President Obama recently proclaimed September, ?National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month.?? Childhood obesity is a popular topic these days.? From the controversial advertisements in the state of Georgia, to TV shows like, ?The Biggest Loser.?? Recently, it was announced that this reality based TV show ? where contestants compete with one another to lose the most weight ? will be having children (ages 13-17) compete on the show this season.
While the idea of children competing to lose weight on a reality based TV show may create controversy, the fact that childhood obesity is getting attention in the media could help bring awareness to the epidemic.? The childhood obesity rate in the United States is alarming.? The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) states,
?The percentage of children aged 6?11 years in the United States who were obese increased from 7% in 1980 to nearly 20% in 2008. Similarly, the percentage of adolescents aged 12?19 years who were obese increased from 5% to 18% over the same period.?? -That means it has tripled in the past 30 years!
Attacking the obesity problem while children are young is our best hope to eliminating an obesity problem when these children are adults.? The CDC points out children who are obese are likely to become adults that are obese.
The effects of childhood obesity can cause a number of problems both mentally and physically for children.? For example, bone and joint problems, sleep apnea, and social and psychological problems such as stigmatization and poor self-esteem.?? And if those reasons weren?t good enough, our recent Cost and Benefits data shows adults policyholders in the ?Obese? Body Mass Index (BMI) category pay an average monthly premium for health insurance that is 22.6% higher than those in the ?Normal? BMI category ($164/month compared to $201/month).
First Lady Michelle Obama has been leading the movement against childhood obesity with the ?Let?s Move? campaign.? Let?s Move provides facts, tips, and tools on how to provide a healthy environment for our children to help decrease the rates of childhood obesity.
Ready to take action?? Check out these tips and more to help improve the health of our children at LetsMove.org:
- Keep fresh fruit in a bowl within your child?s reach to grab as a quick snack.
- Take a walk with your family after dinner.
- Plan a menu for the week and get your children involved with the planning and cooking.
- Turn off the TV during meals and share some family time.
- Talk to the principal about organizing a school health team.
If you have any ideas on how to help improve the health of our children, we?d love to hear them.
Image via Flickr user eyeliam.
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Source: http://blog.ehealthinsurance.com/2012/09/national-childhood-obesity-awareness-month/
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