The number of overweight people is increasing each year throughout the developed countries of the world. For many years obesity has been an issue specific for adults, but the tendency of the 21st century shows that more and more teenagers and children gain extra weight. Since the prevalence of the problem is growing fast, it is essential to analyze the main reasons that cause it and find the most applicable solutions to prevent obesity as a threat to the health and longevity of young people.
Obesity as a process of gaining a lot of extra body fat that obstructs the proper functioning of the systems of a body might be a basis for many diseases. The most frequently occurred and one of the most dangerous illnesses is diabetes, the number of cases of which is increasing at high speed. It is even more dangerous because obese children constitute a significant part of diabetes patients. Among the reasons for overweight are fast food, improper diet both at schools and at home, and genetic inclinations.
The popularization of fast food in mass media where the unhealthy meal is portrayed as a tasty snack in the hands of a thin and joyful person creates a wrong image of the usefulness of fatty food. Also, under the circumstances of the increasing speed of life where there is no place for consistency in home-cooked meals, children are often deprived of a balanced nutritious diet. Also, school meals mostly consist of semi-products due to economic reasons.
Therefore, it is vital to address the identified reasons with decisive tools to stop the epidemics of obesity among children. It is possible to accomplish this with the help of massive reforming of school nutrition, promotion of healthy diet at all levels in mass media, and provide more research on the harmful effect of fast food on the body. The ways of combating the problem are not easy and will require a lot of time and effort. However, it is crucial to articulate and popularize their importance to ensure the health and longevity of future generations.