Here Are 8 Key Recommendations for Tackling Childhood Obesity on World Obesity Day
Every year, the world observes World Obesity Day with the goal of bringing attention to the growing obesity epidemic and its detrimental effects on public health. March 4th is National Obesity Awareness Day. It highlights the importance of teamwork in addressing and preventing obesity and encouraging a more active and healthy lifestyle. Numerous problems stem from obesity, most of which are related to sedentary living patterns, poor eating habits, and insufficient physical activity. Although adult obesity is frequently regarded as a health concern, but childhood obesity is also a major issue.
One in three children in the European Region between the ages of 6 and 9 are overweight or obese, according to WHO research. Also, according to a WHO research from 2023 report, around one in three elementary school-aged children are overweight or obese, and this percentage is predicted to rise.
Regretfully, we live in a world where feeding our kids bad food is simple and inexpensive. Similar to the tobacco industry, the food industry has disguised and glorified harmful food. What child wouldn’t want to eat at entertaining establishments with playgrounds, video gaming centers, and toy distribution programs? These kinds of places seduce young children by telling them, “Deep down, this is what you really want.” When children grow older and have less money to spend, they wind up using dollar menus, vending machines, and convenience stores.
Just barely, the grocery store is superior—aisles of packaged and boxed processed foods that could withstand a nuclear war line the majority of them. A large portion of this food is deceptive, boasting loudly of being “low fat,” but in really, it contains a lot of sugar, sodium, harmful chemicals, and processed components.
Here’s 8 Recommendations on This World Obesity Day to Prevent Obesity in Children
But there is still hope! We can still assist our youngsters in developing lifelong healthy decision-making skills. A wonderful place to start is with the actions listed below to enhance health and prevent obesity in children!
1) Seek for Small Adjustments That Make a Big Difference
Since the time they could first grasp a spoon, have you allowed your kids to eat sugary cereal for breakfast every morning? That is a sensible spot to start, then. There are lots of other, healthier foods they may be consuming, even if they might initially resist it. It’s okay if you think that snacking healthy is a more realistic goal for you at this time. Choose your battle, then crush it!
Focus on the small actions that need to be taken to reach the final goal rather than just the outcome itself. Long-term, small changes add up to significant differences. Having children, you’ll have to go through a challenging process to get your family to adopt healthier eating habits. It won’t be easy, and it’ll take time to complete, but it’ll be well worth it.
2) Put Your Preaching Into Practice
You cannot instruct your kids to do one thing and then act differently. Set an example for children by maintaining a good diet, getting exercise, and, most of all, having fun! If this strikes you or them as a form of punishment, it won’t work. Although your kids are intelligent, there is some truth to the proverb, “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
3) Remove the Trash
One of my relative son’s friends is really overweight. He always brings a backpack full of candy bars, soda, and chips when he comes to play at home. What a strolling convenience store he is! It’s an illustration of a child who is free to have whatever he wants or has been made to believe he wants at any time.
Most of the time, the majority of home kitchens include hidden pockets of processed, unhealthy food. It’s recommended to throw out the bad food! Throw away anything you wouldn’t want your kids or yourself to eat in your kitchen. Make your kitchen a temple for healthful foods, and throw out the trash.
You have to put in the effort to figure out what works best for you and your family because there are always healthy substitutes for harmful foods. In place of processed, sugary, high-fat, and chemical-filled foods, my family added whole-grain items, fresh fruit, olive oil, and almonds, among other healthy options.
4) Modify Your Way of Life Rather Than Your “Diet”
I detest the term “diet” since it conjures images of a transient lifestyle change. They say, “Oh great, I have to eat less food, and the food will be tasteless.” Although this reasoning is totally erroneous, good luck breaking it down item by item for your family. Accept that this is a shift in lifestyle!
Become an expert in health and nutrition. To locate information and recipes, use the Internet as a resource. Learn to read labels and look for potentially harmful components, then make use of your newfound knowledge. This fosters accountability, which in turn encourages success.
5) Allow Them to Be Children—In Moderation
Is it essential to eat well and lead a healthy lifestyle? Indeed! Having said that, children ought to be children and occasionally indulge in goodies. For instance, I could never refuse kids a birthday cake. It’s essential to use “moderation.” It’s your responsibility as a parent to decide what moderation entails for your household. It’s not moderate, in my opinion, if you eat something every day or if you always have it in your home.
Similarly, even if you follow all the rules at home, you still have little influence over what your children consume or engage in outside of the home. It’s not the end of the world to occasionally eat poorly at school or at a friend’s house. Consider this: Would you rather they felt obligated to lie to you or that they felt comfortable informing you about it? Which one appears more likely to result in a healthy adult life?
6) Encourage Exercise
You see your kids at last “giving you a break,” but I see youngsters curled up on the couch, binge-watching TV and playing electronic games. They must be playing and burning calories outside! Embrace them without fear; this is your way of life, too, right? Take a stroll, toss the ball around, or offer (or demand) that they assist with yard maintenance. One day, I hope to be able to take kids to the gym and work as their personal trainer. It encourages me to maintain my health.
It takes time and best efforts to bring about change. However, over time, these small adjustments might add up to a large difference if done consistently. Leading a healthy lifestyle will set your kids up for future success. Being fit and healthy are two essential components of success, and I want kids to grow up to be happy, successful adults.
7) Teach Instead of Just Telling
Your kids need to learn how to make good decisions on their own, whether they are at home, school, or a friend’s house. If all you are to your child is a voice in their head saying, “Don’t do that!” they will grow to ignore you since you won’t always be there to help them make the proper decision. Ultimately, all you can do is educate them and wish them well in their decision-making.
It would help if you also taught kids to appreciate the choices and habits of others in terms of lifestyle. For instance, remind kids that when they eat healthily, they set a good example for others. Take the kids shopping, enlist their assistance in dinner preparation, and pack lunches for school. Assist them in comprehending the planning and mental processes that go into leading a healthy life. These genuine activities will give your child greater self-assurance to make wise decisions.
8) Make Sleep a Priority
Sleep is necessary for maintaining general health and controlling weight. Hence, make sure your child follows a regular sleep schedule and gets enough sleep for their age.
Closing Thoughts
It is advised to treat obese or overweight children as soon as possible, at the highest intensity level that is safe and feasible for them, as opposed to waiting patiently. To prevent childhood obesity, parents and guardians must take a multifaceted strategy, emphasizing the development of healthy behaviors as well as the creation of a nurturing atmosphere.
In a similar vein, childhood obesity is not an issue that will resolve itself. It is up to you to change the course of your children’s lives by putting certain plans into action that will lead to a happy and healthy future. And this world obesity day should be taken as a reminder to work on it.
In addition, you should also consider that unhealthy eating and obesity should also be taken into account apart from ranking your child’s safety concerns in addition to violent video games, improper films, drugs, alcohol, strangers, congested areas, and texting & driving.
