Teenage Obesity

One of the biggest problems that America is facing today is that of teenage obesity. With the change in our lifestyle habits today, this is becoming a rather alarming and widespread issue amongst many American families. Over the last few decades, the levels of obesity in teenagers has constantly risen, and this is leading to some unwanted consequences today.

What is Teenage Obesity

This is a situation where an individual in his/her teens (a teenager) is battling the problem of obesity, and is severely overweight. Obesity refers to a condition where body fat on the individual has accumulated to extremely unhealthy levels, and this is causing a drop in the quality of life of the individual. As a result of this, the person has to face a number of health issues, and his/her life expectancy is also considerably lowered.

This is something that naturally happens to a human being as he/she ages, but to see a teenager suffering from this problem points at a drop in the living habits of families today. By definition, teenagers should be active and should indulge in a lot of physical activities to live a healthy life, but teenage obesity is something that ruins the quality of life completely.

The method of checking if a person is obese is through his/her Body Mass Index (BMI), which measures the weight of the individual with respect to his/her height. A person with a BMI of 25 kg/m² - 30 kg/m² is considered overweight, and any number over this figure points to a case of obesity.

According to a report released by the US Department of Health and Human Services on teenage obesity in America, nearly 15% of teenagers in the US are overweight, and bordering on obesity. This roughly amounts to around 10 million teenagers. This figure has tripled in the last 20 years, and this is one of the most alarming teenage obesity statistics.

What Causes Teenage Obesity

The first cause of teenage obesity is the kind of food that teenagers eat. It is a well-known fact that teenagers love junk food, but these foods are very rich in fats, oil and cholesterol. This inadvertently harms the system of the teenagers, and this ends up in the individual becoming obese. With the vast expansion of fast food chains around the country today, it is no surprise that this is the single biggest cause.

The next factor that leads to teenage obesity is the lack of physical exercise. With the advancements in the computer world, and especially the video games industry, more and more teenagers choose to sit in at home and play with their gadgets. This lifestyle habit has led to the birth of the term couch potato. This ultimately results in a total lack of exercise, and the teenager thus starts living a sedentary lifestyle. Both these factors combined, have led to the drastic rise in the levels of teenage obesity in the country.

Some of the possible dangers of teenage obesity are as follows.

• Increased danger of heart diseases.
• High cholesterol levels in the body.
• High blood pressure levels.
• Greater possibility of contracting Type 2 diabetes.
• Social discrimination resulting in lowered self-esteem.

Teenagers who are obese are more likely to be obese in their adulthood as well, and this increases the chances of serious heart conditions and other disorders in the future. Adopting weight loss methods as soon as possible is something that should be paid attention to.

How to Prevent Teenage Obesity

The best way to prevent or reduce teenage obesity is to ensure that the individual gets plenty of physical exercise. Visiting the gym on a regular basis, or taking up a sport is the best way to achieve this. If this is not possible, then even something as simple as talking a walk everyday, or going for a jog everyday, will be extremely beneficial. The prevention of teenage obesity can only occur by putting an end to a sedentary lifestyle.

This also involves eating a healthy diet and a balanced diet. Consuming fruits and vegetables will aid in the purification of the system. The biggest responsibility of the parents is to ensure that the child does not spend an excessive amount of time on the computer, or playing video games, since this is one of the biggest contributors to teenage obesity.

Battling the possibility of teenage obesity is something that needs to be done over the course of a teenagers life, and this also helps prevent childhood obesity. In spite of this, it is never too late to start living a healthy life, and ensuring that teenagers do not fall into this trap.