While Some Cultures register Decrease in Obesity Rates, Some, register Increase – Black Girls

America is well known for its obesity rate. This is more over a cause of concern as more and more children deal with this situation and the population of America is likely to decrease a lot if the situation remains the same. Therefore, important and serious measures must be taken to fight it.

In 2001 it was even regarded as a crisis through which America was passing. Since 1970 the rates of childhood obesity had tripled and experts tend to believe that children are likely to have shorter life expectancies than their parents actually do.

The U.S Department of Health and Human Services, aimed as a ten years goal to decrease the obesity rate. This was in 2000 and it was to be accomplished until 2010. The main focus was on eliminating health disparities and as well registering an important decrease in obesity rates.

The American Academy of Pediatrics could figure out that this aim was not attained, at least not in the case of American black girls. As, obesity rate has increased among the American Indian girls and as well the health disparities. While obesity rate has succeeded in declining in the past ten years, in white and Asian youth, remained the same in Latino youth it increased in black and American Indian girls.

This study was conducted in California, and based on the BMI screening on over 8 million children, among 2001 and 2008. In 2008 a big number of overweight children were registered – 38%, 19% obese and 3.6 % those that suffered from severe obesity. “For black, Hispanic and American Indian girls, the odds of having a high BMI

were 2 to 3 times those of non-Hispanic white girls,” the study reports. Patterns were similar for boys, but less extreme.

If these results are actually true it is naturally that these African American and American Indian girls face the possibility of a greater risk of catching any of the diseases, due to their condition. It is a normal thing that children that are obese as little are more prone to become just the same as grownups. As adults they will have to face other problems such as coronary heart disease, hypertension, stroke, type 2 of diabetes and as well cancer.

Despite of the fact that action was taken in this regard, it is believed that more action should be now taken, as the results were made public. First lady, Michelle Obama, has begun solving the problem of childhood obesity and she intends of decreasing the rate to 5 percent by 2030. Experts believe that early childhood should be investigated by introducing school and after school programs.