health conditions such as, high blood pressure and high cholesterol (which increase the risk for heart disease), type 2 diabetes, breathing problems (such as asthma), joint problems, and gallstones and gallbladder disease (CDC). Due to the fact that the number of obese children has quadrupled that means that the number of children who have to deal with these health problems has also quadrupled and will also continue to grow if nothing in their lives changes. As a result, proper education should be provided to children in schools, so they can have the tools necessary to make well-informed nutritional decisions now and in adulthood.
Obesity plays a very important factor in the mental health of children. In their article “Childhood Obesity: Causes and Consequences.” Sahoo, et al conducted research where they looked into the physical, psychological, and social effects that childhood obesity can have on children. The researcher writes, “Discrimination against obese individuals has been found in children as young as 2 years old. [...] These negative social problems contribute to low self-esteem, low self-confidence, and a negative body image in children and can also affect academic performance.” (Sahoo, et al). This finding shows that obesity has reached children as young as 2 years old and that they are facing prejudice from their peers at this young age. Furthermore, this finding shows that obesity goes far beyond children's physical health; they also negatively impact their mental health. This research illustrates why change that leads to a decrease in the number of obese children in the United States is imperative.
As the CDC observed, the number of obese/overweight Children has increased heavily over time. In the late 1980s to the 1990’s the obesity rates were not as prevalent as they are today. In the past, children were more active and did not live sedentary lifestyles like most kids do today. The increase in internet access has led a lot of children to gain weight since they are not burning a lot of the calories they are consuming as a pose to in the 1980s-1990’s. According to the CDC children and adolescents aged 6-17 should be doing 3 types of activity for at least 3 days a week. Aerobic activity, which consists of 60 minutes or more where children should be walking, running, or taking part in any activity that makes their hearts beat faster, muscle-strengthening, which can be an activity like push-ups, and bone-strengthening which consists of running or jumping. Many schools do not teach these physical activity guidelines and much less enforce them. With long school hours where children are sat for the majority of the time it is clear that the majority of children do not meet the physical activity recommendations unlike children in the 1980s-1990s. Paired a school curriculum that does not prioritize nutritional or physical activity education. It is clear that there needs to be some change in the current curriculum being taught in schools.
Emily Werner, a researcher in kinesiology, conducted a study on a college campus where 71 students were randomly selected and asked general questions about their knowledge of the nutritional guidelines. 91.5% of the students were aware that some type of nutrition guideline existed; however, only 23.9% of them were able to recite a recommendation correctly. Likewise, when asked about physical activity recommendations a majority of them were aware that some type of recommendation existed with 67.6% of students being aware, in spite of that only 26.8% of students could accurately recite them (Werner, et al). This research, depictics that there was a relation between the lack of knowledge adults have of nutrition and physical activity to their BMIs, due to the fact that the majority of participants had a BMI that would label them overweight or obese (see Figure 1).
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Figure 1: Courtesy of Journal of American College Health This data comes from Werner's research which shows the link between the lack of knowledge about the nutritional and physical activity guidelines and an unhealthy BMI among adults. |
This data is highly alarming because many children look up to adults for guidance on what to eat. The habits of the adults in these children's lives contribute a tremendous amount to how children behave. Elaine Elliott conducted a study in Newark, New Jersey in which 37 adults consisting of parents and teachers were paired up with 37 children aged 3-5. Over the course of 4 weeks, adults attended weekly 45-minute sessions where they were educated on healthy eating and physical activity. The results of the study showed that children's fruit and vegetable consumption increased by three servings from an average of one to five servings a day which was reported at the beginning of the study. Additionally, the amount of takeout that children were consuming decreased to an average of two days a week (Elliott et al). In sum, when adults are educated on the principles of healthy living they can live a healthy life which in turn causes children to also live a healthy life. As previously mentioned obesity rates in adults have been increasing which poses a major threat to the health of children when they aren’t portraying a healthy way of living.
Given this link between lack of nutritional awareness in adults and being overweight from Werner's study and the important part adults play in children's nutrition as shown in Elanie’s study. It highlights how critical education about nutrition is. Teaching health guidelines needs to be the priority, by not educating children, a cycle form in which children stay obese. To illustrate, if children are never properly taught about healthy guidelines they carry that lack of knowledge into adulthood where once they can make decisions for themselves they will have nothing to base their nutritional or workout habits on. Furthermore, once they have their own children it is expected that their children will follow the example parents set. A study was conducted where schools took part in a program called Shape Up Somerville (SUS) which prioritized nutritional education and physical activity programs in schools. A researcher writes, “Their work showcased the effectiveness of nutrition education and physical activity programs, positioning schools as pivotal environments shaping children’s behaviors and paving the way for Healthier lifestyles” (Palit et al). This proves the effectiveness of educating children on what healthy living is like and shows why this education is crucial.
Adrian Rangel Sosa is a 15-year-old boy who was able to turn his life around after being overweight when he was younger. By the time he turned 14, he was told he was labeled as overweight and was told that he was at risk for high blood pressure and diabetes by his doctors. Figure 2 shows Adrian’s weight chart which shows his weight chart from when he was younger. As it shows Adrian was in the 97th percentile according to his “Weight for Age” chart which would have placed him as obese. Being in the 97th percentile means that he was at a weight greater than or equal to 97% of children of the same age and sex. He started losing weight and is now closer to the 75th percentile which puts him at a healthier weight than he was before. While he is still overweight according to the chart it is mainly due to the muscle he has put on as a result of going to the gym and working out.
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Figure 2: Sosa, Josefa. Photo of Adrian’s weight chart. 2024. Personal photograph, digital image. This is an image showing Adrian’s weight chart that shows his weight loss progress. |
To better understand what Adrian's eating habits were like as he was growing up which led to him being overweight I interviewed his mother. First, I wanted to establish what she knew about nutrition. She said, that eating should be balanced, but she could not provide any accurate nutrition recommendations for children later in the interview saying “I say that from what I knew, children had to eat, let's say, what is like the fist of a child's hand, that is the amount that they had to eat according to me, according to what I came to learn. That children could not eat more than what they could grab, what could fit inside the fist of the child's hand.” In order for someone to gain weight they need to be consuming more calories than they are burning. In their article “Childhood Obesity: Causes and Consequences.” Sahoo writes, “This in turn inevitably results in weight gain, as the amount of calories consumed exceeds the amount of energy burned.” In other words, the volume or amount of food someone is consuming does not matter as much as how calorie-dense the food is. The amount of physical activity someone is doing is also very important to whether or not the person will gain weight. By conducting physical activity your body uses up energy and that energy comes from calories thus doing a lot of physical activity you burn calories. You gain weight when you consume more calories than you burn the calories become fat and that is where the weight gain comes from.
An important thing to consider is that the only way that someone gains weight is by eating in a calorie surplus. Meaning that someone is consuming more calories than they are burning. Josefa said “We didn't go out and since they almost stayed at home and I didn't take them out, logically everything they ate stayed with them and they didn't burn the calories they had to burn. I think that it had a lot to do with the fact that the children spent more time indoors because I didn't have time to take them to the park to play, to run,” If her children were overconsuming calories then getting outside and doing physical activity would have helped burn off calories but since they lived a sedentary lifestyle pair with their eating habits Adrian became overweight as a result. This interview shows that while Josefa’s knowledge of nutrition might be flawed she has more of an understanding of how much physical activity impacts people's health but only being knowledgeable in one topic is not enough knowledge to provide a big impact on someone's health once again reiterating that providing people with an education in physical activity and nutrition is vital.
Aside from Adrian, there have been multiple cases in which people have overcome childhood obesity. One case is a woman named Mary who shared her story with ‘Shift Recovery by Acorn’ a site that publishes stories of how childhood obesity affects people. During ‘Childhood Obesity Awareness Month’ which is in September. Shift Recovery by Acorn is a website that works to help people who suffer from food addiction and tells stories of other people to share the toll obesity has on people both mentally and physically. She highlights the toll it had on her social writing “Throughout my school years I was subjected to daily teasing, mocking, jokes, stares from people of all ages, bullying on the playground, exclusion from gym teams and being ostracized by my peers.” She later writes “The internal scars of growing up as an obese child are, to some extent, still with me, and I continue to experience ongoing healing as a result of the daily actions that I am guided to take.” ”This again illustrates the effect being overweight has on children and why it should be seen as a serious matter not only because of the effect it has on their physical health but also because of the social and mental effect it has on them. This shows that even now as an adult Mary continues to live with the mental torture she was put through for being obese as a child.
Mary is an example of someone who was educated about food and nutrition and was able to grow from it. She writes:
About that same time I attended my first inpatient food addiction treatment program. I was 34 years old and weighed 340 pounds. While there I discovered that my obesity was a symptom of the disease of food addiction. I worked hard in treatment and wholeheartedly surrendered to their direction. Upon leaving, I continued a multi-faceted recovery journey that lasted well over a year. (SHiFT Recovery by Acorn)
This also highlights that education about nutrition is critical. Mary was obese because she was battling a food addiction. If she had received adequate nutrition education where she was made aware of what food addiction was and the dangers of it she could have received the appropriate support sooner which would have helped her lose weight and improve her physical and mental health.With many people becoming parents without knowing the nutritional guidelines or how much physical activity their child should be doing, parents are putting their children in a position where they don’t know how to live a healthy life. As studies show there is a connection between being overweight/obese and a lack of nutritional knowledge, paired with the fact that children base their behaviors on what they learn from adults there is a cycle of unhealthy living being perpetrated. By not teaching children about food, nutrition, physical activity, and more complex matters such as food addiction, we are depriving them of fundamental knowledge that they will use in adulthood. Providing children with quality nutritional education in schools ensures that children will grow to live healthier lives and will foster a generation that can make well-informed choices that impact their well-being.
Works Cited
Center for Disease Control. About Body Mass Index (BMI). Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2024, www.cdc.gov/bmi/about/.
Center for Disease Control. About Obesity. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2024, www.cdc.gov/obesity/php/about/index.html.
Center for Disease Control. Adult Obesity Prevalence Maps. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2024, www.cdc.gov/obesity/data-and-statistics/adult-obesity-prevalence-maps.html.
Center for Disease Control. Child Activity: An Overview. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2024, www.cdc.gov/physical-activity-basics/guidelines/children.html.
Center for Disease Control. Childhood Obesity Facts. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, www.cdc.gov/obesity/childhood-obesity-facts/childhood-obesity-facts.html#:~:text=From%202017%20to%20March%202020,percentile%20for%20age%20and%20sex.
Center for Disease Control. Consequences of Obesity. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2022, www.cdc.gov/obesity/basics/consequences.html.
Center for Disease Control. Prevalence of Overweight, Obesity, and Severe Obesity Among Children and Adolescents Aged 2–19 Years: United States, 1963–1965 Through 2017–2018. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2021, www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/obesity-child-17-18/obesity-child.htm.
Elliott, Elaine, et al. “Parents and Teachers as Role Models for Healthy Behaviors in Preschoolers.” Pediatric Nursing, vol. 49, no. 3, May 2023, pp. 135–41. EBSCOhost, https://doi-org.ccny-proxy1.libr.ccny.cuny.edu/10.62116/pnj.2023.49.3.135.
Northam, Kayla, et al. “The Patient’s Journey in Obesity within the United States: An Exercise of Resilience against Disease.” Life (2075-1729), vol. 14, no. 9, Sept. 2024, p. 1073. EBSCOhost, https://doi-org.ccny-proxy1.libr.ccny.cuny.edu/10.3390/life14091073.
Palit, Soumitra, et al. “Behavioral Determinants of Childhood Obesity in the United States: An Exploratory Study.” Journal of Obesity, vol. 2024, Nov. 2024, pp. 1–11. EBSCOhost, https://doi-org.ccny-proxy1.libr.ccny.cuny.edu/10.1155/2024/9224425.
Rangel Sosa, Adrian. Personal Interview Conducted by Yesenia Rangel Sosa. 24 November 2024. In-person meeting at Home.
Sahoo, Krushnapriya, et al. “Childhood Obesity: Causes and Consequences.” Journal of Family Medicine & Primary Care, vol. 4, no. 2, Apr. 2015, pp. 187–92. EBSCOhost, https://doi-org.ccny-proxy1.libr.ccny.cuny.edu/10.4103/2249-4863.154628.
SHiFT Recovery by Acorn. Mary’s Story – Childhood Obesity Awareness Month. SHiFT, foodaddiction.com/2017/09/marys-story-childhood-obesity-awareness-month/.
Sosa, Josefa. Personal Interview Conducted by Yesenia Rangel Sosa. 24 November 2024. In-person meeting at Home.
Werner, Emily, and Heather Hayes Betz. “Knowledge of Physical Activity and Nutrition Recommendations in College Students.” Journal of American College Health, vol. 70, no. 2, Feb. 2022, pp. 340–46. EBSCOhost, https://doi-org.ccny-proxy1.libr.ccny.cuny.edu/10.1080/07448481.2020.1750412.
Scripted Interview
Interview 1: Adrian Rangel Sosa
Interview: Childhood Obesity
Childhood Obesity is a serious and chronic disease that is overly concerning especially when you consider the number of other health conditions that arise when someone is obese that can lead to death. In the search for the answer to the question of who is responsible for childhood obesity, and how we can lower the number of obese children I chose to interview Adrian, He is a former overweight kid. As a child he struggled a lot with his weight and was often told by doctors that his weight was very unhealthy and something needed to change. He was told he was at risk for Diabetes and high blood pressure by the time he turned 14, today he is 16 and is a healthy weight and is no longer at risk for diabetes or high blood pressure. In this interview, I want to take a peek into what his life was like when he was younger, what changed, and how he was able to turn his life around and become healthier.
Question 1: How did you get into fitness?
Adrian: It was in freshman year and he got into volleyball and he thought he wasn’t a good fit for the team and I thought I wouldn’t make it. Try to be stronger and lose some weight and have more control over my body…in terms of like movement.
Question 2: Has growing up overweight affected you? If so, how?
Adrian: I mean I wouldn’t really say so. In my experience no one really cared except the doctor. In my experience no, it hadn’t really affected me. And that hasn't changed since I lost weight
Question 3: Has your quality of life changed?
Adrian: No, not really, whe… of course there is also the aspect of age. All I know is brain fog right now and I lowkey feel like I am getting dumber. I have gotten more confident but thats about it.
Question 4: How did you feel about the things the doctor told you about your weight?
Adrian: Honestly I didn’t really think too much of it because it. He was always on me.
Question 5: Have you been receiving support from your family?
Adrian: Umm… I mean… I guess? I mean mom did let me go to the gym when it was dark outside, and Dad paid for my membership earlier this year.
Question 6: What are some behaviors that have changed from then till now?
Adrian: I guess I want to work out and not necessarily play. There is this aspect and the idea of me working out has changed. I also try to pay more mind to what I can eat like what I can eat like if I have the calories to spare for that. I can feel like my body is feeling some way to the food. I notice. And also just like and I guess I am more willing to go out of my way to do physical activity/ working out.
Question 7: Do you blame anyone for your being overweight as a child?
Adrian: Do I blame someone? I mean I guess mom but at the same time, but then again, I want to see it from her perspective. But none of them ever stopped me from getting more food. And then if I did eat little they would think there is something wrong and they were a little confusing. When we would leave the doctors office it was upsetting because they would say that I need to lose weight and eat healthier and then mom would take us to burger king.
Question 8: What’s been the most rewarding part of becoming healthier?
Adrian: Ummm… I mean I guess the confidence that comes with it. Well lowkey… the more rewarding part is the part to eat whatever I want after the gym. I am able to not restrict myself as much.
Question 9: Going forward, what are some things pertaining to fitness that you hope to achieve?
Adrian: I guess the build that I want. The physique that I want. The other thing is better stamina like cardiovascular health to increase. I also want to increase muscle and I also want to get 100 on that pacer test.
Question 10: If you have kids in the future how would you incorporate nutrition in your kids lives?
Adrian: Well… first I would see the specific nutrition guidelines they need. I don’t know anything about no damn child. I would try to give them enough or maybe more because they. Like honestly I would talk to my kids about how they want to look like when they’re younger. Being fat as a kid also played a part of what gave me my current build, like my calfs. So I guess it depends but I feel like all kids should be at least little bit fat.
Work Cited
Rangel Sosa, Adrian. Personal Interview Conducted by Yesenia Rangel Sosa. 24 November 2024. In Person meeting at Home.
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Interview 2: Josefa Sosa
Interview: Childhood Obesity
Childhood Obesity is a serious and chronic disease that is overly concerning especially when you consider the number of other health conditions that arise when someone is obese that can lead to death. In the search for the answer to the question of who is responsible for childhood obesity, and how we can lower the number of obese children I chose to interview Josefa because she is a Mother who has 3 kids. While her children were growing up, 2 out of the three of her children were overweight and told that they needed to lose weight by the doctor. Today one of the two who were formerly overweight have lost weight and is living a healthier lifestyle meanwhile the other one is still overweight. This is an interesting case because only one of her children is overweight now so I want to see why that is.
Question 1: What was the nutrition for you like growing up?
Josefa: In my childhood? Ok well, I know what nutrition was because well yeah, sometimes we ate, sometimes we didn't, when we ate we tried to take advantage of the opportunity to eat because we were never guaranteed things to eat, I didn't know anything about nutrition.
Question 2: Has anything changed from then and now with how you see nutrition?
Josefa: Yes. I somewhat had a kind of mistaken concept of nutrition, but I had a more western notion because, let's say that during my childhood, in the place where I lived, women gave themselves injections to gain weight and people thought that if a person was fat it was because they were very healthy and my mother was always a skinny woman and I thought that my mother was skinny because sometimes we didn't eat, we didn't have to eat bye and so my mother said that a fat woman shouldn't be compared to a skinny woman because a fat woman couldn't do the same thing that a skinny woman did. She always knew, I don't know why my mother always had this thing of comparing herself to other women, so to speak. Did they say so-and-so is fat? Oh, well because she's very healthy, she's very healthy, she has to eat and I don't know what else. My mother said no, that is not true, that is not true because a fat woman cannot do the same as a skinny woman, that is, move, walk and do all kinds of things, let's say, with agility.
Question 3: What do you currently know about Nutrition?
Josefa: Ok, so right now, from what little I know about nutrition, it is about eating, let's say, healthy, balanced, that is, eating a little bit of everything, but in small portions. That is according to what I know now. What I understand about nutrition.
Question 4: What are your eating habits like now?
Josefa: I try to… I try to make my meals in a way I think is healthy, I don't like to cook with oil very much. I try to make my food steamed, let's say.
Question 5: How did you feel when you heard what the doctors were saying about Adrian's health?
Josefa: Well, frustrated, literally frustrated. First, Adrian was a very skinny child, but over time, as he grew up, I only dedicated myself to work and I wasn't taking care of what the kids ate. Then Adrian began to gain weight from eating so much fast food, especially McDonald's and Burger King. We didn't go out and since they almost stayed at home and I didn't take them out, logically everything they ate stayed with them and they didn't burn the calories they had to burn. I think that it had a lot to do with the fact that the children spent more time indoors, because I didn't have time to take them to the park to play, to run, to socialize with other children and they always spent time at home and since I worked at night, during the day I dedicated myself to sleeping, so I didn't have time to take them to the park to play. He literally spent more time at home than outside. I think that contributed to him starting to gain weight and there came a time when he was, let's say, obese.
Question 6: Did you ever talk to your children about nutrition?
Josefa: Well, not much, the little that I know. I have tried to teach them, but well, no, I don't know much about nutrition, but what I do know is that a lot of food is greasy and it contributes a lot to being overweight, especially in children who are not active, which is very harmful to them.
Question 7: Has anything changed nutrition wise at home?
Josefa: Well, yes, quite a lot, quite a lot because now that they are older, practically everyone is making, let's say, their own food. Let's say that the older children are already taking care of, let's say, their food, what they bring and what they are consuming. I remember that when Adrian got to a weight that was quite high, well we started to have problems. I got frustrated because I cooked and he liked the food and he served himself two, three, THREE plates, literally you couldn't control his food and he would say…Adrian, I would tell him when I saw Adrian taking three plates serving himself I would tell him “Adrian, that's enough,” “What? Do you want me to die of hunger?” I mean, it was frustrating, frustrating because well… and the fruit that I bought I almost had to put it in front of their noses so they could see it, because if I left it in the fridge, that fruit would spoil because they didn't take the fruit out of the fridge.
Question 8: What were your children's portion sizes like?
Josefa: Too big. Like adult plates. I say that from what I knew, children had to eat, let's say, what is like the fist of a child's hand, that is the amount that they had to eat according to me, according to what I came to learn. That children could not eat more than what they could grab, what could fit inside the fist of the child's hand, they could not eat more than that, but Adrian exceeded that.
Question 9: Do you feel like it is your responsibility to make sure that your children are educated on nutrition?
Josefa: Well yes, I think so. I have always said that children have to be educated, they have to be given, let's say, tools, and if they don't take advantage of them, then that's another thing, but you always have to give them the help they need.
Question 10: What are you planning on doing differently in the future, if anything at all?
Josefa: Me? I think that the change has already taken place because first we used to consume a lot of soda, juice, we consumed too much, that's a thing that we brought home a lot. Yes, but, you don't see soda in the house anymore, you don't see juice anymore, you see more water because that's what's being consumed the most right now. Water, I say that the biggest change that I thought about in the future in other words the removal of sugar, but that's already there. I think that now that they're older, they should already know what they have, what's good and what's bad.
Work Cited
Sosa, Josefa. Personal Interview Conducted by Yesenia Rangel Sosa. 24 November 2024. In Person meeting at Home.
Friday, December 13, 2024
Prewriting: Concept-Map, Outline, and Research Draft
Body Paragraph 1: Background information on the rise of obesity in the United States and how it relates to children.
Paragraph 2: Children are not taught about Nutrition
a) “Behavioural Determinants of Childhood Obesity in the United States: An Exploratory Study.”
Paragraph 3: Adults have shown to be very limited when it comes to knowledge on how to live a healthy life.
b) “Knowledge of Physical Activity and Nutrition Recommendations in College Students.” By Emily Werner. “Nutrition Recommendations awareness and accuracy”
Paragraph 4: How lifestyle affect childrens weight
c) “Adverse Childhood Experiences, Health Behaviors, and Associations with Obesity among Youth in the United States.”
Paragraph 5: Story #1
Paragraph 6: Story #2
Paragraph 7: Discussion on the interview with my Brother
Paragraph 8: Discussion on the interview with my Mother
Paragraph 9: Discussion on the interview with the doctor (if i hear back from her)
Final Paragraph: General Implications for further research we should educate children on the dangerous of obesity and eventually in their adolescence give them more complex information
Nurturing Healthy Habits:
A Journey to Overcome Childhood Obesity
According to the Center of Disease Control (CDC, Childhood Obesity Facts) 1in 5 American children and adolescents are obese. In the case of children, obesity is defined as a Body Mass Index (BMI) at or above the 95th percentile for age and sex (CDC, Childhood Obesity Facts). BMI is a way to measure obesity by looking at your weight relative to your height and is used world wide (CDC, About Body Mass Index (BMI)). Obesity is a chronic disease which also increases the risk of having other health conditions such as: High blood pressure and high cholesterol which are risk factors for heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, Breathing problems, such as asthma, Joint problems, and Gallstones and gallbladder disease (CDC, Consequences of Obesity). These issues are not problems that should be plaguing the lives of young children, however 1 in 5 Americans are obese which means they will likely have to deal with these problems if nothing changes in their lives.
Obesity in children is extremely alarming, and the question arises why are so many children obese and who is to blame for childhood obesity in the United States? Some people insist that being obese/overweight is genetic and that there is nothing they can do about it. There are many factors that contribute to someone being obese. "Many factors contribute to obesity like genes, certain medications, poor sleep, gut microbiome, stress, access to affordable food, safe places to be active, and access to health care. Understanding these factors helps us identify potential prevention and treatment strategies." said Ruth Petersen, MD, director of CDC’s Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity. It is clear though that there needs to be adequate education for both adults and children on healthy living to combat the growing number of obese children in our country.
Looking at the history in this country Obesity has been on the rise among adults with the CDC reporting that in 2023, all U.S. states and territories had an obesity rate higher than 20% meaning that more than 1 in 5 adults are considered obese in the United States. This is highly alarming because many Children look up to adults for guidance on what to eat. A study conducted in Newark, New Jersey is proof of this. In this study 37 parents/teachers were paired up with 37 children aged 3-5. Over the course of 4 weeks there were weekly 45 minute sessions where the adults were educated on how to become better rolemoles for the children in order to portray a healthier lifestyle in terms of healthy eating and physical activity (Elliott, Elaine, et al.).
At the end of the study the results showed that children's fruit and vegetable consumption increased by three servings from the average one to five servings a day that was reported at the beginning of the study. Furthermore, the amount of takeout that children were consuming decreased to an average two days a week. The amount of time children spent watching TV or playing video games also decreased. In sum, when parents are educated on the principles of healthy living they are able to live a healthy life which in turn causes children to also live a healthy life. As previously mentioned obesity rates in adults have been increasing which pose a major threat to the health of children when they are role models on how to live a healthy life.
Adults being obese has to do a lot with the lack of awareness and education. Adults have been shown to have very limited knowledge on how to live a healthy life. In a study conducted on a college campus 71 students were randomly selected and asked general questions about their knowledge on the nutritional guidelines. 91.5% of the students were aware that some type of nutrition guideline existed; however, only 23.9% of them were able to recite a recommendation correctly. Likewise, when asked about Physical activity recommendations a majority of them were aware that some type of recommendation existed with 67.6% of students being aware, in spite of that only 26.8% of students could accurately recite them (Werner, Emily).
This shows that a lot of people make it to adulthood without knowing the basic health guidelines therefore do not have the proper knowledge to make informed lifestyle decisions “Accurate knowledge of the [physical activity] and nutrition recommendations are very low and given that the majority of participants were categorized as overweight or obese, teaching these guidelines needs to be the priority” (Wener, Emily). Given this link between lack of nutritional awareness in adults and being overweight there needs to be adequate education on nutrition given to people. As Elanie Elliot’s study shows, adults play a very important part in the way children learn about nutrition and it is through them that a lot of children pick up their eating and physical activity habits. For that reason we must educate adults since they carry a lot of influence in these children's lives.
Another critical thing to consider when it comes to overcoming childhood obesity is the lack of nutritional education that children receive, which complements the lack of education adults receive. Children are not taught about Nutrition so they grow up not understanding nutrition. As a result they adapt unhealthy habits when they are young which follow them into their adolescent years and eventually into adulthood. In 2007, a study was conducted where schools prioritized nutrition education and physical activity programs which showcased the effectiveness of such programs showing kids what a healthy lifestyle looks like. (Palit, Soumitra, et al.)
Works Cited
Center for Disease Control. About Body Mass Index (BMI). Center for Disease Control and
Prevention, 2024, www.cdc.gov/bmi/about/.
Center for Disease Control. About Obesity. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2024,
www.cdc.gov/obesity/php/about/index.html.
Center for Disease Control. Adult Obesity Prevalence Maps. Center for Disease Control and
Prevention, 2024,
www.cdc.gov/obesity/data-and-statistics/adult-obesity-prevalence-maps.html.
Center for Disease Control. Childhood Obesity Facts. Center for Disease Control and
Prevention,
www.cdc.gov/obesity/childhood-obesity-facts/childhood-obesity-facts.html#:~:tex
t=From%202017%20to%20March%202020,percentile%20for%20age%20and%2
Center for Disease Control. Consequences of Obesity. Center for Disease Control and
Prevention, 2022, www.cdc.gov/obesity/basics/consequences.html.
Elliott, Elaine, et al. “Parents and Teachers as Role Models for Healthy Behaviors in
Preschoolers.” Pediatric Nursing, vol. 49, no. 3, May 2023, pp. 135–41.
EBSCOhost,
https://doi-org.ccny-proxy1.libr.ccny.cuny.edu/10.62116/pnj.2023.49.3.135.
Palit, Soumitra, et al. “Behavioral Determinants of Childhood Obesity in the United States: An
Exploratory Study.” Journal of Obesity, vol. 2024, Nov. 2024, pp. 1–11. EBSCOhost,
https://doi-org.ccny-proxy1.libr.ccny.cuny.edu/10.1155/2024/9224425.
Werner, Emily, and Heather Hayes Betz. “Knowledge of Physical Activity and Nutrition
Recommendations in College Students.” Journal of American College Health, vol.
70, no. 2, Feb. 2022, pp. 340–46. EBSCOhost,
https://doi-org.ccny-proxy1.libr.ccny.cuny.edu/10.1080/07448481.2020.1750412.
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