Is it Really a “Childhood” Obesity Problem?

 

America, we have a problem.

 

Recent estimates suggest about 19% of our kids aged 2-19 are obese and it’s expected that once the dust settles, the pandemic will have driven these numbers higher.

 

As understandably concerned parents, we point our collective finger at school lunches, video games, and fast-food companies as the culprit. The available data shares tales of a different villain, however.

 

It looks like the biggest childhood obesity risk factor we parents should be focusing on is, ourselves.

 

 

While nearly 1/5 of America’s children are obese, about ½ of American adults are approaching this classification. It appears we as adults have a difficult time managing our own health and it’s reflected in our children’s health habits. Calling it a “childhood obesity” problem is kind of like having a hole in your roof during a storm and calling it a “wet carpet” problem.  Solutions are better found addressing the source before the symptom.

 

 

 

 

Data supports this relationship between adult and child health behaviors. As a matter of fact, a child with one obese parent is 50% more likely to become obese. With two obese parents, the likelihood increases to 80%. It’s going to be difficult to “fix” our kids’ health until we fix our own.

 

Consider nutritional habits. Research has shown that of all the factors impacting what and how much a child eats, parents have the greatest influence on:

 

• Exposure and accessibility of food
• Modeling eating behaviors
• Providing food that leads to positive or negative health outcomes

 

Kids eat what we make available.  They are also more likely to eat things they see us eating. This relationship is even more important during early childhood.  So, what’s for dinner?

 

 

Currently, adults are modeling the intake of an average of 17 teaspoons of added sugar per day, resulting in the same average daily consumption for children.  Elevated sugar intake has been associated with obesity in both adults and children.

 

 

 

Only 10% of adults get the recommended daily allowance for fruits and vegetables, so considering parents’ impact on the food choices, only about 20% of children get the recommended daily amount.

 

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) suggests that over 1/3 (36%) of America’s kids are eating fast food on any given day. Not surprisingly, the adult numbers are exactly the same (36%).

 

Eating fast food isn’t necessarily “bad” as an occasional event. However, data has tied increased fast-food consumption to greater instances of obesity.

 

When it comes to physical activity, children 4-7 years old with physically active parents are nearly 6 times as likely to be physically active when compared to kids coming from inactive parents. So, how active are parents?

 

 

According to the CDC, 60% of American adults don’t engage in the recommended amount of physical activity. When kids don’t see mom and dad moving, it looks like they don’t move either. About 75% of children don’t get the recommended amount of daily activity. Granted, the daily recommendations for youth physical activity are greater than adults’, but you can see the shape of the relationship.

 

 

What’s keeping kids on the couch? The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry suggests children 8-12 are spending 4-6 hours per day on screens.  Where do they learn this behavior? A study by eMarketer found that we adults spend about 12 hours and 7 minutes consuming media through computers, phones, and other devices each day. It’s important to note that these numbers were gathered prior to the pandemic.

 

Despite the disturbing number of hours kids spend in front of a screen each day, it looks like they can’t come close to keeping up with us parents. Maybe when they get older…

 

The relationships mentioned here between ours and our children’s health-related behaviors are just the tip of the iceberg. How we sleep, manage stress, and form attitudes about health directly impact these habits in our children as well.

 

The solution to improving our kids’ health starts with us. The good news is that it’s not a matter of being a fitness or nutrition fanatic. Merely being aware of the importance of basic healthy habits and making them part of your culture of wellness at home is a powerful step in the right direction.

 

 

 

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