Battling childhood obesity By Katie Johnson/Austin Daily Herald
The rate of obesity and consequential poor health are climbing, and young people are not spared from the statistics.
The Minnesota Department of Health reported that the prevalence of overweight children ages 6-11 more than doubled to 15 percent between 1980 to 2000. In adolescents, that number tripled in the same period to 15 percent.
Austin Medical Center Dietitian Mary Jo Brunner said overweight children can be “on the road to diabetes.”
Type 2 diabetes, a disease related to being overweight or obese, has historically occurred in older adults. However, more and more children are being seen with the condition.
Brunner, who evaluates diets of infants through the elderly, said about 10 percent of her patients are children - most are there to see her because they are overweight.
Brunner said that 50 percent of obese teens become obese adults.
“They are creating a lifestyle of unhealthy eating habits,” she said.
There are several risk factors to a child being overweight, Brunner said.
Genetics are considered a player, but often falsely blamed for someone being overweight. A child's parents may be overweight; however, the child may also be overweight because they mimic unhealthy eating habits and inactivity, two other factors.
“We know a sedentary lifestyle can lead to weight gain,” she said.
Family and social factors can lead to a “power struggle” between emotions and food, explained Brunner. Bullying, problems at home and low self-esteem related to weight can be both the underlying reason for overeating and fuel for continued weight gain.
Brunner said diabetes is not the only complication associated with overweight children. Asthma, metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure, sleeping disorders, skin infections, learning problems and low self-image are occuring more often.
For overweight children, she recommends fruits and vegetables, lean protein and low fat and sugar in their meal plans. Portion sizes and parents setting a good example are also important.
She often recommends one to two hours of media use a day for children. Brunner also said never to reward a child with food for good deeds, such as cleaning their room or completing homework.
“Parents play a huge role,” she emphasized. “Parents set the example. Try to create a family fun-time,” she suggested.
Family is very influential in a child's life, but the school setting can have just as much impact mentally, socially and physically.
DeeDee Marx, chairwoman of the Austin elementary schools' physical education department, has seen 34 years of gym classes.
“I think phy-ed should be educational as well as physical,” she said. “P.E. has really changed over the years. It's not really the starting grounds for sports teams.”
“Lifetime” activities, like snorkeling, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing and rock-climbing, have taken the place of more competitive team sports during gym.
At Sumner Elementary School, they have incorporated a voluntary “mileage club” during lunch. Students are rewarded for laps completed around the track.
Gym is now only required in Grades 1-9; it used to be required in Grades K-10. Seventh and eighth grades have gym every day of the week, but only for one semester.
Phy-ed programs have been underfunded because they are considered a “specialty program,” Marx said.
“What we really need is for the state to make health and phy-ed a graduation requirement,” she said.
School lunches have also changed. The district is restructuring its lunch program with a wellness plan to adhere to healthier meal mandates set by the state last summer.
Mary Weikum, food service manager for the district, said for their plan, the district decided to focus on providing whole grains to students in pizza crusts, bread and more. The school has also eliminated “trans fats” and “super-sizing.”
“I'm not a big believer in taking away everything,” she said. “When they get out of school, they need to know how to make choices.”
Weikum has been looking for an educational approach to meal decisions in the a la carte line by color-coding food items indicating servings recommended per day and providing nutritional information.
Even though an unhealthy diet, inactivity and weight gain can begin at a very early age, the social and mental effects, like bullying, depression and weight issues, have not become prevalent in school life until later, said Austin schools staff.
Maureen Noterman, a social worker at Sumner and Banfield elementary schools, said she believes there are almost no cases of bullying in general reported.
“I think it's because we have really high expectations,” she said.
The school has implemented a “Steps to Respect” bullying program for Grades 3-5.
As students reach middle school, cases of weight-related incidents are still not common, but do occur.
“We do a lot to prevent bullying, because it does happen,” said Ellis Middle School psychologist Kevin Anderson. “Even more than weight issues, it's body image.” Anything from braces to height, a kid will make fun of it, he said.
“Middle school is a pivotal time,” he said. “Kids pick on each other, we know that. Sometimes mental health issues can result in kids using food. For some kids, food is their friend.”
Every sixth grader has one week of proactive anti-bullying curriculum. There is an emphasis in a healthy living class on the new food pyramid and the importance of physical activity.
“It's really about being responsible for yourself,” Anderson said.
School social worker Angie Taylor addresses body image in a self-esteem group for students dealing with those issues.
“We broke down a lot of stereotypes in the media and the effects it has on kids this age,” she said.
Anderson and Taylor agreed weight issues aren't really what brings students to their offices - it's trouble-making friends, mental health concerns, and most often, academic and family problems.
Julie Hale, a social worker for Austin High School, said she does not believe there are problems related to being overweight at the school.
“There are students concerned about weight/body image, and we have students that would likely fall under the term ‘obese,'” she said. “I and others in our counseling department and administration have not seen obesity linked by our student population as a source of harassment and or bullying.”
Katie Johnson can be reached at 434-2214 or by e-mail at
katie.johnson@austindailyherald.com.
Childhood Obesity 
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