Obesity In Children And Teenagers

"The problem of childhood obesity in the United States has grown considerably in recent years. Between 16 and 33 percent of children and adolescents are obese.  Obesity is among the easiest medical conditions to recognize but most difficult to treat.  Unhealthy weight gain due to poor diet and lack of exercise is responsible for over 300,000 deaths each year.  The annual cost to society for obesity is estimated at nearly $100 billion.  Overweight children are much more likely to become overweight adults unless they adopt and maintain healthier patterns of eating and exercise." (http://aacap.org)

In this unit, you will read different articles on obesity. You are going to do a research online to find answer to the following questions.

After reading "Obesity: The new epidemic", you are to answer the following comprehension questions.

1. Why do some people call obesity an epidemic?
2. How is the epidemic of obesity different from epidemics in the past?
3. What is the body mass index of a person of normal weight?
4. Would a person with a BMI of 31 be considered overweight or obese?
5. Why do you think so many children are obese today?
6. What is junk food?
7. How have people’s eating habits changed in the last 20 years?
8. Why aren’t fast food restaurants more concerned about serving healthy food?
9. Why is it possible for fast food restaurants to use lower-quality meats?
10. What are some of the health effects of being overweight or obese

Writing Activity

Think about your eating habits and decide whether you have good eating habits or poor eating habits. Then explain in writing why you think so. Include details and examples in your writing.

Research Questions

1. How do we define overweight and obesity?
2. What are the causes of overweight and obesity?
3. What are the symptoms of obesity?
4. How is obesity measured (how do we know someone is obese)?
5. What can you, your parents, school and society do to prevent obesity?