Consider this staggering statistic: One in three children in this country is considered overweight or obese. It's one of the most serious public health challenges of the 21st century. But obesity is only one of a number of child health concerns, including drug abuse and depression, which have medical professionals, government officials and parents frightened about the future of our children’s health. To that end, during the month of February, Time Warner Cable News will commit significant time and energy to inform our viewers of the sometimes alarming trends as well as provide helpful tips for busy parents to raise healthier children. It’s a multi-platform month-long initiative the station is calling "Fit Kids February." Before we can come up with some solutions, we need to understand the extent of the problems. Time Warner Cable News Health Reporter Erin Billups filed the following report.
We've come a long way since Congress created the Federal Children's Bureau in 1912 - the first federal agency devoted to improve the health of the youngest Americans.
"Eighty-three percent of children have either excellent health or good health, and that has been an upward trend that is happening which is very exciting," says Helena Duch, an assistant professor at the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health Population and Family Health.
Duch credits advances in modern medicine, universal health insurance for children and public health campaigns.
"We've improved seatbelt use, car seat use, helmet use, and also public health campaigns about smoking during pregnancy," she says.
But with the rise of computer and cell phone use, fast food eating, single parent and two working parent homes, the number of obese children has more than doubled and the number of obese teenagers has more than quadrupled.
"We've seen an increase in obesity in the last 30 years, just an upward trend for school age children. I think for adolescents the trends are significantly worse," explains Duch.
According to the CDC, nearly 35 percent of children are overweight or obese - more than 18 percent of six to 11 year olds are obese, as are 21 percent of teens.
The numbers are just slightly better among preschoolers.
"But still early childhood obesity is still at 8.5 percent of the population," says Duch.
Duch says good nutrition and physical activity habits are set as early as two years old. But parents still need more support to help ensure their children get off to a healthy start.
"Our lives are made more difficult for families to be able to engage in those activities," Duch adds. "A lot of schools around the country are cutting back on recess time, while we know that recess actually enhances children's ability to learn."
Duch also points out the numbers become more glaring as you go further down the socioeconomic ladder. Most health outcomes, not just in obesity, are worse among the poor.