Obesity in Students
As the years go by, Americans have become more dependent on fast food. Fast food is easier for parents on the run to serve to their kids instead of rushing home and cooking dinner. An example of parents preferring fast food is the Cici’s pizza commercial. In the commercial the busy mother has to commute her kids to all of their activities and still eat dinner. At Cici’s the mother can get her food fast saying, “Cici’s is a lifesaver.” Fast food is just easier; however, it is also unhealthier. Junk food is bad for students if they eat it in abundance. The majority of foods in schools now are considered junk. Students spend a third of their weekday at school. If they are eating junk every time they eat, they are learning bad nutritional habits. If the school systems and the government do not put some type of restriction on the food sold at schools, students will continue to choose unhealthy food causing the obesity level will continue to rise along with health complications in America’s future.

Within the past decade childhood obesity has risen. Spending the majority of their weekday at school, most students eat lunch and a snack or two from the vending machines while at school. Students who participate in extracurricular activities spend around nine hours at school. Most schools in the country have vending machines because they profit the school financially. Vending machines also bring unhealthy foods full of fat and sugar that are convenient for students to grab quickly. Schools are supposed to be teaching students skills that they can use not only in higher education but also in life. If that is true, then why are schools teaching students such horrible eating habits? With the junk food consumed by students in schools and the lack of exercise given, obesity is higher than it was thirty years ago. Obesity leads to issues such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension and depression.

Type 2 diabetes is more frequent now in today’s youth and young adults than ever. This disease mainly happens to a person who has a high BMI (body mass index) and does not exercise frequently. The disease is not immediately terminal but can cause complications such as amputations, kidney failure, strokes, and visionary losses. As a diabetic, I know these side effects are something a child should never have to worry about. Worrying about an A1C and making sure one’s blood sugars are regulated is a huge task for a child to have to consider when making many decision. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes can be decreased through weight control and lifestyle modifications. The schools can help prevent the rise in type 2 diabetes in young adults by offering healthier meals and more exercise in schools.

Another health issue that comes with childhood obesity is hypertension. Hypertension is not just in adults but also in children. It can also lead to severe cardiovascular diseases and kidney disease receiving its name the “silent killer”. The deathly side effects of hypertension usually come without a warning. Such as a heart attack or a stroke, they don’t give a warning but just happen like a true “silent killer”.

Depression is also widely associated with childhood obesity. Children are rude to one another and do not understand how painful a couple of joking words can be. The majority of children have been ridiculed at one point or another; however, the “fat ugly” kids get ridiculed more. With ridicule comes fewer friends and more jokes. Soon it will take a toll on a person and might cause them to begin to hate themselves entering a state of depression at a young age. This depression leads to more over eating continuing bad eating habits as an adult.
If the schools truly paid attention to all the complications that come from consuming unhealthy foods, they would be more selective with their food choices for their students. Junk food in moderation is not bad, but serving it every day to thousands of children across the nation is. Lowering the amount of junk in schools could lead to fewer children having to live with childhood obesity and its complications.