Research Proposal

We all know that child obesity is a growing problem in America. Are children are becoming more and more overweight at an alarming rate. Many people have asked the question, “why,” but some people still do not have answers. The main question is how it happening, and what can be done to stop the cycle? In addition to that, are there any factors (social, economic, etc.) that could worsen a child’s chance of becoming obese? Child obesity is something that is worth addressing because are kids are becoming less healthy. A less healthy child leads to an unhealthy adult which can lead to a number of diseases and illnesses as they get older. Living an unhealthy life can have negative effects in all aspects of daily life. As a child becomes a teenager, he/she would be picked on because of their weight. As they become an adult, the person could develop a disorder from the abuse of being bullied and would need a professional doctor to help them. The list goes on and on with this issue. With that said, child obesity is a problem in every community and this information shocks me. When I was growing up, we were playing outside; riding bikes, walking to the grocery store, and playing kick ball were the fun things to do that kept us active and moving. Also, in my family, eating fast food was a luxury that was only granted when we took long trips to other states. Even during those trips, my mom would pack snacks and drinks so we would have to spend a lot of money at McDonald’s trying to feed two adults and four children. A few things that I do know are that kids are playing more video games than ever before. Kids are more into the electronics (mp3 players, portable gaming devices, cellular phones, etc.) than ever before, but some of it is not their fault. Today’s society is like one that America has never seen before, and we have to adjust to it. At the same time (dealing with this issue), we need to educate our children, to get them healthy and to give them a better chance at obtaining and maintaining a healthier adult life. Things that I would like to find out are the actual statistics on child obesity. Then, I would look at the demographics of the situation. I would look for any type of pattern with this problem because finding a pattern would make the situation a little easier to solve. Another step would be to look at other factors that could have an effect on child obesity. Is it a cultural thing? Is it an issue based on race or ethnicity? Is one group of people more vulnerable to this situation than other groups? These questions I will attempt to answer with this project to give the readers a better understanding of this issue. My main source of information will probably come from the internet. Just typing in “child obesity” in a search engine can give you all the information you need to find out more on this terrible problem.