Battle Lines are Drawn

The Battle Against Childhood Obesity and information from TTP Pediatrics

Melinda Alvarado from KJTV 34 reports on our culture of fast food and what it is doing to our children.

Instant gratification and a culture of fast food leaves our children with the effects of being "couch potatoes". Inactivity and poor eating habits - it's a recipe for disaster. Doctors say about 2/3 of Americans are overweight. Obesity is now considered an epidemic.

Pediatrician Dana Dreimane, M.D., sees many overweight children on a regular basis. "In 2007, about 17% of American children were obese and if you count those who are at risk for obesity, that would make about a third of Pediatric population being obese."

Like adults, Alvarado reports, children are developing more health problems, a direct result of being overweight.

Irving Shaffino interview about how the young man was diagnosed with non fatty sclerosis of the liver when he was just eight years old. It's a disease generally seen in alcoholics.

Dr. Dreimane reports, "It is not uncommon at all for an overweight or obese adolescent to come in with already abnormal liver enzymes, which means there is already indication of some liver injury."

Alvarado goes on to say that Irving suffered from nose bleeds for a long time and as the months passed, his health deteriorated.

Registered dietician, Cecilia Moore, from TTUHSC Pediatrics, travels to area schools teaching how to make healthy lifestyle choices. She says sometimes just getting the message across is an uphill battle.

"Our culture breeds inactivity and poor eating habits now. We go to fast food a lot more often then we used to and games for kids now aren't going outside and playing tag and riding their bike, it's more video games and more sedentary activities now."

The American Academy of Pediatrics reports that by the time a child reaches the age of 18, they will have watched nearly three years of television and that does not include the amount of time they spend in front of the computer screen.

To permanently adapt healthy lifestyle choices is a challenge.

Ceceilia Moore states that the family is the most important thing with a child because they can't make their own food decisions.

A whole family effort will help the most. We should never say, "this is food for just you and we're going to continue what we're doing over here. The whole family should make changes. The more support the kid has, the better the outcome is going to be."