Obesity, childhood obesity, diet
Childhood obesity
Tue/Jul/07 10:32 PM
Childhood obesity was once considered humorous. Every TV show seemed to have one "fat kid" that added some type of spice or jokes to the script. Generally that was 1 kid out of 10 or less. We now are faced in East TN with rates as high as 33% of the children in grade school not just being overweight but clinically obese. Recently I saw a preteen who was over 100 pounds OVERWEIGHT. The scary thing is that as more children (and adults) become obese in this country it becomes harder to compare yourself with any reality. If we all are obese and we look at each other we think we are "normal weight'.
I cannot tell you how often I am faced with an obese child who comes into my office with a soda in one hand and a tongue stained by candy. At the same time the parents swear that the child is eating well. Most experts would say that obesity in children is largely preventable. Most children are not GENETICALLY obese. We make them that way. Us. The parents....we are the ones that develop food and exercise habits in our kids, model behaviors to our children and BUY THE FOOD WITH WHICH WE ARE KILLING THEM AS SURELY AS CIGARETTES WILL.
As America obsessed about fat and cholesterol (because of our fear of heart disease) we pushed more and more carbohydrates into our children's mouths. Companies in an effort to profit from our national sweet tooth developed high octane sweeteners like HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP. As we cut the fat we also failed to utilize our satiety feedback system that allows our gut to tell our brain that we are full. This system relies primarily on fat intake for the feedback. When high carb/low fat diets are consumed it is not engaged as actively and our brain tells us to KEEP EATING. The high carb content of the foods our children eat also stimulate their insulin which, in the presence of high calorie intake causes the body to store calories as fat. So with high carb diets you are hungrier and you more readily store the extra calories you eat as fat....a bad combination. This high carb intake also causes a roller coaster effect of the blood sugar and people crave the carb/sugars that feed this cycle.
The result has been our children are sucking down sugar and doing it all day long. This in and of itself is worrisome but when coupled with our general lack of aerobic fitness in our parents and our children we see rapidly expanding waistlines.
SO what's the answer?
I would recommend you start with the whole family dramatically decreasing intake of carbohydrates. For kids this starts with sports drinks and soft drinks. Their primary drink should be water and WHOLE MILK. Studies have shown that diets with whole (as opposed to skim) milk result in fewer calories ingested and better weight control. Next eliminate the high amounts of potato products (fries, hash browns, tater tots etc) and limit the bread, rice, pasta and of course cookies/cakes/candies. Encourage vegetables, whole dairy and high quality meats. Mix in nuts and nut butters and moderate fruits. Push away from video games and TV which are the main source of entertainment for your kids and a large reason they have no time to do healthy activities. Finally, begin a simple exercise program. Pledge as a family to each walk for 30 minutes continuous daily. Use a pace that "makes you sweat". Do the walking together to model the behavior. Make it fun for your kids.
I cannot tell you how often I am faced with an obese child who comes into my office with a soda in one hand and a tongue stained by candy. At the same time the parents swear that the child is eating well. Most experts would say that obesity in children is largely preventable. Most children are not GENETICALLY obese. We make them that way. Us. The parents....we are the ones that develop food and exercise habits in our kids, model behaviors to our children and BUY THE FOOD WITH WHICH WE ARE KILLING THEM AS SURELY AS CIGARETTES WILL.
As America obsessed about fat and cholesterol (because of our fear of heart disease) we pushed more and more carbohydrates into our children's mouths. Companies in an effort to profit from our national sweet tooth developed high octane sweeteners like HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP. As we cut the fat we also failed to utilize our satiety feedback system that allows our gut to tell our brain that we are full. This system relies primarily on fat intake for the feedback. When high carb/low fat diets are consumed it is not engaged as actively and our brain tells us to KEEP EATING. The high carb content of the foods our children eat also stimulate their insulin which, in the presence of high calorie intake causes the body to store calories as fat. So with high carb diets you are hungrier and you more readily store the extra calories you eat as fat....a bad combination. This high carb intake also causes a roller coaster effect of the blood sugar and people crave the carb/sugars that feed this cycle.
The result has been our children are sucking down sugar and doing it all day long. This in and of itself is worrisome but when coupled with our general lack of aerobic fitness in our parents and our children we see rapidly expanding waistlines.
SO what's the answer?
I would recommend you start with the whole family dramatically decreasing intake of carbohydrates. For kids this starts with sports drinks and soft drinks. Their primary drink should be water and WHOLE MILK. Studies have shown that diets with whole (as opposed to skim) milk result in fewer calories ingested and better weight control. Next eliminate the high amounts of potato products (fries, hash browns, tater tots etc) and limit the bread, rice, pasta and of course cookies/cakes/candies. Encourage vegetables, whole dairy and high quality meats. Mix in nuts and nut butters and moderate fruits. Push away from video games and TV which are the main source of entertainment for your kids and a large reason they have no time to do healthy activities. Finally, begin a simple exercise program. Pledge as a family to each walk for 30 minutes continuous daily. Use a pace that "makes you sweat". Do the walking together to model the behavior. Make it fun for your kids.
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