http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11694799/
"LONDON - The number of overweight children worldwide will increase significantly by the end of the decade, and scientists expect profound impacts on everything from public health care to economies, a study published Monday said."
"“We have truly a global epidemic which appears to be affecting most countries in the world,” said Dr. Philip James, chairman of the International Obesity Task Force and author of an editorial in the journal warning of the trend."
"Researchers concluded that the prevalence of childhood obesity increased in almost all the countries for which data were available, a trend fueled by more sedentary lives and the increasing availability of junk food, among other factors."
"“The wave of heart disease and stroke could totally swamp the public health care system,” he said."
This reminds me of the Lazy Boy song, "Underwear Goes Inside The Pants.": "Americans, let's face it: We've been a spoiled country for a long time. Do you know what the number one health risk in America is? Obesity. They say we're in the middle of an obesity epidemic. An epidemic like it is polio. Like we'll be telling our grand kids about it one day. The Great Obesity Epidemic of 2004. "How'd you get through it grandpa?" "Oh, it was horrible Johnny, there was cheesecake and pork chops everywhere."
Parents really need to teach their children good lifestyle habits. I am so thankful that my mom tried so hard to keep me eating healthy food. I never even had a piece of candy, or a drink of soda until I was 5. And even then it was only on rare occasions. My mom made a point of baking cakes with apple sauce as a substitute for sugar. I'm really grateful because children pick up bad eating habits so quickly that may be with them for the rest of their lives. My dad is a marathoner, so he always made sure I exercised enough. But other parents, like my aunt and uncle, are really hurting their child's health. Since my cousin was only 1 yr old they've been giving him soda, potato chips, you name it. When people address how much he's eating they just say, you know, he's a big boy. But I rarely see him eating any vegetables.
Portion sizes are also way too big. I'm glad McDonald's got rid of their super sized fries and sodas. Americans eat way past the point at which they're full. I've heard that you should try to eat until you feel 3/4 full and that's the right amount, so I try to do that. But I think it's mostly up to parents to start their kids with good eating habits. i also think schools need to make healthy food available. In my school they only really have pizza, fries, cookies, soda, snapple juice (which is only aoubt 10% actual juice). Now they just started offering soup and sandwiches, so I guess that's a start.
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