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Peer
Education Program
Obesity
Reasons
why our society is overweight
a.
Portion sizes
b.
Technology
c.
TV/cable
d.
Video games
e.
Food tastes good
Overweight
and obesity
-
70% of overweight kids become overweight adults
- 60% of Mainers are at risk for health problems related to being
overweight and obese
- The root of most
overweight and obese people is their childhood.
Childhood
Obesity
Causes:
Modifiable
causes include:
- Physical Activity - Lack of regular exercise.
- Sedentary behavior - High frequency of television viewing,
computer usage, and similar behavior that takes up time that
can be used for physical activity.
- Socioeconomic Status - Low family incomes and non-working
parents.
- Eating Habits - Over-consumption of high-calorie foods. Some
eating patterns that have been associated with this behavior
are eating when not hungry, eating while watching TV or doing
homework.
- Environment - Some factors are over-exposure to advertising of
foods that promote high-calorie foods and lack of recreational
facilities.
Non-changeable
causes include:
Genetics
- Greater risk of obesity has been found in children of obese and
overweight parents.
Families
(Very Important)
Parents are the most important role models for children. Results
from an American Obesity Association survey show that:
-
The majority of parents in the
U.S.
(78 percent) believe that physical
education or recess should not be reduced or replaced with
academic classes
-
Among six choices of what they believed to be the greatest risk to
their children's long-term health and quality of life, 5.6 percent
of parents chose "being overweight or obese." More
parents selected other choices as the greatest risk: alcohol (6.1
percent), sexually transmitted disease (10 percent), smoking (13.3
percent), violence (20.3 percent), and illegal drugs (24 percent).
-
In terms of their own behavior, 61 percent of parents said that it
would be either "not very difficult" or "not at all
difficult" to change their eating and/or physical activity
patterns if it would help prevent obesity in any of their
children.
Create
an Active Environment:
- Make
time for the entire family to participate in regular physical
activities that everyone enjoys. Try walking, bicycling or
rollerblading.
- Plan
special active family-outings such as a hiking or ski trip.
- Start
an active neighborhood program. Join together with other families
for group activities like touch-football, basketball, tag or
hide-and-seek.
- Assign
active chores to every family member such as vacuuming,
washing the car or mowing the lawn. Rotate the schedule of
chores to avoid boredom from routine.
- Enroll
your child in a structured activity that he or she enjoys,
such as tennis, gymnastics, martial arts, etc.
- Instill
an interest in your child to try a new sport by joining a team
at school or in your community.
- Limit the amount of TV watching.
Create
a Healthy Eating Environment:
- Implement
the same healthy diet (rich in fruits, vegetables and grains)
for your entire family, not just for select individuals.
- Plan
times when you prepare foods together. Children enjoy
participating and can learn about healthy cooking and food
preparation.
- Eat
meals together at the dinner table at regular times.
- Avoid
rushing to finish meals. Eating too quickly does not allow
enough time to digest and to feel a sense of fullness.
- No TV at dinnertime
- Avoid foods that are high in calories, fat or sugar.
- Snack
Healthy, low-calorie and nutritious. Fruit, vegetables and
yogurt are some examples.
- Avoid
serving portions that are too large.
- Avoid
forcing your child to eat if he/she is not hungry. If your
child shows atypical signs of not eating, consult a healthcare
professional.
- Limit
the frequency of fast-food eating to no more than once per
week. (Avoid it at all
if possible)
- Avoid
using food as a reward or the lack of food as punishment. (Use
other uses of reward, such as extra hour of “playtime”)
Treatment
An
important part of treating obesity among children and adolescents
is for parents and healthcare professionals to be sensitive to the
youngsters and focus on the positive. Small and achievable weight
loss goals should be set to avoid discouragement and to allow for
the normal growth process.
Involvement
of the entire family is also a motivating factor. Weight control
programs that involve both parents and the child have shown
improvement in long-term effectiveness compared to directing the
program only to the child.
1.
Dietary Therapy
According
to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), there is a steady
decline in the diet quality of children and adolescents as they
get older.
Consultation with a dietitian / nutritionist that specializes in
children's needs is often a valuable part of obesity treatment.
Nutrition consultants can outline specific and appropriate
nutritional needs for healthy growth.
As with
adults, a nutrition consultant may or may not recommend reducing
the number of calories the child eats and implementing strategies
like learning to read nutrition labels and the food guide pyramid,
selecting proper portion sizes, and prepared foods. Some eating
behaviors that nutrition consultants typically encourage include
taking smaller bites, chewing food longer, and to avoid eating too
quickly by putting the utensil down between bites
2.
Physical Activity
The U.S.
Surgeon General recommends moderate physical activity for children
every day for at least 60 minutes. If a child is unable to meet
that goal, than an individualized program should be designed
according to fitness level, using the general guideline as an
ultimate goal.
3.
Behavior Therapy
Behavior
therapy involves changes in diet and physical activity habits to
one that promote a healthy weight. Some behavioral therapy
strategies for children and adolescents should include parent and
family involvement.
Some behavioral therapy
strategies for children are to:
- Record
diet and exercise patterns in a diary to keep track of types
and amount of foods eaten and exercise performed.
- Identify
high-risk situations (such as having too many high-calorie
foods in the house), and consciously avoid them.
- Reward
specific positive actions. Examples of such actions include
meeting an exercise duration goal or eating less of a certain
type of food.
- Rewards
for achieving goals can be decided by children and parents
together, and should revolve around something that encourages
positive behavior. For example, giving sporting equipment as a
reward may encourage more physically active behavior.
- Avoid
using food as a reward, especially high-calories foods. Making
them a reward may only make them more desirable. Parents and
health professionals should regularly use verbal praise.
- Change
unrealistic goals
and false beliefs about weight loss and body image to
realistic and positive ones.
- The
family can work as a team to set weekly activity goals. Making
a contract and having every family member sign it encourages
commitment to a goal.
- Develop
a social support network (family, friends or neighbors) that
can encourage weight loss in a positive and motivating manner.
compiled by Nick
Butler
Health and Wellness Class KPE 425
www.obesity.org
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