Lose Weight Now: Overweight Kids May Be in Danger

Do we really need another research study to tell us that being overweight or obese is bad for us? Common sense tells us that carrying around a lot of extra weight is really bad for folks. Now the news comes down that children who are overweight or obese may also be in danger of prematurely aging, at least their arteries anyway. Some of these overweight kids have the arteries in the same poor condition as adults who have already developed heart disease.

The Link Between Unhealthy Lifestyle, Weight, and Early Onset Disease in Kids

Research has shown the same results again and again through numerous studies conducted over the past 40 years. We know that carrying extra weight, obesity, poor eating habits, lack of exercise, and many other factors of an unhealthy lifestyle lead to health problems like heart diseases, arterial sclerosis, diabetes, and stroke. It's bad enough that adults are at risk, but now even the kids are at risk for these diseases, and are developing them at a much earlier age.

Study Results Show Aging Process Accelerated in Kids

The results were discovered by a Canadian research team that studied about 65 obese 13-year-old children along with 55 children of normal, healthy weight. The results were not surprising. When their blood vessels and heart were tested for blood flow using an ultrasound device, the obese kids tested poorly. The results showed that in he obese children, blood flow was restricted and did not move as easily or as quickly through the arteries as it did in the kids of normal weight.

The Link Between Unhealthy Lifestyle, Weight, and Heart Disease in Kids

Dr. Kevin Harris, the Canadian study author, works with the BC Children's Hospital in Vancouver, noted that the obese kids had significant stiffness in the aorta which is the largest artery in the human body. Harris stated, "Aortic stiffness is associated with cardiovascular events and early death." The researchers noted that it seemed the obese children were aging faster than normal. Parents and caregivers should be alarmed at this news and should take steps to remedy the situation by altering what kids eat and encouraging more exercise.

Research has always indicated the link between unhealthy eating and lack of exercise to early onset disease. It's bad enough that adults develop these diseases and conditions, but now even our kids are at risk. Poor nutrition and lack of physical activity are a huge threat to the health and well[being of our kids. It's time for parents to take control and teach kids how to develop healthy eating habits, get more exercise to lose excess weight, and live long, happy lives.

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Arteries of Obese Kids Aging Prematurely

Obese children show signs of heart disease normally seen in middle-aged adults

Arteries of Obese Kids Aging Prematurely