SAVANNAH, GA (WTOC) -
According to the Center For Disease Control, 12.5 million American children ages 2-19 are obese. In the past 30 years, childhood obesity has skyrocketed.
What's even more startling than these numbers is the fact that today's youth might not live as long as past generations once did.
Cristina Gibson, with Coastal Health District, says if the problem is not corrected children will have a life expectancy lower than their parents.
Gibson sees this epidemic on a day-to-day basis at work, so she decided to take some action at home. She created a dance class at her son's school to get kids moving.
"I know they have recess and a lot of kids take advantage of that, but I wanted to give them another opportunity to be physically active."
But most kids don't get as much physical activity in school as their parents and grandparents did. This is one of the main reasons childhood obesity is so prevalent today. Clinical dietitian Helen Hussey says this can be attributed to a couple of other factors as well.
First, more adults are obese.
"If you've got a parent who's obese, and let's say you got two parents who are obese, most likely the children are going to have some type of battle with weight."
Secondly, children are exposed to a plethora of unhealthy foods.
"It's more of a convenient generation right now. It's more convenient food, it's more processed food, it's a cheaper way to eat."
Unfortunately, this convenient lifestyle can be deadly.
"What we are seeing are children that are developing lifestyle related diseases that we only used to see in adults," Gibson says.
Those diseases include high blood pressure, high cholesterol and even sleep apnea.
But experts say there are steps you can take to prevent these diseases, and childhood obesity, before it's too late.
Copyright 2012 WTOC. All rights reserved.
All content © Copyright 2000 - 2012 WorldNow and WTOC, a Raycom Media Station.
