Introduction
Obesity in the United States is an ongoing battle and it has been for the last 30 years, parents in the nation were first concerned about their teens becoming obese or giving into obesity; it has been argued that their concerns in this regard were completely legitimate. Nowadays, parents are standing idly by while their children live sedentary lifestyles that put them on the trail to obesity and in so doing, they are destroying their bodies which is having detrimental effects on their ability to be active. Exercise is instrumental in cheating and completely escaping obesity because it gives children the energy they need to fight obesity, exercise should be the first thing on a parent’s mind to keep their child from succumbing to obesity because it has health benefits that keep children from dying of corroded arteries or high blood pressure. Dehghan, Danesh and Merchant suggest that “children who do not exercise are more likely to die from diseases such as congestive heart failure and high blood pressure due to being obese, obese women are likely to have problems getting pregnant” (Dehghan, Danesh and Merchant 4). In order to successfully combat the evils of obesity, children must be allowed a place to play and freely run around to burn excess energy. Elementary and Middle Schools can do their part to prevent obesity in children by allowing them extra time in the gym during gym hour which means longer time in the gym to be active, this is completely a necessary step in the right direction. This paper will discuss the pros of exercise in preventing children from succumbing to obesity.
Body
Preventing children from becoming obese is not as hard a task as some people think it is, the school government committees have the power to do this and they can by extending the amount of time that children spend in the gym. For kids that have gym first thing in the morning from 8:30 am to 9:20 am can, by the power vested in the school government committee, can get an extra 45 minutes in the gym. By extending all class periods in the gym, children are able to spend more time doing things like playing basketball, dodge ball or even playing indoor baseball. The benefits of doing this is that children get excited about going to gym every day, their reason for going to school will be for no more than going to gym to play their favorite sports. Another added incentive is if two or three adults get involved playing sports with the children, it is always a plus when an adult gets involved; this will be an exercise regimen that the children will be able to get behind. McQueen explains “five to ten minutes of exercise everyday can reduce the risk of obesity and kids will never have to worry about suffering from symptoms of obesity” (141). The idea is to keep children from living sedentary lifestyles in the aspect that they succumb to obesity and give into the worst case scenario which is a lifetime of infinite health problems such as infertility, muscle spasms, excruciating migraines, stroke and morbid obesity. Ironically, the energy that children burn at school will motivate them to want to burn that energy at home as well, there are parks nearby that children might go to in order to play basketball or even go skateboarding if that is their pleasure. The gym suggestion is something that should be practiced in every school across America, too many children are at risk for obesity because of the lack of exercise at their school or suggestions on what to do with all of the energy they gain from eating breakfast or brunch. Exercise is the elemental key in preventing obesity in young children because it is so easy to be lazy but even easier to create excuses to not exercise.
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Ironically, the schools in America have more power than parents to stop and completely eliminate the obesity risk to children by practically forcing children to be active. An example of this is when children get longer periods to play during recess, this is completely a mandatory step in seeing to it that not a single child is not at risk of becoming obese during their lifetime. It used to be that teachers would keep children in during recess when they misbehaved, now that very punishment is what is making them fat and non-energetic. Extra time during recess guarantees that children will get more time to play outside or inside if it is raining, the point is that children get the exercise that is required of them so they do not grow up to be morbidly obese or giving into obesity as only they can. Boutcher explained “high intensity exercise is necessary for children to avoid becoming obese, the more exercise that a child gets, the more energy they will burn and the less fat they will have” (2). The benefits of children getting more recess time at school is that the children are going to want to use that same energy to later join a sport team at school, and this will encourage them to later run track or play semi-professional basketball or play baseball. The sky is the limit and children will never have to worry about being at risk for becoming obese, the playground is full of things that children can use to burn all of that excess energy; the merry-go-round for example. The importance of kids avoiding obesity is absolute, there are not enough parents encouraging their children to be more active and this leaves the child feeling that future gym classes are no more important than an Earth Science or Math class. Parents have an obligatory duty to encourage children to be as active as possible, obesity is something that children cannot afford to become; it will destroy them and permanently damage them beyond repair. The threat of a 10-year-old child weighing 190 pounds before the fifth grade is very real. Parents need to wake up, their child’s lives are at stake.
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Creatively, preventing the risk of obesity can be a little bit challenging but there are ways of going about it where children get the exercise they need and they learn how important it is to be physically fit. Another way that children can get exercise while reducing their risk of obesity is by walking to school every day, the benefit behind this is immense. One of the benefits of doing this is that the child get a chance to lose excess weight that they might have gained eating a big meal the night before, eating and sleeping puts weight on a child’s body, but actively exercising will decrease the amount of weight that the child might have gained. Children who walk to school every day will get more exercise than running around in a gym for 30 minutes, and it is also a great way for a child to constantly stay in shape. Daniels et al. claim “that a child who exercises will more than likely avoid obesity as well as the risks of getting it, a child will never know true weight loss unless they work it into their daily routine” (2114). This is another exercise activity that parents should also do with their children because some kids maybe scared to walk to school by themselves, but an adult walking with them like their mom or dad will encourage them to do it a whole lot more often. Most times, children feel alone when they are doing things such as losing weight and dieting or ever exercising but when their parents take an interest then the child feels that much more encouraged. Parents can also take their children to the local park to play a sport then they will be able to actively say that their parent is helping reduce the risk of obesity. A parent’s biggest fear is their child gaining weight that they cannot lose, but walking to school every day and partaking in gym activities can reduce a child’s risk of obesity by 75%. There will never be a right time to prevent obesity in a child early in their lives because even a year is one year too late. Parents are encouraged to take initiative to provide their child with areas to play and ways to get exercise, their little lives depend on it.
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The school system can take things one step further in helping kids reduce the risk of obesity by having after school activities that children can do while they either wait for their parents or until they can arrange for a ride, this is extremely helpful in the aspect that kids will get another opportunity to get exercise while continuing to escape the cruel grip of diabetes or obesity. After school activities may not be much to some of the school board committee, but to a child those after school activities are everything to them and kids should be encouraged to do this because it will further help them stay healthy. Case in point, Charlie is an 11-year-old boy who does not get very much exercise because his parents do not pay that much attention to him or his health because both of them are working 14 hour days at work. As a result, Charlie is sluggish, lazy, unmotivated and is 180 lbs. Teachers at school encourage Charlie to get involved with sport activities at school and after two weeks, Charlie started being more participating in sport activities. The additional benefit of this is that Charlie is no longer 180 pounds, his weight has dropped down to 130 lbs. Charlie no longer feels unmotivated or lazy, he walks to school every day and plays basketball in gym. Helping children reduce the risk of obesity is a full time job that most parents cannot afford to sleep on, children need their parents help in staying out of the obesity category. Wing and Phelan claim that “exercising and weight-lifting is one of the best ways to help reduce the possibility of weight loss and other diseases associated with it such as cardiovascular disease” (Wing and Phelan 222S). There is not enough time in a day to prevent a child from becoming overweight and becoming obese, it is important that children get all of the exercise they can; the decision they make not to could cost them their lives. There are way too many children coming in from school and playing video games until they go to bed, it is not healthy for a child to live their young lives this way. It is detrimental to their health.
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Children crave structure and activity that challenges them, video games does just that but it does not give them the exercise that they so desperately need. Playing video games only exercises the fingers and not the rest of the body, limiting their video game time is one of the best ways to get them outside to be active. One of the biggest things that children, especially those who are overweight, struggle with is self-esteem. Reducing the risk of obesity by keeping them active is one of many ways to completely stop their focus on this issue. Self-esteem is an ongoing issue with kids in the world today, they grow up having these same issues because of their weight or in this case, being overweight. A child that is near obese levels are likely to stop caring about activity of any kind, this will completely give them a reason to avoid gym classes when they get in middle and high school which will not be good for them because they will need that hour of exercise to stay healthy. Wieting explained that “parents of obese children are going to have to realize that having an obese child can be expensive, the medical bills are ridiculously high” (Wieting 545). This is why parents are usually encouraged to keep their child from reaching obese levels at all costs, it is a bill that is going to cost the family every dime they have to get these obese children the help they need. Case in point, Melanie is an obese 14-year-old girl who weighs in at 270 pounds and she struggles with self-esteem issues. Melanie’s parents are concerned that their daughter is going to end up killing herself because she cannot control her eating habits, her parents pay out of pocket for Melanie to see the doctor about her morbid obesity; each visit is $300.00 a week. Melanie’s parents have even dipped into their life savings in order to get her help which is not helping her at all. Children all across the U.S. deal with this issue all the time and every day, parents have an obligatory duty to make sure that their child grow up healthy. Going into adulthood as an 18-year-old that weighs 390 pounds is not healthy.
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Stress can impact children from an early age and can cause them to pick up some very dangerous habits such as binge-eating, smoking, drinking and doing drugs among other things. Exercise can give children a way to deal with their stress so they do not end up resorting to any of the aforementioned bad habits, stress can also cause a child to gain weight which can have detrimental effects on their physical body. Stress that a child endures can be the reason why they end up obese because they do not have active ways of dealing with their stress, exercise can relieve stress and can restore calm to an otherwise angry person. Children who stay stressed out are likely to gain more weight binge eating than being lazy and sluggish, both work against the child; both do lethal damage to the child as well. Goran, Reynolds and Lindquist claim that “exercise opens doors to healthier children and children with healthier future alternatives which means alternative ways of dealing with their problems as well” (S20). Also, exercise improves a child’s mood and destroys their need to want to deal with problems destructively. Case in point, Johnathan is a 12-year-old boy who descended from binge eaters and family members with eating disorders, his family feels that he will be the next one to have the family eating disorder curse so to speak. Ironically, when Johnathan gets mad or stressed out, he goes to the local park and relieves stress by playing basketball and going to the batting cage. Johnathan exercises regularly which keeps him from giving into self-destruction like the rest of his family before him has because he knows it is not worth it, it is not worth sacrificing his body for. The greatest gift that a parent can give their child is motivation to exercise regularly so they can avoid obesity and becoming morbidly obese, most parents know that children usually take the initiative to do something when they are more involved. Parents getting involved is a great way to encourage kids to do the right thing when it comes to anything especially weight loss via exercise.
Conclusion
The risk of obesity in children between the ages of 6 to 18 is very high because of the lack of support that the children get from their parents which could explain why the obesity epidemic is so high, places that are child friendly should encourage children to exercise more and using their resources is one way of making that a reality. There are way too many children who are obese due to family history and ancestry, it does not have to be that way; there are other ways of reducing the risk of obesity. Exercising regularly, take walks as often as possible, walk to nearby places instead of either being chauffeured or carpooling. Children can easily become stressed from school and the headaches associated with it, but they can relieve those headaches by seeking after school activities that allow them to get exercise; using that energy to join a team at school. The stress that a child endures can give them a reason to take up destructive habits such as binge eating which will cause them to develop an eating disorder that will put them on the fast track to obesity, the sad part is that most children do not get the encouragement they need in order to take steps in the right direction. Encouragement is one of the best weapons to use on any child especially if that child is contemplating eating disorders and the like. Parents are the most powerful figures in a child’s life, some parents do not know this but a child loves it when their parents take an interest in their activities whether it is sports or spending time together at the batting cage. When a child has that kind of encouragement, they will grow up to live happy and healthy lives. The possibility of a child living a long life is very real as long as they exercise every day and find other ways of living as well as spending their time, an example of this is when a child chooses to walk to school instead of being driven; the same rule applies when they are walking home from school as well. Exercise opens doors to a future where children can grow up without expensive medical bills or low esteem.
Work Cited
Wieting, J. "Cause and Effect in Childhood Obesity: Solutions for a National Epidemic." The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association 108.10 (2008): 545. Print.
Boutcher, Stephen. "High-Intensity Intermittent Exercise and Fat Loss." Journal of Obesity2011.1 (2010): 2. Print.
Daniels, Stephen, Brian McCrindle, Brigid Sanner, Marc Jacobson, and Robert Eckel. "American Heart Association Childhood Obesity Research Summit." American Heart Association 119.1 (2014): 2115. Print.
Wing, Rena, and Suzanne Phelan. "Long-term Weight Loss Maintenance." The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 82.1 (2005): 222S. Print.
McQueen, Matthew. "Exercise Aspects of Obesity Treatment." The Ochsner Journal 9.1 (2009): 141. Print.
Dehghan, Mahshid, Noori Danesh, and Anwar Merchant. "Childhood Obesity, Prevalence and Prevention." Nutrition Journal 1.1 (2005): 4. Print.
Goran, MI, KD Reynolds, and CH Lindquist. "Role of Physical Activity in the Prevention of Obesity in Children." International Journal of Obesity 23.1 (1999): S19. Print.
