Obesity poses threat to youngsters
Polio. Small Pox. Influenza. All are rampant epidemics that historically plagued the American population. However, today’s epidemic is far more threatening, far more devastating, and far more dangerous than any other disease this country has faced in the past. Obesity threatens to diminish the life span of children, making them the first American generation to live a shorter life than their parents. In contrast to the previously ubiquitous maladies of our past, obesity is 100 percent controllable. In order to capitalize upon its preventable nature, there are two primary components that must be addressed.
First, this situation requires a complete transformation in political, social and economical aspects of the American lifestyle. The fast food industry has profoundly affected multiple areas of society. This includes employment, workers compensation, the concept of taste and nutrition, as well as political and agricultural structures. Food companies use brilliant advertising tactics manipulating the public and targeting children by creating the desire to buy their products regardless of actual necessity or nutritional value.
The second aspect that must be addressed is the individual. Education with regard to nutrition and health, life style changes and personal habits is crucial to combating this steadily mounting problem. Self-control is important, but the toxic environment makes healthy eating almost impossible for many.
Children have to be the focus of these efforts, as they hold the most promise in terms of responding positively to change. According to the American Obesity Association, currently 30.3 percent of American children are overweight and 15.3 percent are obese. The number has quadrupled within the past 25 years. Obesity leads to fatal and expensive health problems such as asthma, hypertension and orthopedic conditions. Psychological effects and a negative stigma accompany these physical ailments, and their effects are magnified for a child. Adult-onset diabetes is another major complication, though it is noteworthy that this condition had to be renamed Type 2 diabetes because so many children were eliciting the symptoms.
At Camp Harmony, a sleep-away summer camp for homeless and underprivileged children in Malibu, the motto for the last 17 years has been, “Give them all the love they can take and all the food they can eat,” but this past summer the decision was made to change it to, “Give them all the love they can take and all the food that they need,” due to the massive obesity problem within the camper population.
The aim of this organization is to improve the lives of children. Directors recognized that their motto was promoting a major threat to the campers’ health and, consequently, they took action. If other organizations and food ad campaigns would follow their lead by communicating healthier messages, obesity could be significantly reduced. According to the camp pediatrician, Dr. Sandra Smith-Lang, approximately one in three children this past summer was significantly overweight, if not obese. This number is startling, especially considering that the children come from the poorest of circumstances. The paradox of not having enough food but at the same time being overweight is, unfortunately, a common phenomenon in America.
The lack of education, the scarcity of healthy food in stores, the abundance of fast food, the deficiency of fitness centers, the high prices of healthy foods, and the low prices of unhealthy foods are only some of the factors that contribute to obesity in lower income communities. Tackling the obesity epidemic is an enormous financial undertaking, but doing so will save significant amounts of money in future health care costs and will improve the quality of life for millions of people.
Obesity has taken off, ravaging society as other epidemics have over history. However, in this situation we have the opportunity to affect positive change. There is a solution and it starts in protecting our future, the youth. Many factors contribute to the problem and all parties must do their part to fight it off. Weight is no longer just an issue of cosmetic appearance, it is stripping years off of the lives of a significant portion of the population.
Margo Lang