According to the Centers for Disease Control, Approximately 17% or 12.5 million children and adolescents aged 2-19 years old are obese. Add several million more who are overweight and it is very clear to see that America has a problem of epidemic proportions on it's hands.
The great question that stands out and speaks loudly is how can this be? How can the future of America be in such physical and emotional danger when they control so little of their lives?
If a survey is taken it will find that very few of the affected know how to operate a stove and even a smaller percentage have a license to drive to the local fast food restaurant. But many articles and developed programs point to children as the masters of their own fate and direct them to get up and fix their dilemma.
The real truth is that the children of America are not the problem at all. Sure they eat the wrong foods, watch too much television, stay on the computer too much, and exercise to little. But who allows this? Children are mere puppets for many of their early years of life. They are controlled by systems that are supposed to teach them how to develop physically, mentally and emotionally healthy.
A parent or an educational system controls 90-95% of a child’s life. Childhood obesity is the result of the combination of two broken systems. The lack of quality meals, balanced schedules, and physical activities in both systems has resulted in children's futures being jeopardized.
The answer to reversing childhood obesity is to develop a partnership with the schools and parents where the same message of healthy eating and physical activity are taught and practiced daily.
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