Children, overweight or not, are under tremendous peer pressure to conform to the images they see on television and in movies. Young girls see famous female singers flaunt themselves provocatively while television and movie stars starve themselves to the point their lack of body fat becomes an issue. Young boys hear about their sports idols using steroids and other substances to achieve peak athletic performance, rather than relying upon good nutrition and physical training to achieve physical fitness. Children are being bombarded with mixed messages about body image and how society defines a person’s basic worth. When children are not able to live up to these images, it can have a detrimental impact on their own self-image and their self-confidence.

Multiple health problems are caused or at least worsened by obesity. Childhood obesity is the #1 cause of high blood pressure in children. Type II diabetes, coronary heart disease, and stress on weight bearing joints are all potential health issues for fat kids. Singing out the alarm by health professionals doesn’t seem to have been effective in curtailing childhood obesity or in families modifying a lifestyle that keeps children overweight.

Children overweight and lethargic are at a higher risk of becoming obese adults when they have two obese parents. It is uncertain if this is due to genetic factors or because overweight or obese parents model poor eating and exercise habits. In any case, families need to work together to solve the problem by addressing the issues individually and collectively. Children participating in the educational process of finding healthy alternatives are available for high-calorie snacks is a great first step in turning the tide.

Polls indicate that American children spend, on average, several hours per day watching television. To add to the problem, only about 1/3 of elementary school children have daily physical fitness education. If families and schools worked together to participate in and promote activities for fat children, singing and dancing and other activities requiring movement would replace more sedentary activities. Fat kids singing and dancing would certainly be a marked improvement over the current television viewing while consuming high-calorie snacks!

There is increased incidence of children overweight and obese developing health issues, and medical evidence that lack of exercise and poor nutrition in the family setting and at school all contribute to the rising incidence of fat children. Fast food restaurants and merchandisers of junk food with little nutritional value target all kids, not just fat kids. Singing and laughing jingles about how good the foods taste and how the children will be popular and well-liked and have an enjoyable life bombard children during prime viewing times.
The only way this trend toward obesity in children and adults will change is if society demonstrates it values health and nutrition, physical and mental well-being, and active, vital lifestyles. Parents are responsible for ensuring they model all of these in order to help their children reverse the trend that is seeing more and more children overweight.