Introduction.
Obesity in children in the United States has reached an epidemic point. Children are, therefore, more likely to have a wide range of avoidable chronic and acute hospital conditions, the majority of which are linked to higher mortality and morbidity rates. Furthermore, childhood obesity has detrimental effects psychologically, including sadness, poor quality of life, and low self-esteem. Obesity, weight gain, or being overweight can be defined as an excessive or abnormal pose of risk health-wise. Body mass index (BMI) thresholds of between 25 and 30 are used to characterize obesity and overweight, respectively. From the world’s burden of diseases, the cause reached an epidemic level, with millions of people losing lives each year as a result of obesity and being overweight. (Mohammadbeigi, 2018) Consumption of fast food has been a major cause in resulting to the obesity pandemic among children leading to various diseases in children, such as type 2 diabetes and hypertension. In this essay, I will be discussing the effects and causes of fast food in regards to obesity in children and examining them, along with relevant health policy problems. In addition, I will provide additional causes that cause obesity in children to broaden the understanding of the matter.
Why fast food is a major factor in obesity in children.
The dietary habits and physical activity of US adolescents and children have been severely impacted by a number of social and environmental factors. Many families are under time and financial pressure to prepare fast meals quickly and cheaply, which leads to an increase in food consumption that is continent and already packaged and heavy in fat and calories. Fast food establishments are really frequently found in areas with schools and young people as residents. Advertisements for junk food also target children. These and other variables together have led to an epidemic level of childhood obesity. Going to statistics, fast food has raised the frequency of obesity among US children with kids ranging from 2 to 6 years has increased more since the 1970s, and current statistics from research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) demonstrate that the rising obesity rate affects everyone ethnic groups in this age period. At the same time, the proportion of obese youngsters has doubled in those between the ages of 12 and 16 and tripled in those between the ages of 6 and 11. Nearly children and young adults, about 9 million, are overweight or obese, according to findings from the institute of medicine.
Effects of overweight in children caused by consumption of fast foods.
Obesity in children raises the effect of many long-term and acute hospital conditions, as also psychological disorders. These conditions can all last into adulthood and have a negative impact on quality of life. Orthopedic issues in obese children might include painful degenerative conditions, abnormal bone growth, and discomfort. They also have a higher likelihood of using drugs and having low self-esteem, all of which can lead to depression and suicidal thoughts. According to one study, children who are fat may have a similar quality of life to those who have cancer. Obesity-related health problems are also associated with a shorter life expectancy.
Stroke, high cholesterol, raised blood pressure, type heart disease, type 2 diabetes Mellitus, a pulmonary disorder, cancer, and other asthma disorders are among the chronic conditions that the projected millions of obese children, including 4.5 million overweight kids, more likely to develop. Children who are overweight have a 70% to 80% higher chance of becoming overweight adults than children who are of a healthy weight. According to current trends, type 2 diabetes mellitus will account for between 8% and 45% of new pediatric cases of diabetes, up from less than 4% before 2021, and will affect 30% of boys and 40% of girls who are expected to be born in 2022 make up one in three kids. In reality, obesity raises the likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus throughout the course of one’s lifetime, reversing the upward trend in life expectancy. (Gregory, 2019) If these patterns persist, Mellitus type 2 diabetes in adolescents can lead to heart failure as early as 28 or 40 years of age.
Causes of increase in consumption of fast food and increase in obesity.
There is controversy over whether fast food contributes to childhood obesity. Socioeconomic issues have been mentioned by some academics, and mass media has been blamed by advocacy groups for pushing junk food on kids. Food producers have responded by blaming sedentary lifestyles and a lack of parental guidance regarding nutrition. No of how this discussion turns out, the fast food elements have combined with other factors to raise the prevalence of childhood obesity and overweight.
As mentioned, pupils are getting more and more unhealthy fast food at schools. Along with the issues brought on by the competition among fast restaurants, schools’ interest in adhering to the nationally mandated nutritional criteria for meal programs has decreased due to a lack of funding. (Kansra, 2021) Family dinners eaten at home have been shown to encourage healthier eating habits. Additionally, when eating away from home, obese children and adolescents consume much bigger portions of sugary beverages, meat, potato chips and grains, and meat substitutes, which increases their overall fat, calorie, and sugar intake. These meals, which are frequently high in fat, low in fiber, and energy-dense, have also been linked to childhood obesity.
Advertising has also had a significant role in the rise of fast food consumption among kids. When the children’s advocacy group Action for Children’s Television initially voiced concerns about advertising on children’s television in the early 1970s, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) was persuaded to limit or outright prohibit direct advertising to children. Children spend 5.5 hours a day on media in general, and they watch 40,000 television commercials annually, or one for food every 5 minutes. Most of the advertisements are for fast food, sweets, and cereals with a lot of sugar. (Burgoine, 2018) The annual advertising budget for fast food restaurants alone is $3 billion. Additionally, marketing initiatives associate the sale of food, drink, and confectionery items with alluring elements, including video games, toys, the internet, educational resources, and clubs. Because they have poor comprehension of the advertisers’ persuasive intentions, children under the age of eight are particularly susceptible to the influence of this type of advertising.
Consumption of fast foods has also led to a reduction in participation in physical exercise among children in America, which has increased obesity levels. Schools have been pushed to try to achieve higher goals by limiting physical programs as a result of pressure from the federal and state governments to enhance performance on state proficiency assessments or by cutting recess and physical education programs. Because of this, only 21% of students attend weekly physical education lessons. It has been established that such low levels of physical activity cause obesity and the ensuing cardiovascular issues. In research, compared to children of normal weight, 29 obese children exhibited decreased blood flow. After exercising for eight weeks, blood flow in obese youngsters significantly increased. Obesity’s negative effects on blood vessels could be considerably mitigated by as little as a few times aerobic activity each week.
Additionally, societal factors contribute to childhood obesity. It is more difficult for locals to get fresh and affordable produce in many metropolitan communities since there aren’t many shopping malls, outdoor producers, or different healthy alternatives to appropriate stores and fast food restaurants. Because there are fewer places for outdoor play in inner-city districts, there is more traffic on the streets, and there is more crime, parents frequently keep their kids indoors where computers, video games, and television provide sedentary amusement. Additionally, the lack of trails, paths, sidewalks, bicycling, and walking in areas around the nation encourages greater reliance on cars.
Additionally, children in schools where physical education classes were held more frequently were more likely to be of normal body weight. There have also been suggestions that physical education programs alone are insufficient to reduce childhood obesity. Children’s lifestyles must alter instead. Increased after-school physical activity in parks or sporting venues, according to studies, may be more successful at preventing childhood obesity.
Conclusion.
The food habits and physical activity levels of US children and adolescents are influenced by a variety of intricate social, environmental, and economic factors. Fast foods have become addictive to children as some tend to mess with the dopamine hormones of children. Natural food remedies have to be put in place to minimize the consumption of fast foods. Fast foods have constantly been associated with healthy eating, a situation which has caused a lot of harm by increasing obesity levels. The time for concerted interdisciplinary action is now, regardless of the steps that individual doctors and medical organizations take. If the current juvenile obesity pandemic is not stopped, children today could live less or shorter healthy periods than their parents.
Citation
Burgoine, Thomas, et al. “Examining the interaction of fast-food outlet exposure and income on diet and obesity: evidence from 51,361 UK Biobank participants.” International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity 15.1 (2018): 1-12.
Gregory, John W. “Prevention of obesity and metabolic syndrome in children.” Frontiers in Endocrinology 10 (2019): 669.
Mohammadbeigi, A., et al. “Fast food consumption and overweight/obesity prevalence in students and its association with general and abdominal obesity.” Journal of preventive medicine and hygiene 59.3 (2018): E236.
Kansra, A. R., Lakkunarajah, S., & Jay, M. S. (2021). Childhood and adolescent obesity: a review. Frontiers in Pediatrics, 8, 581461.
Janssen, Hayley G., et al. “Determinants of takeaway and fast food consumption: a narrative review.” Nutrition research reviews 31.1 (2018): 16-34.
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