Nutricula Magazine "The Science of Longevity Journal"
-by Brenda Watson, CNC
The numbers aren’t pretty and the health repercussions are downright frightening. Childhood obesity rates have more than tripled since 1980.
Over 30% of American kids and teens are overweight or obese.
Well, some might say, so they’re going to get teased more often at school or be less inclined to participate in sports. Maybe they’ll have a tougher time going through puberty. If only the effects of childhood obesity were that simple.
There’s a movement going on to classify obesity as a disease because of the many diseases directly linked to it. And this doesn’t just go for obese adults—children are feeling the health effects of their growing “fat organ” like never before.
A study found that 70% of obese kids showed a risk factor for heart disease.
Heart disease! At age 12!
Obese kids are also likely to be obese as adults, develop pre-diabetes, or the metabolic syndrome that leads to type 2 diabetes,experience bone and joint problems, sleep apnea, asthma, liver disease, gallstones, and GERD.
What’s more, and for the first time ever, experts are predicting that the current generation will see a shorter lifespan than the generation before, thanks to obesity.
How Do I Know if My Child is Obese?
Measuring a child’s body mass index (BMI) is best done by a pediatrician or qualified health care professional. These professionals take into consideration a variety of factors to determine whether a child is muscular, taller than average, or going through a puberty related weight gain, or whether their elevated BMI is a result of dangerous fat stores.
Current markers for obesity and overweight in children and teens are:
Obese: child has a BMI greater than or equal to the 95th percentile
Overweight: child has a BMI between the 85th and 94th percentile
Good Health Runs in the Family Too
“Weight problems run in our family.” How many times have you heard that one? A tendency toward obesity can run in families, but so can healthy choices.
National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month is coming up in September. This is an excellent time for families to get in touch with what it means to eat and live well.
The main cause of childhood obesity is a poor diet and a sedentary lifestyle. Kids are taking in too many high-calorie, empty-nutrition foods and they aren’t moving enough. Unfortunately it’s a pattern they often inherit from their parents.
Children model almost 100% of their diet from their families. What and how they eat at home from the first time they are introduced to solid foods largely determines the choices they will make as they get older. This is a double-edged sword. Families have the power to both negatively and positively affect their kids’ health simply by what they put on the table.
But It’s More than Just the Genes
While obesity does tend to run in families, there are other important factors that contribute to obesity. Interesting new research is uncovering the role that toxins play in the development of obesity. Exposure to an array of environmental toxins—from bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates to pesticides and fire retardants—have all been linked to the development of obesity, especially during the critical developmental stages during infancy and gestation.
Bruce Blumberg, a biology professor at the University of California, Irvine, coined the term obesogen in 2006. Obesogens are chemical compounds that may alter metabolic processes and predispose some people to gain weight. He states, “I would not want to say that obesogen exposure takes away free will or dooms you to be fat. However, it will change your metabolic set point for gaining weight.”
Blumberg makes the following recommendation, “Eat organic, filter water, and minimize plastic in your life.” Do this for yourself and your children.
It Starts with Simple Ingredients
I am often surprised by how little parents know about what their kids are putting in their mouths. We take care to keep our kids away from choking hazards when they are toddlers and teach them about poisonous, harmful products they shouldn’t eat. Why do we so rarely check supermarket labels?
I believe many parents don’t know which food types and ingredients directly impact their kids’ weight. There was that whole myth about fat some years back, but research has now shown it’s the type of fat we consume, not the quantity, that matters. Mass market cereals, “fruit” snacks, juices, and kid lunches are often misleading with their labels of “natural” or “fortified with vitamins.” The real truth lies in the ingredient panel.
Here are my recommendations for turning obese or overweight kids into healthy, active kids:
Cut way back on the sugar. Sugar hides in many disguises on food labels (cane juice, dextrose, sucrose, fructose, syrup), but by far the worst type is high-fructose corn syrup. This type needs to be eliminated from a healthy diet. Fructose has been linked to leptin resistance, or the body’s ability to know when it is full. Substitute whole fruits and foods made with natural sweeteners like stevia, lo han, and agave or honey in moderation.
Watch for white flour in foods. The most common culprits containing white flour are processed cereals, crackers, cookies, and snack foods—all kid favorites. White flour is found on labels as bleached all-purpose flour and enriched flour (it has to be enriched because all its nutrition has been stripped in the processing). Substitute with raw veggies and dip, celery and peanut butter, and protein snacks that help kids feel fuller longer.
Trade out saturated and hydrogenated fats for unsaturated fats, the good fats. Excess saturated and hydrogenated fats increase the risk for heart disease and type 2 diabetes, while unsaturated fats actually fight these conditions. Cut down on fatty meats, processed meats, lard, and whole-milk dairy products, and eliminate trans fats from kids’ diets. Trans fats are now required to be listed separately on nutrition labels because of their adverse health effects. Heart-healthy unsaturated fats are found in oily fish, nuts and nut butters, olives, avocados, flaxseed, fish, sunflower seeds, and more.
Up their fiber intake. I recommend that children consume their age + 5 grams of total fiber daily. So if little Johnny is 5 years old, he should consume 10 grams of fiber each day. Fiber increases the feeling of fullness, plays a major role in keeping weight down, helps eliminate toxins, and improves bowel and gut health. Great high-fiber foods for kids include bananas, oranges, apples, berries, and vegetables. Try to get as much fiber from fruits and vegetables as possible, and add whole grains to reach your fiber goal.
Correct gut dysbiosis (a digestive bacterial and pathogenic imbalance) from a poor diet with a children’s probiotic supplement. Probiotics, or beneficial bacteria, help reset the balance in a child’s gut, helping to fight constipation and bowel issues and support immunity. Gut imbalance is another factor that has been associated with the development of obesity.
Reduce toxin exposure. I know that it’s not possible to completely eliminate toxin exposure, but you can take measures to reduce exposure, and to support the body’s channels of elimination with detoxification and cleansing. These important steps will help lower your toxic burden.
Increase their exercise at home, every day. Require kids to get 1 hour of exercise a day. Find an activity they love and do it with them, or get them swimming, biking, playing a sport, or rollerblading.
Reward with something other than food. Treats are great if they happen occasionally and are treated as such, but regular treating defeats the purpose. Make fun activities part of your reward system, or a special date with a friend, rather than food. This way kids learn that “good job” doesn’t just mean their favorite candy bar.
All these steps, plus a reduction in stress, significantly reduce the top cause of weight gain in children and adults—inflammation. Chronic internal inflammation from a processed diet, a gut bacterial imbalance, and stress impacts the metabolism, the blood sugar, and greatly contributes to weight gain.
And the best step parents can do to keep their kids at a healthy weight?
Start modeling healthy choices so that they become the family lifestyle and not a temporary fix.
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