WHY SHOULD KIDS TAKE A ZUMBATOMIC FITNESS CLASS?

Because We Want Our Kids/Grandkids  to be Healthy and Fit

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OBESITY IN CHILDREN AND TEENS

A Study Done by The Academy of Adolescent and Childhood Psychiatry

No. 79;  May 2008

“The problem of childhood obesity in the United States has grown considerably in recent years. Between 16 and 33 percent of children and adolescents are obese.  Obesity is among the easiest medical conditions to recognize but most difficult to treat.  Unhealthy weight gain due to poor diet and lack of exercise is responsible for over 300,000 deaths each year.  The annual cost to society for obesity is estimated at nearly $100 billion.  Overweight children are much more likely to become overweight adults unless they adopt and maintain healthier patterns of eating and exercise.

What is obesity?
A few extra pounds do not suggest obesity.  However they may indicate a tendency to gain weight easily and a need for changes in diet and/or exercise.  Generally, a child is not considered obese until the weight is at least 10 percent higher than what is recommended for the height and body type.  Obesity most commonly begins in childhood between the ages of 5 and 6, and during adolescence.  Studies have shown that a child who is obese between the ages of 10 and 13 has an 80 percent chance of becoming an obese adult.

What causes obesity?
The causes of obesity are complex and include genetic, biological, behavioral and cultural factors.  Basically, obesity occurs when a person eats more calories than the body burns up.  If one parent is obese, there is a 50 percent chance that the children will also be obese.  However, when both parents are obese, the children have an 80 percent chance of being obese.  Although certain medical disorders can cause obesity, less than 1 percent of all obesity is caused by physical problems.  Obesity in childhood and adolescence can be related to:

• poor eating habits
• overeating or binging

LACK OF EXERCISE (i.e., couch potato kids)

• family history of obesity
• medical illnesses (endocrine, neurological problems)
• medications
• stressful life events or changes (separations, divorce, death, abuse)
• family and peer problems
• low self-esteem
• depression or other emotional problems

What are risks and complications of obesity?
There are many risks and complications with obesity.  Physical consequences include:

• increased risk of heart disease
• high blood pressure
• diabetes
• breathing problems
• trouble sleeping

Child and adolescent obesity is also associated with increased risk of emotional problems.  Teens with weight problems tend to have much lower self-esteem and be less popular with their peers. Depression, anxiety and sleep disorders can also occur.

How can obesity be managed and treated?
Obese children need a thorough medical evaluation by a pediatrician or family physician  to consider the possibility of a physical cause.  In the absence of a physical disorder, the only way to lose weight is to reduce the number of calories being eaten and to increase the child’s or adolescent’s level of physical activity.  Lasting weight loss can only occur when there is self-motivation.  Since obesity often affects more than one family member, making healthy eating and regular exercise a family activity can improve the chances of successful weight control for the child or adolescent.

Ways to manage obesity in children and adolescents include:

• start a weight-management program
• change eating habits (eat slowly, develop a routine)
• plan meals and make better food selections (eat less fatty foods, avoid junk and fast foods)
• control portions and consume less calories

INCREASE PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND HAVE A MORE ACTIVE LIFESTYLE

• know what your child eats at school
• eat meals as a family instead of while watching television or at the computer
• do not use food as a reward
• limit snacking
• attend a support group (e.g., Overeaters Anonymous)

Obesity frequently becomes a lifelong issue.  The reason most obese adolescents gain back their lost pounds is that after they have reached their goal, they go back to their old habits of eating and exercising.  An obese adolescent must therefore learn to eat and enjoy healthy foods in moderate amounts and to exercise regularly to maintain the desired weight.  Parents of an obese child can improve their child’s self esteem by emphasizing the child’s strengths and positive qualities rather than just focusing on their weight problem.”

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Someone’s in the Kitchen With Michelle: The Secret

Ingredient Is Politics

WASHINGTON

In a collision of politics, cooking and popular culture, Michelle Obama will reveal the secret ingredient that the chefs must use in their televised cook-off: anything that grows in the White House garden (no further spoilers here, though).

Mrs. Obama will also talk about her crusade to reduce childhood obesity through better school lunches, community gardens, farmers’ markets and EXERCISE, which around the White House has the working title Healthy Kids Initiative.

The first lady’s cameo on “Iron Chef” is the latest example of her willingness to get her message across to the public in ways few of her predecessors would have considered.

From digging, planting and harvesting the garden with elementary school children, to completing 142 revolutions with a hula hoop before cameras at last month’s kickoff for the Healthy Kids project, Mrs. Obama has been making her point.…

Each episode of “Iron Chef America” is seen by almost 1.5 million viewers, and its core audience is 25- to 54-year-olds….

He continued, “If we don’t do something about how kids eat soon, it will be simply the largest problem facing this country.”

On Tuesday, the chefs reunited in New York to tape the competition in the studio known, in “Iron Chef” parlance, as the Kitchen Stadium. The show picked up Mrs. Obama’s theme, with Mr. Brown frequently reminding the audience that the vegetables were fresh and local. They were also organic. (They were not, however, grown in the White House garden; these were stand-ins.)

“Sounds like a slogan,” Mr. Batali said. “But what a way to eat.”

The first lady came through the door of the South Portico in a pumpkin-orange dress with teal blue shoes and short sweater, announced the secret ingredient and talked to the chefs about:

getting children to eat vegetables.

“It’s important for these kids to have a hands-on experience,” she said. “And now we’re expanding the tours of the garden to any public school children that come to Washington, D.C., and we’re doing those on a regular basis, and it’s been just a wonderful educational addition.” She suggested that the chefs might want to consider cooking some of the exceptionally large sweet potatoes in the garden. “We are sweet potato lovers,” she said, “especially the president.”….

Off camera she chatted with the chefs about their participation. “This is huge,” she said. “It is going a long way to help change the way this country thinks about food. I want you to come back.”…. “

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