What Obese Children Go Through In Schools

There are two primary effects of childhood obesity - they are health related and emotional pain. Childhood obesity can be a dangerous two-fold problem. Obesity is a condition where excess body fat negatively affects both a child's health and emotional well being.

Emotional and psychological effects of childhood obesity

Besides health risks, the other risks of obesity are the emotional and psychological effects on children. Feeling shameful about being overweight can negatively impact a child's school work and social standing. For example, many times a child has to deal with social discrimination which often times develops a low self esteem and self-blame.

Children who are unhappy with their weight may be more likely than average-weight kids to develop unhealthy eating habits and they may be more prone to depression, as well as substance abuse.

Anger, boredom and stress can lead to obesity

Some children and teens eat more than usual when they are bored, angry, or stressed. Over time, the overeating leads to weight gain and tends to bring on obesity. Some children overeat to cope with problems or to deal with emotions, such as stress or boredom. Children who experience psychological abuse from their peers often develop extremely low self-esteem, which may eventually evolve into depression. Obese children often feel isolated and lonely.

Beyond the teasing, there are serious physical and mental problems that can stem from childhood obesity. Obesity is an easy place to reach, but a difficult place to escape from when you don't have any help. This sense of helplessness lends to the bad feelings that the obese sometimes feel.

Bullying – the most common form of abuse of obese children in schools

Most parents have a greater concern about the bullying factor rather than the overall health of their child. Bullying should be a strong concern not only with parents but with schools, workplaces and within the community as a whole. Any form of bullying is unacceptable and bullying someone over their weight is no exception. Many children are chubby because they carry what is known as baby fat. This cannot be helped at all. Some children have a genetic predisposition towards obesity and again, cannot be helped. Yet, other kids have to make their lives completely miserable as a result. Why? Because they can. They know where, when and who to bully and they know for the most part, nobody in authority will do anything about it. Parents and teachers need to teach children to show some kindness and respect towards other children. True, kids are kids but does that mean we forget to teach them to be decent human beings? We live in a world now where the norm is wearing a size 0 in clothes. Everyone strives to be thin. As a result, we have people with eating disorders and other problems. Why is it so important to be thin? Can't we teach people that it is okay to be comfortable in one's own skin?

Exclusion from peer groups

Belonging to a peer group is an important part of a child's growth and development. Children with similar interests gravitate towards each other and form a group. These likeminded children develop close friendships that sometimes last a lifetime. It is not uncommon for children suffering from childhood obesity to be excluded from a peer group. Besides low self-esteem, such children could suffer from loneliness and depression. This could lead to serious repercussions in adulthood.

With that in mind, anything you can do to help your children escape the harmful effects of childhood obesity, the better off your children are going to be. The first and most important thing to remember is that education is important. As with anything in life, the more you know about the problem or question, the easier it's going to be to solve it.

So get off your laurels and start looking into the causes of childhood obesity, the effects of childhood obesity and more importantly, what you can do as a parent or concerned friend to help remove obesity from the equation altogether.