The rate of childhood obesity has been increasing over the past years, and this has been a major challenge for parents and the society. Children easily gain weight due to the foods that they consume and activities they engage in while growing up. According to a research carried out in the United States by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than nine million children in the age of five to nineteen are overweight. Moreover, the number of obese children in the elementary age has increased to double from 7% to 14% since 1980. The increase of childhood obesity and overweight is due to consumption of fast foods, inappropriate entertainment options such as computer and video games, television and use of toys.
Childhood obesity is disastrous in the current society and requires creative solutions to overcome. The creative solutions enable children to get involved easily as compared to normal solutions. Encouraging a healthy diet in the family is a crucial creative solution. Parents and house cleaners need to be responsible for the eating habits of their children. Children need to participate in cooking and buying of groceries in order to learn different kinds of vegetables. Involving the children in preparing such meals instead of preparing the food for the them helps, children develop interests hence curbing the risk of obesity among them. Facilitating fun activities and exercises to children reduces the chances of getting obesity. One hour of exercise per day is recommendable by the Center for Disease Control (Lobstein et al. 2004). Making the physical activities fun and experience to children makes it workable rather than making it an exercise objective. For instance, swinging on monkey bars, running relays and roller-skating may look as fun but in the real sense it is an exercise to keep fit. Rewards can also be introduced in such activities to motivate children to participate in the activities.
Identifying innovative efforts among children help children in dealing with childhood obesity. For example, parents can organize to be walking with their children to school meeting at various spots just as the school bus does. This will seem as fun to children making them fit without their knowledge. Becoming a role model to children also helps in reducing chances of childhood obesity. Children learn from the people around them and emulate their behaviors. Parents and caretakers need to show their children that they love healthy lifestyle (Kid’s Nutrition 2006). This can be expressed through wearing sports clothes, shoes, and participate in simple exercises that children will love. The children will tend to emulate such lifestyle ending up participating in physical activities unknowingly.
`Other solutions to curb the risk of childhood obesity include making little things interesting, identifying moments that count and labeling food products. Making small things interesting such as inviting friends for nutritious cooking competitions and taking photographs makes children develop interest and want to participate (Whitaker 1997). This enables them identify foods that are healthy hence promoting their health. Labeling products with logos indicating foods that contain standard nutrients can help customers especially children to choose healthy foods.
In conclusion, childhood obesity has both physical and psychological impacts on children and adults. Depression and cardiovascular diseases are common in obese children. Consumption of unhealthy foods especially calories and lack or reduced physical activities contributes to childhood obesity. Creative solutions are effective on children as they can be implemented at home and in their learning institutions.
References
Kid’s Nutrition (2006) "Community partnerships: preventing childhood obesity", Young Consumers: Insight and Ideas for Responsible Marketers, Vol. 7 Iss: 4, pp.35 - 40Orleans, LA: Xchange, 2003).
Livingstone MB: Childhood obesity in Europe: a growing concern.Public Health Nutr 2001, 4:109-116
Lobstein T, Baur L, Uauy R. Obesity in children and young people. A crisis in public health. Obesity Reviews 2004; 5 (Suppl.1): 4–104.
Whitaker R., C, Wright JA, Pepe MS, et al (1997). Predicting obesity in young adulthood from childhood and parental obesity New England Journal of Medicine. New England Journal of Medicine. 337:869–873.
