Lately the worldwide problem of childhood obesity is more and more prominent in all the news media. Obesity in a child can aggravate the risk for more child health issues like diabetes, dyslipidemia, cardiovascular diseases, skeletal disorders, sleep disorders and problems, psychological symptoms and gastro-intestinal problems. These abnormalities will in all likelyhood continue into puberty and adulthood. Recent studies have shown that if a child is obese it is extremely likely that adult obesity will follow.
Nonetheless, it is possible for parents to make a positive impact on the lifestyle of their offspring and give them the guidance that will ensure a happy and healthy adulthood.
What is the role needed from parents to make a contribution to the prevention of obesity in their child? Parents must address the causes of childhood obesity. Parents must pay attention to their kids and help them to feel that they belong and that they are in a secure environment. If your child is neglected by you there is an increased possibility of obesity compared to other children. Your kids should not be pressured into eating more than they want to during meals, all you will achieve is to train your child’s metabolic system to make your child eat more than he or she needs.
The amount of food eaten is not what is most important. It is much more important that the child must eat healthy food and then also get sufficient exercise to burn of the calories. If you worry too much about your child’s weight you are going to encourage eating behaviours that are abnormal.
Your child should not spend so much time in front of the telly. As your child spends more time in front of the TV so he or she will be more obese, watching television is obviously going to reduce physical activities by the child, and then it naturally also reduces the body’s metabolism. The junk food commercials on television also affects children, they are encouraged to eat more junk food and drink beverages with high levels of sugar leading to increased weight problems for the kid.
If you are thinking that your child weighs more than his or her ideal weight and that there is a risk of obesity, consult with a physician as soon as you can, to ensure that obesity is halted quickly and effectively. It is not really necessary for expecting mothers to eat for two persons, too much food while you are pregnant just dramatically increases the possibility that both you and your unborn child will in future become obese. The young infant must be breastfeeded for at least one year. While the child is still very small, there should be strong emphasis on fruits, and vegetables and grains while all the time monitoring to see if the youngster is really hungry before feeding it.
If you note that there is a high risk that your child may become obese, try using low fat milk instead of the richer variety. Avoid cane sugar and snacks that contain excessive fat, because they are very high in calories. If your kid is still at school, put in place steadfast rules as to how much they are allowed to watch television, snacks may only be of the healthy variety, food treats will be allowed only occasionally and generally good food habits must be maintained.
The child obesity problem does not remain static, it keeps on increasing with each passing year and, since 1981, there has been a dangerously high increase. The child obesity epidemic poses a great risk to our children’s children, and it must now be halted in its tracks all over the developed world.
