Obesity and Economics

In 2007, the U.S. Surgeon General announced that obesity had reached "epidemic" proportions in the USA.  "Seven years later, as the obesity rate continued to rise, 68 percent of American adults were overweight and 34 percent were obese; roughly one in three children and adolescents were overweight and nearly one in five was obese....  In 2010, we still rank as the world's fattest developed nation, with an obesity rate more than double many European nations."

These alarming facts come from Marc Ambinder's thorough, if somewhat frightening article, "Beating Obesity," in The Atlantic (May 2010).  Two main points raised in the article may be of particular interest to early childhood professionals.  This first is Ambinder's review of research on success rates of adult diet plans, which highlights the extreme difficulty of shedding pounds the older we get.  This adds urgency to having preschool children set out on the right course at the beginning, to develop healthy habits that will protect them for a lifetime.

A second point was concerning as well.  Ambinder outlined how obesity has an economic element.  In poorer neighborhoods with less available health care and nutritional consultation and with a higher prevalence of fast food establishments, obesity is more commonplace.  As a result... "black children are more at peril of becoming obese than white children....  Obesity rates are above average among Mexican-American boys... [and] Obesity rates among young Indian-Americans tend to be nearly twice the national average."

Run a professional development training session with Exchange's popular Out-of-the-Box Training Kits.  An article from Exchange magazine serves as the foundation for each Kit and is included as a handout.  Each Kit includes step-by-step instructions to prepare, conduct, and evaluate your training session. 

The Out of the Box Kits are also flexible enough to allow you to include your own ideas and exercises to meet any special needs of your staff.  And, this week, online Out of the Box Kits are on sale at a 20% discount.  The 60+ Kits provide training opportunities in the following areas:

• Health and Safety (7 kits)
• Curriculum Development and Implementation (15 kits)
• Environments (6 kits)
• Family Partnerships (5 kits)
• Professionalism (1 kit)
• Early Care and Education (8 kits)
• Infants and Toddlers (3 kits)
• Observation, Assessment, and Documentation (4 kits)
• Positive Discipline (12 kits)

For more information about Exchange's magazine, books, and other products pertaining to ECE, go to www.ccie.com.

© 2005 Child Care Information Exchange - All Rights Reserved | Contact Us | Return to Site