Problems Associated with Unhealthy Eating Among Children

Insights into the degree of the problem reveal the following startling details:

only 42% of children who come to school actually opt to eat the healthy options at the school’s cafeteria
the remainder bring their own lunches or have their lunches handed over the fence to them by their parents
lunches that are brought from off campus sources usually consist of various unhealthy food options such as burgers, fries, soft drinks and chips bought from the local Mc Donald’s or a variety of other establishments scattered around the surrounding neighborhood

Problem with Fast Food Options

The inherent problem with these unhealthy fast food options is that can cause serious health problems when consumed consistently over a long period of time (Raj and Krishna 598). Their inherent caloric content which is composed mainly of carbohydrates, fats and increasingly high amounts of sugar have been shown to contribute to the rapid occurrence of childhood obesity within the country.

Various studies examining the long term eating habits of children when they become adults reveal that the eating habits they develop now carry over to when they become adults. As such the rapid onset of obesity seen in today’s adults within the country comes as no surprise due to an apparent neglect on the part of their parents to teach their children proper eating habits (Raj and Krishna 598).

Resolving the issue at hand

(Insert name here), who is currently heading the campaign, had this to say about the goal of the campaign ” our nation’s children continue to grow unhealthier every year with the possibility of them developing diabetes or all sorts of problems in the future which will definitely affect the future of our nation”.

In order to ensure that immediate action is done by citizens the Local Education Authority along with (Insert Name hear) are establishing community education events and lectures every two months throughout the year in order to drive the point through that immediate action by everyone is needed in order to prevent the problem from getting worse.

The Junk food Culture

The main problem though still lies with the current “junk food culture” that has apparently inundated today’s citizens, the convenience and easy accessibility of various fast food restaurants has made most parents rather reluctant to switch to a more inconvenient and time consuming method of meal preparation (DeArment, 5).

Working Together with the Community

The local educational authority in an effort to garner public support for this campaign had the following words to say: “we cannot do this alone, we need all your help to act now to make sure that our nation’s children are safeguarded from the possibility of health problems in the future, all of you are directly responsible for the future of your children”.

Based on this, the campaign will attempt to work hand in hand with local community and school officials in order to properly educate both parents and students alike of the consequences of unhealthy eating habits. It is expected that should the campaign actually work a national health epidemic could be averted in the future as a result of the actions of the LEA today.

Initiative towards Healthier Eating at Schools

My name is (insert name here), I am a student currently studying at (insert name of school here) and I would like to state my concerns regarding the lack of initiatives within my current school area involving better and healthier eating habits for children. As such I am writing this letter requesting that you help tackle this situation in order to prevent the problem from getting worse.

There is a distinct problem with the eating habits in our current school district wherein students have increasing been found eating junk food rather than the healthy food options available at the school’s cafeteria. This is due to:

The limited time of breaks and lunches which encourage the consumption of easy to eat junk foods
A distinct lack of initiatives aimed at providing sufficient incentive towards healthy eating
Next to school advocacy programs aimed at educating students about the advantages of eating healthy food choices

The result has been a growing problem in relation to the possibility of the rapid onset of childhood obesity in various school districts. Already I have noticed various students getting considerably fatter as the year progresses with most of them eating junk food as their primary source of nutrition.

The inherent problem with this sort of eating habit is that it has the possibility of continuing well into adulthood. This can lead to the following health problems:

Rapid onset of obesity
Diabetes
Heart problems
Strokes

Based on these facts, it can be seen that it is necessary to institute some form of preventive measure in order to prevent children from literally eating themselves to death.

What I would like to see is the LEA promote significant changes in the way schools educate children regarding eating healthily and make it a requirement that parents are informed of the risks involved in letting their children continuously eat junk food. Some of the main changes I would like to see are:

The implementation of a subject in the school curriculum specifically dealing with health and healthy eating
Newsletters sent to parents on a monthly basis informing them of the necessity of limiting the amount of junk food their children are allowed to eat
School advocacy programs aimed at encouraging pupils to eat healthy foods
Grade incentives for children who consistently eat healthy options when they come to school

It can be expected that should such measures be put into practice a potential health crisis involving our nations children could be averted.

Works Cited

DeArment, Alaric. “Unhealthy eating habits weigh heavily on costs.” Drug Store News 31.12 (2009): 4-54. Vocational and Career Collection. EBSCO. Web.

Raj, Manu, and Krishna, Kumar. “Obesity in children & adolescents.” Indian Journal of Medical Research 132.5 (2010): 598-607. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web.

Introduction