Child Obesity Causes

Consider the Real Child Obesity Causes

Many parents make their children obese unknowingly by taking extra care of their babies. They overfeed their children and do not allow them to participate in sports and other physical activities. They fear that their child will be hurt by participating in any such activity.

There are many factors that contribute to obesity among child. Body weights are determined by a combination of these factors. Bad eating habits and lack of exercise are noted as primary causes of increasing obesity among children.

What are the underlying causes of child obesity?

In general terms there are three main child obesity causes.

Genetic Factors

Obesity can be caused for genetic reasons. The risk of becoming obese is greatest among children who have obese parents. This is due to the genetic factors or parental modeling of both eating and exercise behaviors.

Environmental Factors

Environmental factors including lifestyle play a major role in child obesity. Poor eating habits, especially consumption of high calorie snacks can cause obesity in children. Some research also shows that extensive viewing of television may cause obesity in children (Dietz and Gortmaker, 1985). Factors involved here are displacement of physical activity coupled with increased calorie consumption caused by the effects of television advertising.

Psychological Factors

Psychological factors also contribute to obesity in children. These factors influence child's eating habits and many people eat in response to negative emotions such as boredom, sadness or anger.

Childhood obesity - the result of an interaction between food, state of mind, family and the environment

An imbalance between intake and output has a direct consequence on causing obesity. What children intake - excessive consumption of fast foods and unhealthy food choices.

What children output – less time spent playing outside, more time spent on a computer, playing video games or watching TV.

The average American child spends several hours each day watching television; time which in previous years might have been devoted to physical pursuits. Obesity is greater among children and adolescents who frequently watch television, not only because little energy is expended while viewing but also because of simultaneous consumption of high-calorie snacks. Only about one-third of elementary children have daily physical education, and less than one-fifth have extracurricular physical activity programs at their schools. The American Academy of Pediatrics urges parents to take walks or otherwise get physical with their children at least once a week, to make up for shrinking levels of physical education in schools.

The equation is simple enough and the result – childhood obesity.

Can childhood obesity be caused by illness?

Childhood obesity may also be caused by illness. Hypothyroidism, cushings syndrome, depression and certain neurological problems can lead to overeating. Also, drugs such as steroids and some antidepressants may cause weight gain. A physician can tell whether there are underlying medical conditions that are the cause of obesity or making weight loss difficult. Obesity can complicate the treatment and management of diabetes and can even lead to the body developing a resistance to insulin. Obese children may have greater difficulty with high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, orthopedic problems, sleeping habits, as well as self-esteem and peer relationships. They have also known to display symptoms of attention deficit disorder.

Obesity triggers – what parents should look out for

Often, children are prone to treat food not only as a means to satisfy hunger, but also as a means of entertainment or enjoyment. This is completely a wrong notion and must be avoided.

Crying is a frequent activity of a little child. More often than not, a child cries because he is hungry. But sometimes, he cries just to draw his parent's attention or when he needs their affectionate touch. But instead of getting what he wants, what he gets every time is a bottle of milk. Such a thing should not happen.

Generally children and parents have meals together. It is a well known fact that poor habits of eating and living are also sometimes responsible for causing obesity. A child usually imitates parents' habit and imbibes their wrong habits quickly.

Lack of adequate physical activity also plays a major role in developing obesity in childhood. Generally parents make the child dependent on them. They don't allow him to play freely for the fear that he would get hurt or that he would be ill or that the children of the neighborhood would spoil him. Lack of encouragement prevents the child from participating in the sports activities at the school also. This lack of adequate physical activity later on manifests its results through the accumulation of layers of fat in the body.

Generally children become addicts of carbohydrate rich foods such as sweets, soft drinks, cake, ice cream, chocolates, biscuits, etc. This increases their intake of carbohydrate rich foods. This habit welcomes child obesity. Some steps must be taken to get rid of this eating habit.