Obesity Article 1

This is the 1st Article I wrote regarding the theme of obesity and what is being done.


Why are our children overweight? The obesity epidemic.


Australia is the largest society in the world around the waist, outstripping our major rivals of both the UK and the USA. However this is not one first place position that we as a society want. 20-25% of our children our considered obese. Obesity is a condition where fat becomes a health hazard, with one of the primary causes being an energy imbalance which is linked to the increase in sedentary leisure activities, and the increase in high energy food consumption.

Following current trends by 2020, 80% of adults and a third of children will be obese or overweight. There have been various attempts to reverse this trend, but it appears that it is an uphill battle that Australia and the rest of the world are losing. Nearly half of all children who are obese will remain obese into adulthood. These people also have a much higher rate of heart related diseases such as high blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar. Obesity can also contribute to respiratory, orthopaedic and gastric problems. Problems related to obesity are a substantial drain on the Australian health system, and will soon be the number one preventable form of death, outstripping smoking. There are a multitude of causes for this situation, which all must be considered if the situation is going to improve.

Just like the topics of global warming/environment and population the obesity epidemic seems to be called up for discussion but not much is actually done to curb this problem. We have had various sports teams sponsoring sport and special PE activities at schools. But limited classes will not fulfill the purpose of frequent exercise needed to combat this problem.

A study in Queensland found that about 60% of children have poor motor skills, and 30% had low fitness levels. Both figures could be improved by the development and enhancement of Physical Education at our schools, but it appears that many schools are restricting their PE lessons, or removing them all together with little to no resistance from the school communities.

With the Howard Government pumping tax payer money mostly into private schools, those in the public system have been left trying to overcome financial difficulties- old text books, faulty air conditioning and heating systems and old or lack of sports gear. This lack of resources has increased the possibility of students not getting a lot of the benefits of the more funded private schools.

This has now been improved slightly but the effects of this still ruminates through our schools, but as some experts have said a few hours of PE a week will not accommodate the exercise our students require. This under allocation to sporting in the school system may be a course for the growing childhood obesity.

In Australian society sports people our held up as role models for our youth, but for those students who are not as gifted are often ridiculed and bullied. These students will then start to view sport and PE negatively and this could contribute to the lack of exercise aspect of childhood obesity.

Another factor contributing to the lack of exercise aspect is the growing technology and leisure activities of modern children. Computer games, and social networking are keeping students inside and in a passive state for longer periods of time then they were generations ago. A lot of employment in the future will be using technology skills from these activities, but we still need to encourage our children to engage in physical activity every day.

Parents set up the food schedule and should find ways of implementing healthier foods, whilst restricting the foods better left as treats. But with the constant increase in the price of food, especially healthier foods it seems that many households are left in a position where they are unable to afford to eat the healthy options, and thus are forced to settle. Some bodies have suggested that the Government should offer a subsidy on healthy food, allowing more households to afford it, however with the addictive qualities of a lot of unhealthy foods, it is doubtful this would be effective.

The South Australian Government has adopted a method that has been considered a success in France, the EPODE (Ensemble, prevenons l'obesite des enfants or ‘Together, let's prevent obesity in children’), which involves calculating the BMI (Body mass index) of the children and informing parents of those in danger and providing them with information and guidelines to improve their child’s health. However not all schools would be able to participate in the proposed plan, suggesting that community action will also be required.

Obesity is an ongoing problem that keeps being fed when we are unable to act and it is through education that many lives will future and present lives will be saved from this terrible disease.