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Childhood obesity can lead to low self-esteem, future health problems
YOUNGSTOWN
Childhood obesity can be socially heartbreaking, especially for an overweight teen, and a precursor of myriad future health problems.
“From a social perspective, cyber and in-person bullying because you are different or overweight – if you are the target, if you are the last one picked for the team – can cause a kid to shut down, even cause suicide,” said Melody Case, Akron Children’s Hospital Mahoning Valley wellness and youth fitness specialist.
A slim, trim mother of three, Case said she was very overweight in high school.
“When I see a kid who is overweight, it tugs at my heart. I know how it feels. I understand,” said Case, who decided to change her body and her image of herself, her self-esteem, and has for 20 years religiously exercised six days a week and carefully watched her diet.
“It’s hard to change your lifestyle. But it’s so important to me. I don’t ever want to feel that way again,” said Case, a 1996 graduate of Chaney High School and a 2011 graduate of Youngstown State University.
Because of her personal experience, Case said she wants to help children, adolescents and adults feel good about themselves.
“I love my job. I can’t imagine doing anything else,” she said.
September is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, and Akron Children’s, along with the Mahoning Valley Healthy Kids Coalition, is offering two free programs, which Case coordinates, to promote physical fitness and healthy eating.
Sponsored by grants through the William Swanston Charitable Fund, a supporting organization of the Community Foundation of the Mahoning Valley, the programs are “Fitness Fun” Storytimes for preschoolers 3-5, and “Fitness Lifestyle Challenge” for kids and adolescents 7-15.
Fitness Fun, conducted at branches of the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County and the Warren-Trumbull County Public Library, consists of stories and activities that promote healthy eating and physical movement using the EatPlayGrow program, affiliated with the National Institutes of Health.
“To motivate kids to listen and continue after the program ends, activities have to be fun and noncompetitive,” Case said.
Fitness Lifestyle Challenge offers noncompetitive activities to promote healthy fitness and eating habits, and safe, gradual weight loss. Activities include obstacle courses, rope jumping, relays, games, swimming and circuit training. Incentives encourage participants to meet their fitness goals.
Also during National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, the Ohio Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (Ohio AAP) works to educate parents about risks associated with childhood obesity and the important role early intervention can play in keeping their young ones healthy.
“Obesity is a complex health problem that needs to be addressed during the first few years of a child’s life,” said Melissa Wervey Arnold, Ohio AAP chief executive officer.
The Ohio AAP works with families and pediatricians, such as Dr. Carrie Norman-Campanelli, D.O., of Austintown Pediatrics, through programs – Parenting at Mealtime and Playtime Collaborative – that emphasize the importance of positive parent-child interactions in all areas of a child’s development.
For information about Parenting at Mealtime and Playtime, Good4Growth and the Good4Growth 7 Day Challenge and other Ohio AAP programs, visit www.ohioaap.org.
Childhood obesity still is on the rise, said Norman-Campanelli, a member of the Ohio Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics Good4Growth Learning Collaborative who graduated from Des Moines University and did her residency at Tod Children’s Hospital.
“Compared to 17 years ago when I started to my practice, and particularly the last five to 10 years, obesity has been more prevalent. I am seeing type 2 diabetes in adolescents that I didn’t see earlier in my career,” she said. Body mass index, the ratio of weight to height, provides a good guideline for what is a healthy weight, she said.
Parents have a huge role in helping their children avoid becoming overweight.
“I talk about the subject all the time. Kids need to get off the couch and get 60 minutes of physical activity every day. They need to be limited to three hours a day of electronics,” Norman-Campanelli said.
Also, nutrition is crucial. Too often, parents are picking the least-expensive processed food and kids are not getting the fresh fruits and vegetables that they need, she said.
From a medical perspective, statistically, overweight and obese preschoolers are more likely to become obese adults than other children, and in danger of developing type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea and some types of cancer, she said.
Obese kids can have social problems and difficulty in peer relations, and there are mental-health consequences, such as depression, she said.
“I feel for them. I know what the consequences can be,” Norman-Campanelli said. “It’s tough to treat. Families have to change. I’m trying to be positive; we do see some change, some improvements. But, it’s a slow, uphill battle.”