Health Topic paper , Graphic Organizer

THE EFFECTS OF NUTRITION ON OUR FUTURE 8

The Effects of Nutrition on Our Future

Western Kentucky University

According to Healthy People 2010, “Nutrition is essential for growth and development, health, and well-being.” ("Nutrition and Overweight," 2000). This alone should be reason enough for why we should begin to work harder as health educators to help our children, as well as adults, understand that poor nutrition can only lead to negative consequences in their futures. But, even if that is not enough, Healthy People 2010 also point out these horrifying statistics that should make anyone want to change their diet immediately:

“Dietary factors are associated with 4 of the 10 leading causes of death, coronary artery disease (CHD), some types of cancer, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. These health conditions are estimated to cost society over $200 billion each year in medical expenses and lost productivity. Dietary factors are also associated with osteoporosis, which affects more than 25 million persons in the United States and is the major underlying cause of bone fractures in postmenopausal women and elderly persons. ("Nutrition and Overweight," 2000)

When questioning whether or not nutrition plays a part in morbidity and mortality rates, I think it is very clear that it does. Bad nutrition habits lead to poor diet, which leads straight to unhealthy weight gain or obesity. It is proven that poor diet and nutrition play a huge role in obesity and some diseases, but it is not so clear to some how much of an impact it truly does have. In March 2004, the CDC reported that 400,000 US deaths were caused by obesity, but recanted their statement in January 2005, stating that only 365,000 US deaths were caused by obesity. (Glendening, Hearne, Segal, Juliano, & Earls, 2005). In April 2005, a different team of officials from the CDC who used a different form of data stated that 112,000 US deaths were related to obesity.

“CDC officials explained that the wide discrepancy in the estimates in the two studies was due to the use of different research data, with the April 2005 article using more up-to-date statistics. CDC experts continued to emphasize that obesity and overweight are risk factors for a range of chronic disease”. (Glendening, Hearne, Segal, Juliano, & Earls, 2005).

The topic of nutrition is designed to promote health, but at the same time, it is also needed to help prevent disease. With proper nutrition, a child or an adult will live longer and have much better health. It is clear in any professional article that you can find online or even in your local paper that the growing illness with young children today is type 2 diabetes. Every nutrition program across the country is not only promoting the healthy habits of nutrition, but they are bringing awareness about diabetes and what it can do to our children if their diet is not better controlled. Nutrition alone is not the only problem that our society’s children are facing. There is also the battle with proper exercise and how much physical activity a child should have on a daily basis. Yet, nutrition seems to be the bigger issue between the two. According to the US department of Agriculture, “68 percent of American adults are overweight or obese and 32 percent of all children are overweight or obese”. (U.S Department of Agriculture, 2010) .

Time is a factor in every health promotion, but time is a must in nutrition programs. The loss of money that the US is dealing with in the battle of healthcare due to obesity and disease as a result of obesity is astounding. Yet, the money that is needed for an adequate nutrition program in schools nationwide is an even bigger concern and debt. Information from American Medical New tells us, “A study released by the Brookings Institute on August 12 concluded that the total cost of obesity in the US may exceed $215 billion annually. Of that amount $14.3 billion is attributed to children”. (Silva, 2010). If time is not taken to educate adults and children about nutrition and their health, how much more time and money will it cost not only the United States, but every individual in the US to help get the sick well again?

It seems that education about nutrition will one day be the factor that contributes to a healthier lifestyle and healthier choices, but I think we are still a far distance from that point. Many school systems are trying to become more involved in the health of their students and are trying to make some major changes in their choices, but it seems there is still work to be done. For an example, the 2007 Kentucky Youth Risk Behavior Survey reported their numbers falling from 2003 to 2007 when children were asked questions about how many fruits and vegetables they were eating on a regular basis. (U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2007). Kentucky has some of the highest obesity rates in the country and they are really working to change that by implementing better nutrition practices in their schools. It has shown with other trends that education can make a huge impact and difference in the statistics. We should believe that nutrition education can get us there too if we do our part in educating our children correctly.

Another example of nutrition education and its positive results is the “Food, Fun, and Fitness Internet Program for Girls”. This is a program that was started at Baylor College of Medicine that focuses on the nutrition of young African-American girls ages 8-10. Seventy-eight girls were chosen to participate in this online program that helps to gain healthy food and fitness regimens. After an 8 week study, results showed high participation rates with little dropout rates. There were also noticeably large increases in fruit and vegetables consumption. (U.S Department of Agriculture, 2010). This is proof that nutrition education can work as long as you present it in a way that is fun and exciting for children. The more fun they have, the more likely they are to adopt the habits for a significant amount of time.

It is very apparent for many reasons why nutrition education is a must have when it comes to our children and school systems. If action is not taken on nutrition education, obesity will be the cause for so many eventual deaths in our youth. Even when the statistics are questionable about whether it is 400,000 or 100,000 deaths each year due to obesity, the numbers are still unbelievably high and change needs to happen. Nutrition is going to be one of the main things that helps our nation survive and helps our children be successful.

References

Glendening, P.N., Hearne, S.A., Segal, L.M., Juliano, C., & Earls, M.J. (2005). F as in fat: how obesity policies are failing in America. Retrieved from www.healthyamericans.org

Nutrition and Overweight. (2000). Healthy people 2010. McLean,Virginia: International Medical Publishing.

Silva, C. (2010, September 20). Deadline looms for extending school nutrition programs. Retrieved from www.ama-assa.org/amenews/2010/09/20/gvsb0920.htm

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, . (2007). 2007 kentucky youth risk behavior survey. Retrieved from http://www.education.ky.gov/NR/rdonlyres/AB19975C-2E6A-4CC8-BDAA-2D96E69AFE29/0/YRBSFactSheets09NHSMS.pdf

U.S. Department of Agriculture,. (2010, March). Agriculture research. Retrieved from www.ars.usda.gov/ar