Eating Disorders and Obesity Essay
According to research done in Mississippi in 2009, researchers surveyed over 15000 children under the age of 8-11 and discovered that most of the obese children are nervous and sad (Mississippi, West Group 2009). This has significantly affected their psychological growth and led to their loss of appetite. Obesity is the condition where the body has accumulated too much fat because of an unbalanced diet or taking too much carbohydrate. It limits the lifespan of these obese children, hence wiping out future generations in the society. As a result, only the weak and old are left to enhance development and economical growth in the society. Although scientists have invented medication for children over the age of 16, they have still not yet discovered drugs to cure obesity or control the rate of obesity for children under the age of 16 (Kiess, 2004).Eating Disorders and Obesity Essay
The greatest and most traumatic effect of obesity has on children is the risk of heart failure and diabetes. Moreover, the obese children’s parents are forced to incur massive medical bills to treat their children’s medical conditions, and this may result to lack of capital to educate the child (Davies, Fitzgerald & Mousouli, 2007). Socially, obese children have extremely low self esteem. This denies them their childhood happiness, as they are stigmatized by their peers. This makes them withdraw socially from others in the society. The stigma from the peers also affects the child’s performance in class since he or she lacks self confidence (Flamenbaum, 2006). What is lacking is research into the quality of life that these children have once they become obesity free. As the general goal in obesity treatment is to keep the child alive, the psychosocial elements of the child’s life are often neglected. In addition, there are various educational implications that obesity has on children, especially in school. Learning problems is an example of late effects that an obese child faces, and this affects his or her grades extremely (Brownell & Fairburn, 2002).Eating Disorders and Obesity Essay