Child Obesity Research Paper

Superior Essays
Child Obesity: Is it a problem yet?

Child obesity has been, and still is, a problem in America today. Many people go to restaurants that serve large portions of food along with a numerous amount of unhealthy ingredients that they may not be aware of. Chili’s Grill and Bar is a go to restaurant for families for any occasion. They serve food and drinks for both adults and kids. One of their ads that I analyzed was aimed toward kids and their parents. When you first look at the ad, three words stand out: “KIDS EAT FREE.” This part of the ad catches the attention of parents because they would not need to pay for the meal of their child. With the bright green background and cartoon dog character, kids are for sure to admire this aesthetically
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Their actions habits are what their child(ren) follow. Dr. Robin Drucker, a pediatrician from the Palo Alto Medical Foundation, says that “a child who has one obese parent is three times more likely to be an obese adult. A child with two obese parents has a 10-fold risk of being an obese adult” (Marks Par 3). From such a young age, a child learns bad eating and exercising habits. This affects their lifestyle in the future when they become adolescents, and later on, adults. They will be lazy and unmotivated to do any type of exercise. They will also push away the foods and snacks that are healthy for them and instead eat the high-sugar, high-sodium foods and snacks …show more content…
Obesity may lead to the following health problems: Heart disease, type 2 diabetes, asthma, sleep apnea, and social discrimination” (“Health Problems and Childhood Obesity” Par 3). A 5-to-17 year old child should be suffering from such diseases when they have not lived too long. “In one study, 70% of obese children had at least one CVD [Cardiovascular disease] risk factor” (“Basics About Childhood Obesity” Par 4). That is an outrageously high percentage and with cardiovascular disease comes with the risks of heart attacks and strokes that could possibly lead to death if not taken care of immediately. Being taken care of in the hospital, emergency room, and even in the ambulance is not cheap. The average hospital cost per stay for 1-17 year olds costs around $8,400 back in 2011 (“11 Statistics on Average Hospital Costs Per Stay” Par 3). There are many different ways to use $8,400. That amount of money can be used to pay a whole year’s worth of tuition costs plus books at the University of Hawaii West Oahu; it could be used to buy 11 years’ worth of a full tank of gas in a car; and many other uses. To save this huge amount of money and to save time from being in the hospital, restaurants can help their customers by providing and offering a list of ingredients and nutritional facts when ordering food, especially when people bring their children to eat. Schools can also

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