Childhood obesity, how to avoid it?

To get our children to adopt good eating habits it is very important that we lead by example. Nor can we forget physical activity, which is essential for them to grow strong and healthy.

Childhood obesity is one of the most important health problems of the 21st century . The WHO (World Health Organization) considers it a real epidemic, since cases have tripled in a few years. Therefore, it is necessary to be aware of how we can prevent this from happening. Well, the health of children is important to take care of it.

The consequences of obesity for the health of overweight children are many. Some of them are the development of diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol and triglycerides, etc., among many others. Likewise, childhood obesity can also generate psychological problems (lack of self-esteem, social marginalization) or even psychiatric problems such as anorexia or bulimia in adolescence.

For years, popular belief dictated that a child we would consider obese today indicated that he was well nourished and healthy , that children should eat a lot to grow healthy. Nothing is further from reality. Currently, childhood obesity is synonymous with poor nutrition, not by scarce, but by poor quality due to the abuse of precooked foods, fast food or junk and industrial pastries.

The sedentarismo of the children by the irruption of videojuegos, computers and other electronic divertimento like instruments of leisure does not help to prevent the obesity , indeed. However, nowadays, this type of entertainment causes children to move less, which, added to a deficient diet, causes obesity.

Recommendations to prevent childhood obesity

The first point on which we will emphasize and that pediatricians and endocrinologists consider essential is breakfast . Breakfast should provide 25% of daily energy needs and should include dairy products, cereals and fruits . The whole family should take the time necessary to eat breakfast, avoiding swallowing quickly. A widespread malpractice is that the child only drinks a glass of milk and quickly in a hurry.

The snack is also very important, because if the child does not take anything between the dinner meal, it will be stuffed in the dinner, with the consequent bad digestion and the deposit of fats in the organism. To snack , fruit or asnack is recommended , industrial bakery is prohibited .

At lunch and dinner time, we will avoid bad habits like doing it with the television on, the child eating alone or eating only what he likes, we will have to eat a varied diet. In addition, it is important to eat at the table. Doing it on the couch will not help generate this good habit.

The exercise and the example of the parents

Children should exercise, not only to avoid obesity, but also so that their skeleton and musculature develop properly. It is always recommended that they practice some team sport because this way we will also promote the relationship with more children and learn the values ​​of teamwork.

We recommend allowing children to choose the sport they like the most. If they do not do well or end up getting bored, we also recommend that we be flexible and allow you to do something else. Of course, something that is related to sport.

As we have pointed out earlier, children spend too much time in front of television and computer screens that, apart from the problems that this can have on their eyes, foster social isolation. For this reason, you should restrict the time spent in front of the screens and encourage them to spend their leisure time in the open air, with more children.

The best way for a child to adopt good eating habits is by taking as an example the parents , who should be the first to abide by these tips. If adults are always on their mobile phones, play video games whenever they are at home, do not play sports and have a very poor diet, what do we expect children to do?

We must be consistent and be aware that parents are the greatest examples for children. We can not tell them to eat broccoli if we do not. Neither do sports if we lead a sedentary life. What's more, although we force them to comply with these orders, in the end, when they are older, they will not take care of themselves. Preventing childhood obesity is increasingly necessary . Have children? Do you take care of your diet and well-being?