Case study: obesity, popularity and good nutrition in adolescents

The number of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese has more than tripled between the years 1980 and 2004. Although obesity is not restricted by gender, ethnicity or socioeconomic status, there is a slightly higher risk for those who are poorer families . Girls are more likely to be overweight than boys, and Hispanic and African American teens are slightly more likely to be obese than other races.

Younger people, especially obese teens, face multiple problems caused by their weight. First, they face the same health problems that an overweight adult would have, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, kidney disease, hypertension, and cancer. Second, they face developmental disorders due to their weight and health, especially if they cannot go to school regularly. And finally, they also face social development issues as they struggle to develop their personality while facing peer pressures beyond what the average child faces.

Children and teens become obese for a variety of reasons: They tend to eat a poorly balanced diet full of fast food and too little fruits and vegetables. One study showed that girls and boys ages 10-15 admitted that French fries were the only vegetable they regularly ate. Another study showed that girls would eat other vegetables, but only if they were topped with a cheese sauce.

In addition to poor food choices, they tend to be very sedentary, most of them spending most of their time in front of a television or computer screen or texting and talking on their cell phones. Finally, the children in the study who were found to be more overweight also had overweight parents, suggesting not just a genetic link to explain their weight, but an atmospheric one as well. After all, the children of smokers tend to be smokers, so it would be logical to think that obese parents tend to have obese children.

The problem with weight and teens, especially girls, is the fact that diet and weight loss programs tend to backfire. In a three-year study that monitored boys and girls ages 9 to 14, dieters eventually gained more weight than those who didn’t at all. You need to use a different approach when it comes to overweight young children and teens. First, the family must fully agree that there is a problem. Several school districts came under fire in recent years when they sent letters home about a child’s weight and health risks. Parents were unaware that their child could develop “adult” health problems such as type II diabetes or heart disease, or did not accept that the child was anything other than “stocky” or “stocky.” Rather than face the legal ramifications, school districts stopped informing parents, hoping that the boy’s doctor would take over the battle.

It is normal for a girl to gain body fat during puberty; it is simply the way the female body works. At this time, it is common for girls to start paying more attention to their physical appearance, and many of them develop eating disorders because they are not happy with what they see. It should also be noted that these girls are more likely to develop depression, which can also increase their chances of gaining even more weight.

Boys begin to add more muscles and also gain height, leading them to feel more satisfied with their bodies, while girls are increasingly bothered by what they see in the mirror. By the age of 15, more than half of the girls in 16 countries are on a diet. The United States is the country with the most weight-obsessed girls, with 47% of 11-year-old girls dieting and 62% of 15 doing so. Ethnicity plays a role in how girls feel about their bodies, and African American girls feel more body satisfaction than Caucasian girls of the same age group.

While most people assume that peer pressure influences teens’ body dissatisfaction, one study showed that this was not necessarily the case. In fact, peer pressure was shown to rank third on the list of factors, behind media images and parental attitudes. It is important to realize that girls who are overly concerned with body images featured in the media, including magazines, television, and movies, are more likely to develop depression and eating disorders, including anorexia. and bulimia. Ironically, this group of girls is also more likely to go in the opposite direction and intentionally gain weight because they say they will never look like the women they see on a daily basis.

It is not as simple as a diet

Obviously, it is not as simple as suggesting that these children go on a diet. It’s about changing the whole family’s attitude about weight, nutrition, body image, and exercise. It is impossible to believe that a 15-year-old girl or boy would be satisfied with eating fresh fruits and vegetables while Mom, Dad, and their siblings eat hamburgers and French fries. It’s also impossible to believe that these teens will voluntarily get up from the couch and walk away from their video games, movies, or other electronic devices to exercise when no one else is. Everyone needs to work to change how they feel about food and weight so that the child does not feel “sick” or “different.”

Behavior treatment must be addressed and attitude or weight will not change, at least not in a positive way.

Renee and her family: a positive case study

Renee was whining her way through gym class again when she suddenly collapsed on the gym floor. In a panic, the school sent her to the emergency room and then called her mother. The doctor, a gruff and simple-speaking man, explained to Renee’s mother that her daughter was 55 pounds overweight and that if something did not change immediately, she was going to die with the body of a middle-aged woman. Renee’s episode was a reaction to her body not getting enough oxygen during gym class and it would continue to get worse if she didn’t make any changes. An appointment was made for Renee and her parents in two days for a follow-up.

At this appointment, Renee, her mother, Emily, and her father, Doug, met a doctor and a nutritionist who agreed that the family needed a change for everyone. Doug, who was never convinced he was overweight, decided to leave the room. Emily, however, listened carefully to how to make small changes, one at a time, so that the family would not be overwhelmed. She and Renee went to the grocery store with a list of new fruits and vegetables to try, as well as recipes for turkey and chicken dishes that were better for them than the red meat they had been eating so much. They have learned how to use low-fat yogurt instead of mayonnaise and how to include more vegetables in their food without anyone actually seeing them.

Renee and Emily have agreed to join the women-only gym so they can work out without making it too psychologically difficult for them. Another change they have made is eating mini-meals, spread out throughout the day so they are never too hungry. Between breakfast and lunch, and again after dinner, both Renee and her mother take a protein supplement. It provides them with high-quality protein and keeps them from feeling hungry without the high calorie count of other protein supplements.