How to Address Childhood Obesity

Obesity, Are We Afraid to Use the Word with Our Children?

If we have cancer or a kidney disorder, the doctor is quick to tell you what your problem is. Why is it that no one wants to use the term “obese”? We definitely don’t want to use the term referring to the over-weight problems associated with a child. Obesity is becoming an epidemic among adults and now among children as well. Some medical clinics are reporting that up to 10-15 percent of their children they treat as patients have some obesity related problems. Many of the children they treat are at serious risk of diabetes or are currently being treated for diabetes. This was never a medical issue for some of these clinics 20-30 years ago. Some doctors feel they run the risk of angering the families and children if they use the terminology of obesity. According to the Center for Disease control, the current terminology is to state that a child that is overweight to be designated as “at risk to be overweight”. This is denial of the problem and encourages it to persist.