Why Are So Many Children Suffering From Obesity Today?

With obesity rates continuing to climb in In the US and UK particularly it is perhaps no surprise that we are seeing a rising number of obese children. Of course the effects of child obesity are all too obvious, but precisely what is it that results in obesity in our children?

As is frequently the case there is no one cause of child obesity and there are a variety of different things that cause obesity in our children.

It is generally the case for instance that a child whose parents are overweight or obese will be overweight which suggests that there may be an inherited or genetic factor to obesity. However, despite the fact that this is an area which is actively being studied, no genetic link has so far been established and it is thought much more likely that it is the eating habits in the family that result in obesity and not genetics.

In recent years we have witnessed a considerable change in eating habits with fast food restaurants appearing on every corner, junk food available just about everywhere and our supermarket shelves lined with 'convenience' foods which are often very high in sugar. The days of home cooked meals are far behind us in the majority of homes and have been replaced by microwave meals or take-away food. Indeed, an increasing number of parents are now electing to take their children out for a hamburger instead of preparing meals at home not simply because it is easier than cooking a meal but also because it saves on the washing up!

In addition, we have seen a very significant fall in activity levels for many groups of children, aided in no small degree by the introduction of computers, video gaming machines and now the ubiquitous mobile phone. Not surprisingly, as activity levels have dropped so our children have also lost their normal ability to burn up the calories gained from eating more and more fast food.

The Internet, television, magazines and other types of media also play a role as they dominate the lives of our kids and fast food, junk food and candy manufacturers are not slow in jumping onto this bandwagon and make full use of the advertising opportunity that the media provides. Many people would argue that commercials have done more to encourage the increase in childhood obesity than almost anything else in the last few years.

There are also several social factors at play in today's world and a significant number of children nowadays simply eat whenever they get bored. Additionally, they will turn to food when they are stressed, angry, depressed or anxious.

At the moment a lot of medical research is being aimed at the cause of child obesity and its treatment and the majority of this research is focused on solving the problem using a combination of diet and exercise once confronted with an obese child. However, with childhood obesity continuing to rise at an alarming rate, and with the obvious dangers of child obesity, perhaps it is now time to attack the roots of the problem and to stop our children from getting obese in the first place.