Childhood Obesity: An Adult Problem

Responsibility seems to be a word that is losing it’s meaning as people are more likely to “lay the blame” than “accept the responsibility.” Laying blame is detrimental to the existence of a healthy society. Rather than telling citizens that the obesity problem facing children is because of lack of exercise, local media station KSLA 12 (Shreveport-Bossier City, La) has run news casts speaking of school responsibility. KSLA is not the first or last news station to talk about this growing problem of obese children or obesity in general.

I can tell you first hand that obesity is hard to over come. There are certain preventative steps (exercise, healthy eating, etc.) which when applied will greatly reduce not only obesity but the health problems associated with obesity. Losing the weight is infinitely harder than prevention. Such is life. And the law of mechanics. It is easier to prevent car problems with regular maintenance than to fix them.

Since the human body is our most important machine it would be wise to take the responsibility of regular maintenance and run with it. If the impact of running is too much, there’s always walking, riding a bicycle, rollerblading or skipping if you’re feeling froggy.

I skip occasionally and walk as frequently as possible. I ride a bicycle for a half an hour once a week. I’ve cut my portions to the proper size (1 cup of any food is enough each meal). These actions are my choice. I chose to no longer weigh 240 lbs in January. The decision, hard work, and taking responsibility over my life has helped me to lose 60 lbs and I’m not finished losing weight. Life is a personal choice. One must choose to be active in order to lose weight. It’ll hurt, but keep on, it can be done.

The world is not over for obese children. Parents need to take a more active role to ensure that kids get enough exercise. Children should be outside running around, not in doors playing video games. A child’s right to decide ends when it jeopardizes the child’s well-being. Letting children waste away in front of the TV and then blaming schools is not taking responsibility. It’s laying the blame.

I blamed all kinds of things for my weight problem. But today I’ve taken control of my weight problem. It takes persistence and patience. Perhaps one day I’ll turn on a news station and hear a story about parents taking children out to exercise, rather than blaming the schools. Obesity is the responsibility of the individual, not the school system.