The weight of the future: Childhood obesity epidemic

By Emanuela P. Lima

It is not your imagination: there is an epidemic of childhood obesity in our country.

Studies by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have shown childhood obesity has more than tripled in the past 30 years. The prevalence of obesity among children aged 6 to 11 years increased from 6.5 percent in 1980 to 19.6 percent in 2008.

The organization finds that:

-Obese youth are more likely to have risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as high cholesterol or high blood pressure. In a sample of 5- to 17-year-olds, 70 percent of obese youth had at least one risk factor for cardiovascular disease.

-Children and adolescents who are obese are at greater risk for bone and joint problems, sleep apnea, and social and psychological problems such as stigmatization and poor self-esteem.

-Obese youth are more likely than youth of normal weight to become overweight or obese adults, and therefore more at risk for associated adult health problems, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, several types of cancer, and osteoarthritis.

Back in February, the White House announced the Healthy Food Financing Initiative, a $400 million ayear project aimed to expand access to fresh, healthy food to all underserved urban and rural communities across the country within seven years –creating jobs in the process. During the same month, First Lady Michelle Obama began a nationwide campaign against childhood obesity, launching her own initiative, “Let’s Move.” The program is quite ambitious, with the goal of developing workable ideas to help end childhood obesity within one generation.

A community takes action

“There’s a chance that this new generation could be worse off than the previous one,’’ said Michael Johnston, the chief executive officer of the United Way of Western Connecticut. “That’s never happened before in our great country.’’

On April 9, at a press conference at Danbury Hospital, Johnston announced that the United Way has received a $400,000 anonymous gift to be spent specifically on funding obesity prevention programs. The new initiative is called, “Strong Heart: Healthy Children.’’

The United Way has joined forces with two existing programs, The Coalition for Healthy Kids in Danbury, and Healthy Community 2020, to maximize exercise and nutrition programs for children in the region.

The United Way will accept grant proposals for any groups in the area with ideas on how to fight obesity.

At the press conference, Johnston was joined by William Glass, Danbury’s deputy superintendent of schools; Dr. Raul Arguello, chairman of pediatrics at Danbury Hospital; and Marie Miszewski, chairman and CEO of the Regional YMCA of Western Connecticut.

According to Glass, as the need to train kids for the next round of federal and state tests grows, the time for recess declines. Since 2000, he said, the percentage of kids in Danbury schools who can pass the state physical fitness tests has declined from almost 30 percent to less than 20 percent -- a 30 percent drop.

“Our teachers are being pulled in so many ways,’’ Glass said. “If you ask them to give children more time for recess, they’ll say ‘Our physical education score will go up but our reading scores will go down.’”

To Arguello, another factor that has caused the obesity epidemic includes the rise of computers and video games that encourage children to be sedentary, along with other factors: “Families where both parents need to work, making fast food meals grabbed on the run a necessity. And in addition, the current recession may be preventing families from buying the fresh fruit and vegetables that are key components to a healthy diet,” he said.

Miszewski said that parents also have to realize that kids need exercise and announced that no one in the region will be turned away from a YMCA because of income.

“If you can get to a YMCA, we can help,’’ she said.

For more information about Strong Heart: Healthy Children, please visit: www.uwwesternct.org.

What parents can do in the fight

against childhood obesity

Here are a few tips to start from KidsGetFit.org, a partnership of United Way, the NFL, HOPSports and Sports Illustrated Kids.

1. Incorporate extra movement into everyday activities. Tiny changes can make a big difference. Dance with your kids during TV commercials. Park at the far end of the lot and race walk to the store, while watching for moving cars.

2. Create indoor and outdoor spaces that encourage fitness. Obesity is primarily an environmental disease, so consider changing your child’s environment to prompt more physical activity.

Your backyard is a great place to start.

3. Play with your kids. Today’s hectic schedules make it challenging to spend quality time with family. Fitness is a great activity to do together, and while you’re building strong bones and muscles, you’re also building strong bonds with your children.

4. Limit TV, video games and computer use. Studies show that a child’s weight increases with the number of hours he or she spends watching television each day. Limiting screen time and removing televisions from bedrooms can be important first steps to encouraging children to be more physically active. Regulate the time your kids spend watching TV or playing computer games.

5. Meet them where they are. An increasing number of video games, for example, require kids to move their bodies to make them work. The very popular dance pad video games burn up to 500 calories in a one-hour session. Considering some gamers spend an average of 12.2 hours a week in front of their consoles, it can only be good news that an increasing number of games are actually good for you. For more on how to get active and healthy nutrition tips visit KidsGetFit.org