|  | Conditions Treatments | Obesity

Obesity Prevalence in Children

Obesity, or having a very high percentage of body fat, is a growing problem both among American adults and children. Although obesity does tend to run in families, genetics is not the only cause of obesity. A child only becomes obese after a period of time when he continuously consumes more calories than he uses.

  1. Identification

    • Many professionals measure childhood obesity using published BMI (body mass index) standards, while others define obesity in children as having a body weight that is at least twenty percent higher than a healthy weight for a child of that height.

    Associated Risks

    • The more obese a child is, the more at risk she is for developing serious health problems, including breathing difficulties, trouble sleeping, diabetes and high blood pressure. Obese children also have a much higher risk of developing heart problems than non-obese children.

    Geography

    • Residents of the southeastern states are at much higher risk for obesity than children who live in states on the west coast, the Midwest or the northeast, mostly due to the fact that southern cooking often includes many fried, fattening foods. Children with a low socioeconomic background are also more likely to become obese.

    Ethnicity

    • Asians have a lower prevalence of obesity than other ethnic groups. However, Asians born in the United States are four times more likely to become obese than their foreign-born counterparts. Caucasian children and adolescents are much less likely to be obese or overweight than are black or Hispanic children.

    Expert Insight

    • If obesity continues to rise, which is likely, it will quickly become the leading preventable cause of death in the United States. A healthy diet and active lifestyle are necessary to counteract the rise of obesity.

    Prevalence

    • As of 2004, 16 percent of children and adolescents were overweight and 34 percent were at risk for becoming overweight. This rate is expected to continue to rise if the eating and exercising habits of American children are not drastically changed.

Obesity - Related Articles