Childhood Obesity Escalates

The number of obese children multiplies every year. The International Journal of Pediatric Obesity predicts dramatic increases by 2010, projecting that 46 percent of children in North America will be overweight and 15 percent will be obese (jhsph.edu). Such predictions present a dilemma. Childhood obesity causes pediatric hypertension, leads to Type II diabetes mellitus, increases the risk of coronary heart disease, places excessive stress on joints, lowers self-esteem, and harms relationships with peers (kidsource.com). In addition, a report from the New England Journal of Medicine suggests that the explosion of childhood obesity is shortening the U.S. life expectancy. Presently, the average life expectancy has dropped four to nine months, but if childhood obesity continues unabated, these months will escalate into years. The Journal’s findings mark the first reverse in the life expectancy in over two centuries (eurekalert.org).

The long term consequences of childhood obesity generally remain unknown. “The tsunami of childhood obesity has not yet hit the shore -- it takes many years for complications to develop,” says David Ludwig, who directs the Optimal Weight for Life (OWL) program at Children's Hospital Boston. “If the clock starts ticking at age 12 or 14, the consequences to public health are potentially disastrous -- imagine heart attack or kidney failure becoming a relatively common condition of young adulthood” (eurekalert.org).

Multiple factors have been cited as causes for childhood obesity, but three issues carry the bulk of the responsibility: family, low-energy expenditure, and heredity. Parents’ weight and eating habits greatly influence child health: the risk of becoming obese is greatest among children of obese parents. Lack of physical activity—often the result of television and video games—also contributes to weight gain. Heredity, the third cited cause, can also influence obesity. Infants of overweight mothers gain more weight by age three months than infants of normal weight mothers, suggesting that the path to obesity can begin at birth (kidsource.com).

These causes are embedded in a child’s lifestyle, making childhood obesity much easier to prevent than to treat. In most cases, a child’s unhealthy weight is the fault of the parents. As a result, prevention largely focuses on parent education.

Until recently, such parent instruction has remained spotty, regional, and mostly unsuccessful. The number of obese children climbs, despite efforts to halt the growth. But now, through the fog of failure, a figure of hope emerges: on January 6, Barack Obama appointed Dr. Sanjay Gupta as the next surgeon general. The chief medical correspondent for the health and medical unit at CNN, Dr. Gupta achieved fame for his campaigns to inspire Americans to lead healthier, more active lives (cnn.com). He launched the “New You Resolution” and “Fit Nation,” CNN’s initiatives against obesity. As surgeon general, he plans to tackle the obesity epidemic in a seven-week tour across the country, seeking to educate and search for more solutions (usatoday.com).

Childhood obesity has reached epidemic levels in the United States. The nation desperately needs a man like Sanjay Gupta; no longer should children live as victims of a controllable, changeable condition.