“In
2015, a total of 107.7 million children and 603.7 million adults were
obese. Since 1980, the prevalence of
obesity has doubled in more than 70 countries and has continuously increased in
most other countries. Although the
prevalence of obesity among children has been lower than that among adults, the
rate of increase in childhood obesity in many countries has been greater than
the rate of increase in adult obesity.”
--“Health
Effects of Overweight and Obesity in 195 Countries over 25 Years,” by The GBD*
2015 Obesity Collaborators, New England Journal of Medicine, June 12, 2017
The
present and future health consequences of being overweight or obese as a child are too
extreme to ignore. Google the above article. It is scary what the future holds for the
children of the world, but especially American children, if we collectively fail to act.
When
I worked exclusively with older adults who had diabetes and obesity, I developed
teaching strategies so they “got it” and could easily start making changes that
led to improved health outcomes. However,
I kept looking over my shoulder at the rising number of children who were
obese, both in the prevalence and incidence reported by
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and in my daily observations of
children in elementary and middle schools.
My work and life took a dramatic turn with the decision to start a
nonprofit organization called “Growing Healthy Kids” in 2009. It was time to transfer skills learned successfully
working with, and coaching, older adults to help children and their families at
risk for obesity-related diseases such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease.
Since
then…
- The Growing Healthy Kids Test Kitchen was started to develop delicious and healthy recipes with kids and for kids.
- I started the "Wellness Wednesdays" series to educate adults (thank you for reading it).
- Writing and publishing books like Nourish and Flourish: Kid-Tested Tips and Recipes to Prevent Diabetes to give hope to families struggling to help their kids break the cycle of diseases became a priority.
- Growing Healthy Kids started partnerships with organizations like Rotary Club, Boys and Girls Clubs, and Youth Guidance Mentoring and Activities Program to connect with children in an organic way so they can learn about healthy eating and physical fitness while having fun.
Reading
the June 2017 New England Journal of Medicine article, “The Health Effects of Overweight
and Obesity in 195 Countries over 25 Years” and the article about it initially printed by USA Today was both discouraging and encouraging. It is evidence of unhealthy trends in how and
what we eat, what we feed our children, increasingly sedentary jobs and hobbies, and families’ commitment (or lack of) to take kids
outdoors to experience nature. Each one of us can make a difference in improving the
health – and life – of a child.
Not
sure what you can do? Here are 5 things to
do with a kid:
- Plant an herb garden.
- Take a walk.
- Learn to swim.
- Set limits on their (and your own) social media/computer time.
- Thank a farmer.
If
you have an idea for collaborating on a solution to childhood obesity or know
of an organization we should reach out to, please contact us at wellness@growinghealthykids.org. Looking forward to your ideas!
Until
we are all part of the solution to the childhood obesity epidemic, we are all part
of the problem.
With
love and gratitude,
Nancy
L. Heinrich, MPH
Founder,
Growing Healthy Kids, Inc.
*Global
Burden of Disease
