According to the CDC's website, West Virginia has one of the worst obesity rates in the U.S. It is one of only nine states that have an obesity rate over 30%, and only five states have worse statistics.
The CDC identifies several potential factors that, alone or in combination, can contribute to obesity. These include genetics, behaviors, and environment.
Certain genetic conditions can set the stage for childhood obesity. One of these disorders is Prader-Willi syndrome, a chromosome abnormality that causes uncontrolled appetite. However, the CDC states that childhood obesity rates have tripled in the past thirty years with no changes in the population's overall genetics. The overwhelming new numbers of overweight children are attributed to behavioral and environmental factors.
Excessive calorie intake, less physical activity, and more time spent sedentary in front of televisions or computers are thought to be the main reasons for the recent high numbers of obese children. Portion size in the U.S. is much larger than in other countries, especially Europe and Asia. The U.S. National Institutes of Health connects food prices with childhood obesity--when healthy foods like fruit and vegetables are more expensive, obesity rates climb. Many people buy what is cheapest and consequently less healthy. Children also spend much of their time watching TV or in front of a computer instead of engaged in physical activities that would normally allow them to burn excess calories.
The home and school environments can also strongly affect a child's chances of being obese. If children are allowed by their parents and teachers to engage excessively in the harmful behaviors described above, their chances of becoming obese can be significantly increased. According to FamilyEducation.com, parents can take simple steps to ensure that their children have a good chance of being healthy. This includes limiting television/computer time, encouraging sports or other physical activity participation, and providing nutritious food with minimal amounts of unhealthy snacks and fast food. Schools can encourage children to join sports teams, include physical education and healthy living class in their curricula, and provide healthy food for breakfast and lunch.
Childhood (and adult) obesity are very detrimental to our population's overall health. Everyone has a stake in the issue because anyone can be so easily affected; America's culture of fast food and digital entertainment provides many opportunities for unhealthy living. But the important thing to remember is that if a person is motivated, obesity is preventable--with proper diet and physical activity, the issue can be eliminated.
What an urgent topic to explore this semester, and what a really smart first post. You nicely outline what current research suggests about the causes of this increasingly rate in childhood obesity, and you make smart use of the blog's networking abilities to link us to some of these other sources of information. I'm interested to see how you frame your blog this semester and focus on West Virginia in particular. Do you imagine that you'll focus on studies that examine the specific factors that have lead to the growth of this problem in West Virginia? Or focus on different educational efforts throughout the state to address the problem? Or policy changes being made in the state capitol or in local community governments to address obesity? Or outreach work in the community being done by non-profit organizations or groups such as the extension service? Or, conversely, do you imagine that you'll focus your efforts at the individual level, speaking directly to parents and children throughout the state about lifestyle changes they can make to counter the cultural and nutritional factors that lead to unhealthy lifestyles? I look forward to reading your work over the next several months!
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