What are the potential health effects of being overweight or obese as a child?
We know that obesity in childhood increases the risk of becoming an obese adult and developing all the complications that can go with adult obesity — diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and other chronic conditions. But the risks of childhood obesity aren’t all in the future. It causes immediate problems, too. Excessive weight affects virtually all of the organ systems in a child’s body. It can exacerbate asthma and trigger sleep apnea. It causes a range of heart disease risk factors and problems with the GI tract, liver, bones, muscles, and joints. We’ve seen high blood pressure in kids as young as 5 years old. Having excess weight in childhood is serious, because it’s a pivotal moment in development. The organs are still forming. Excess weight can affect how a child grows and develops, and that can have long-term repercussions. Unless you do something now, these changes will be very hard to deal with later. What are some things I can do to help my kid lose weight? At our clinic, we try
