ISSN (Online) : 2277-4572
Author(s): Saranya S Kumar *
Childhood Obesity is a roaring issue worldwide and has afflicted India in the recent years. A rapid transition in the lifestyle has contributed to variation in food habits, easy living, inadequate time for self-care, unhealthy socialization, work pressure, familial stress etc. In a way, this has affected the adult population as well as the children equally. Inadequate time for children in the family has shown negative impacts on physical and mental health of the children. One such is the incidence of Childhood Obesity which is a metabolic disorder characterized by increased body mass index beyond the child’s age and height. Childhood being the miniature of the whole adulthood, a distortion in its flow either as a physical or psychological breach may end up in an unsound adult life. More than the physical symptoms, the psychological stressors associated with Childhood Obesity worsen the contentment of childhood. Children are considered to be a very sensitive miniature of adult human. With the highly accessible and technologically advanced era, students are far more approachable to anything that they wish for. Parenting has gone far away from “disciplining a child” to “buying off anything that stops the child’s cry”. Lifestyle changes have a greater role to play in moulding a child’s physical and psychological changes. This has in a way influenced the incidence of Childhood Obesity and associated psychological co-morbidities. A holistic approach considering the psycho somatic model and lifestyle modification are to be adopted for overcoming the negative concerns of Childhood Obesity.
