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Parents Guide to Child Obesity

December 12, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Children should be bought up with proper care. There are many things, which you have to consider and take care to grow your kid in the proper way. It is also very important to be aware of the common health problems that can affect your child. However, childhood obesity is also one of the common problems, which are increasing these days.

Millions of children around the world are facing obesity problems. Even though they are practicing different types of treatment and programs, most of them are not able to get rid of it. Parents are also becoming panic because of this situation. If child obesity is not treated properly, it can cause serious damages to your kid’s future.

However, you do not have to worry. As this problem is increasing, experts have researched and found solutions for it. Parents play an important role in a child’s health. Therefore, it is very important to encourage your children to do proper exercises and activities to gain a healthy body. You should also give importance to the food you prepare for him or her. Proper food will not only help them to gain a healthy body, but also to maintain a toned body.

Therefore, if you are serious about your child’s health and future, make sure you will consider these simple tips. Proper food and care will help you to get rid of the obesity problem of your child. If you are looking for more information on this topic, there are thousands of websites to help you.

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Child Obesity

December 11, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Obesity in children is a serious problem (as it is too in adults) because people who are overweight or obese are more likely to develop various medical problems. The condition can be a prelude to many cases of heart disease, diabetes, and joint problems. In addition to these, obese children may suffer psychologically and socially.

Experts are not in agreement as to what exactly causes child obesity. Some say it may be due to the environment; others point to genetics as the cause. In some cases of child obesity, glandular imbalance is a factor. Often, however, the condition is due to overeating.

Parents have to note that children seem most prone to adding fat cells at three different stages in their lives: 1) in the 3 months prior to birth; 2) in the first 3 years of life; and 3) at the onset of adolescence (from 11 to 16 years old). According to experts, most children learn their eating habits from their parents. This finding may very well explain why children of overweight or obese parents are themselves often overweight.

Heredity as a factor in child obesity

While it is true that child obesity is often caused by overeating, what are the causes of overeating? About 25% of the cases of child obesity can be blamed on heredity. Studies indicate that a child born to overweight parents has about a 90% chance of being overweight or obese.

But what exactly is it about heredity that causes child obesity? In a lot of cases, the child simply inherits a good appetite.

About another 25% of child obesity cases include children who remain fat even when they reduce their food intake. Such children are often referred to as “easy doers” – their organs for digestion work more efficiently than those of an average child. A little food seems to go farther in satisfying the energy requirements than for most children. Children in some of these cases suffer from an abnormality in the endocrine organs, which reduces the rate of the metabolic processes, and thus correspondingly reduces requirement for food.

The remaining 50% of cases of child obesity are victims of the undesirable habit of overeating, which they have inflicted upon themselves. They are normal children who simply enjoy living – they want to eat the food they see, and overeat when there is an abundance of food. These children have become accustomed to high living standards. Rather than thinking about proper nutrition, they center their thoughts on the pleasures of eating.

Child dietary needs

The chances of a child becoming obese can be significantly reduced with proper dietary program, which parents have to be fully aware of. It is during childhood, for instance, that the eating habits are established. Parents are therefore responsible for maintaining a home dietary program as nearly ideal as possible. In this way, their child becomes accustomed to proper nutrition. Eating patterns learned early will guide the child all through life in choosing right foods.

As the child enters the adolescence stage, his appetite becomes greater. This is the period in life when the child goes through tremendous activity and experiences rapid growth. Thus, apart from ample calories to provide energy, he also needs sufficient amount of protein, minerals and vitamins for growth.

Parents have to realize that in the midst of life’s abundance their child is in danger of becoming poorly nourished. This is true particularly in children who are allowed to indulge their appetites and act in accordance with popular customs. For example, they learn to prefer soft drinks to other nutritious beverages (such as fruit juice or milk), and candy to fruits and protein foods.

Overall, the treatment of child obesity consists, to a large extent, of a regulated dietary program. This means maintaining the essential food elements while drastically reducing the number of calories.

Too little or no exercise as a contributing factor

Apart from overeating, overweight or obese children usually exercise too little or not at all. Modernity has significantly lessened the need for physical activity. In fact, even those who used to utilize their muscles a lot at work have become content with pushing buttons or moving levers, allowing machines to do the work.

At home, children no longer do the same amount of physical exertion as their parents probably did when they were young. Today, labor-saving appliances have taken over much of the housekeeping chores that the need for physical exertion in this area has become much reduced. Elsewhere, cars take children to stores or school they used to walk to, and elevators have replaced the stairs as a means for going up even just to the next floor.

Parents with an obese or overweight child must look into their own eating and exercising habits; they then have to discuss the problem with their child, which, in all likelihood, embarrasses him. The family doctor should be able to provide a safe, healthy, nutritious dietary program that will result in gradual weight loss.

It is a must that fads and gross imbalances in the consumption of various kinds of food are avoided. Exercise is an essential method of treating any case of child obesity. Parents should encourage their child to take up a sport or engage in a regular fitness program. As far as losing weight is concerned, doctors say that a reduction of about a couple of pounds in body weight per month is ideal. Parents have to remember to reward their child (in any form other than food of course) if he meets this objective.

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Health Risks Of Being Obese

December 5, 2010 by Leave a Comment

People might think that the only negative thing that could happen from becoming obese is that you simply lose your looks or your attractiveness to some people. This may be one of the effects of obesity, but this is actually not the only negative effect of obesity on people. There are more pressing consequences that can come from being obese, and these are health-related risks.

There are actually a lot of health risks that an obese person might encounter in an obese person’s lifetime, especially if that person has been obese for a very long period of time. The longer you have been an obese person, then the higher your chances are of actually contracting these health risks. Here are a couple of health risks that could possibly develop from being obese.

1. Higher Health Risk Of A Heart Attack

There is no question about it that an obese person will experience some problems and heart conditions and diseases that could develop from his being an obese person. Being obese means that you have gained a body mass index of 30 or more, which means that you have a lot of fatty cells deposited all over your body, including all over your arteries that are responsible for supplying blood into the heart, and transporting those that are being pumped out. If your arteries become clogged or blocked, then you have a much higher chance of experiencing heart attacks or strokes.

2. Higher Health Risk Of An Early Death

Studies have shown that morbidly obese people have a higher chance of dying early. They are given a short life-time expectancy simply because most morbidly obese people don’t live for very long because they contract a lot more disease than the average person, thereby exposing them to a whole lot more diseases and medical conditions that could ultimately take their health. According to research, people who have a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more have a 50% to 100% increased risk of an early death.

3. Higher Health Risk Of Getting Cancer

Obesity can actually expose your body and make it vulnerable to possible attacks from other forms of diseases and conditions. One of those diseases that benefits from this is cancer. By simply being obese, you can actually raise the risk of certain cancers forming in your body, such as cancer of the colon, kidney, gall bladder, prostate, and post-menopausal breast cancer.

4. Higher Health Risk Of Arthritis

Since obese people are heavy, they tend to put too much pressure on certain areas on their body, such as their joints on the knees and ankles. It has been reported that certain musculoskeletal diseases, such as osteoarthritis, are more prevalent with obese people as compared to those who are of normal weight. The risk of these types of diseases from forming actually increases for every 2 pounds that is gained from your supposed normal weight. This means that the heavier you are, the higher your chances would be of contracting arthritis and other musculoskeletal diseases.

5. Higher Risks Of Depression

A lot of obese people out there have openly admitted that they would rather have some other illness or disease, or would rather have one of their limbs cut off, instead of simply staying on their current weight. This says a lot, especially about how they perceive their weight and their condition. Being obese does not make them happy, which is why it increases their chances of becoming clinically depressed.

Selva Sugunendran has published  a number of Books on Health Matters including  Asthma, Child Obesity, Diabetes and Cardiac diseases.

If you enjoyed reading this article, then click the link below for your copy of the EBook that details everything you need to know to win the fight against child obesity:  http://www.ParentsGuideToChildObesity.com

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Lose Weight And Start Living

December 5, 2010 by Leave a Comment

One of the things that could hinder you from living a long, healthy and fun life is your weight. If you are obese, then there are a lot of things that you are limited to doing. Obesity not only affects what activities you are able to do, but also how you feel about yourself. Losing weight is not that difficult to do, especially if you have already set your mind to it. Here are a couple of things that could help guide you into losing some weight so that you can start living your life the way you want to.

1. Watch What You Eat

One of the very first things that you must do in order to lose weight properly is to watch what you eat. The more fatty and high cholesterol food you eat, then the fatter and unhealthier you will become. You should start eating foods that are high on fibre and protein. Choosing the right diet for you is one of the best starts that you can do, especially if you plan on losing weight the right way.

2. Control Your Food Portions

Another way that you can lose the weight and get back into shape is to simply control the portions of food that you eat. When you eat, simply try and eat small amounts of food at more frequent intervals. This will actually help you avoid in putting on some excess pounds since you only eat enough portions of food that are easier and faster to digest. The more frequent you eat your meals, the faster your metabolism will become.

3. Physical Exercise

Another thing that you should never miss out on doing is to perform physical exercises. The increase in your daily physical activity can actually help you burn off those excess fats and get you back into good and healthy shape. You can start by doing a few easier exercises at the beginning, just to get your body to adjust to the change, especially if you have been obese for quite a long time.

4. Motivate Yourself

One of the things that people often complain about is that they are not motivated enough to perform their weight loss program, or at least maintain the program until it becomes effective. You need to learn how to motivate yourself so you can maintain your weight loss program for a long period of time. Keeping yourself motivated is very important, as this will help you keep your focus on your goal, which is to lose weight in order to be able to live a healthy life.

5. Feel Good

The best way to be able to live your life happily is to be able to feel good about yourself, both on the outside and on the inside. The more fit your body becomes, the better you would feel inside. It is a known fact that if you are more comfortable with how you look, you will be able to carry yourself better, and vice versa.

Selva Sugunendran has published  a number of Books on Health Matters including  Asthma, Child Obesity, Diabetes and Cardiac diseases.

If you enjoyed reading this article, then click the link below for your copy of the EBook that details everything you need to know to win the fight against child obesity:  http://www.ParentsGuideToChildObesity.com

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Obesity Risks

December 5, 2010 by Leave a Comment

A number of children have abused their bodies and their health, but don’t even know that they are doing so. They simply eat a lot of fast foods that they want to eat without even thinking what effect it would have on their body and weight. Some would even opt to not do any physical exercises or physically demanding activities, but instead, they would rather just spend their time in front of the television or computer for hours on end. One effect of such abuse is obesity.

When people become obese, they not only gain those unwanted extra pounds, but they also gain a much higher risk in acquiring a serious and dangerous medical condition as a direct cause of their weight gain. In order for both parents and children to fully understand the gravity of the effect of obesity, they need to know what the consequences are when one becomes obese.

1. Increased Risk Of Early Death

According to recent studies, being obese can definitely lead to an increased risk of a premature or early death. For those people who have a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more, they are more likely to experience over 50% to 100% increase in the risk of having a premature or early death.

2. Increased Weight-Related Health Risk

Those people who are obese are known to have a higher chance of contracting weight-related problems and diseases. This is usually brought about due to the obese person’s excessive visceral fat that is accumulated all around his or her abdominal area. This abdominal fat is actually one of the main causes for certain cardiovascular diseases. The longer you have this abdominal fat, then the higher your risks would be in getting weight-related diseases.

3. Increased Risk Of Heart Attacks

Heart attacks usually occur when the arteries that are responsible for supplying the heart with blood and for transporting blood that are being pumped out by the heart are somewhat clogged or blocked. This is more prevalent with people who are obese, more so for people who are morbidly obese. Also, since the person afflicted by obesity has a high blood pressure, this results to more heart-related problems, and possibly a higher risk of strokes and heart attacks.

4. Increased Risk Of Respiratory Problems

Obese people may find it a bit difficult to breath, especially during times when they are sleeping or lying on their back, or when they are exerting themselves physically. As a result, some of these obese people would develop other pulmonary and respiratory diseases, such as severe bronchitis and asthma, as a direct result of their obesity.

5. Negative Psychological And Social Effect

One of the more devastating consequences of obesity is actually the negative psychological and social trauma that is dealt to the obese person. Since in most countries, beauty is associated with appearance and slimness, most obese persons would suffer emotionally from feeling unattractive and unappealing. A number of obese persons suffer a great deal from this consequence, far  more than others mainly because it not only deals with the physical aspect of the person, but it also involves the emotional side as well.

Selva Sugunendran has published  a number of Books on Health Matters including  Asthma, Child & Adult Obesity Risks, Diabetes and Cardiac diseases. If you found the above article useful, then you should visit the following website to immediately download an extensively researched EBook on Multiple Health diseases including Obesity, High Blood Pressure, Cardiac Illness and Diabetes. It details the symptoms, treatments available, the interactions as well as the management and control of these diseases:

http://www.SeriousHealthProblems.com

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