Childhood obesity, you hear about it everywhere. There are commercials about it on television and on the radio. It’s a very popular topic on mainstream talk shows; even Oprah has an episode about it at least once every season. Obesity is defined as an excessive accumulation of fat that increases body weight by 20% or more over ones ideal body weight. We all know at least one overweight child, and sadly that rate is growing all the time. In the United States, childhood obesity has grown tremendously over the past years. According to Torgan, "The number of children who are overweight has doubled in the last two to three decades; currently one child in five is overweight" (2). Obesity in children is “now an epidemic in the United States” (Torgan, p. 1). There are several factors that have contributed to the rising numbers of obese children. Without proper treatment, children are more likely to become obese adults and develop major health problems.
Lack of physical activity is the leading cause of obesity in children. Children have decreased their involvement in physical activities such as exercising and playing sports, and have increased their involvement in sedentary activities. For example, several studies by Dietz have found that increased television viewing increases the percentage of time children spend on sedentary activities. Without a corresponding reduction in caloric intake, obesity may result (“Television” 543-550). Moreover, statistics show that children spend at least six and a half hours a day with some type of media, such as watching television, playing video games or surfing the internet. Children need to have at least 60 minutes of physical activity each day and cut down the media to about 2 hours per day. The easiest way to get kids to exercise is to just get them to play games that will keep them physically active like hide and go seek or tag.