Children Versus Adults: Comparing Diet and Exercise Results

Out of the 14 schools 361 boys were assessed, at 8 months a follow up assessment completed on the control group which consisted of 154 boys and 139 intervention group participants representing an overall retention. Those who did not complete the follow-up assessments were more active on weekdays and weekends. No significant differences for body composition were noted and no intervention effects were noted for their BMI, waist circumference or body fat percentage. Changes in BMI, waist circumference, and body fat for those classified as overweight/obese at baseline were all in favor of the intervention group. Of the 19 participants who improved their weight status, 13 were in the intervention group; of the 9 participants who regressed to an unhealthier weight status, only 1 was in the intervention group. Results concluded no major changes on activity or moderate to vigorous physical activity, but participants stated drinking less sugary drinks and less screen time than the control group (Dally et al., 2016).

In this population-based study, a crossed-sectional design of 5662 students aged 6-18 was studied in china. Factors that was analyze includes feeding strategy, parenting behavior toward the child's physical activity, feeding behaviors, eating environment provided by the parents, food availability, home sedentary, environment, physical activity level and parents physical activity level ( Yu-bin et al., 2013).

The following studies are short-term interventions that last for 6 months or below that have looked at the effects that exercise has on body weight and what diet and exercise have on body weight. When these studies have been compared to each other they have found that the combination between diet and exercise have the greatest impact on losing weight. For example, Hagen et al (1986) conducted a study on 48 males and 48 females who were obese and there ages being equal to 36.6 years. The aim of their study was to compare the effects of exercise and caloric restriction for a 12 weeks period. In this procedure they split the males into four groups and the females into four groups. These groups were the same for both males and females. The groups were a Diet and exercise group (DE), Diet group (D), exercise group (E) and the control group (C). Hagen et al (1986) found that there

Increasing physical activity levels in both children and adolescents is crucial since physical activity is associated with many health benefits, even if only by a few minutes a day. In order to determine effective interventions for increasing physical activity in both age groups, first an accurate measure of physical activity must be performed.

I choose the topic of physical activity as the importance of preventing childhood obesity. Because childhood obesity is increasing worldwide and corrupting the lives of millions of children who won’t survive into their adulthood. Childhood obesity is a serious health issue that’s facing the United States. This topic captivated my attention to understanding the main problems and solutions to combating childhood obesity after watching; “Weight of the Nation” Children in Crisis. The types of information I found on the creditable and non-creditable websites and blogs were steps on how to prevent childhood obesity by incorporating exercise into children daily life’s routines. Changes overweight and obese children encounter throughout the childhood up until adolescents. For example, behavioral, psychological, social and even physical. The explanations of the main types of physical activity. Causes and Consequences of childhood obesity. Health risks found in children like Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, hypertension. The different physical activity guideline recommendations for children on the amount of time required for the child to stay active and healthy. Majority of the people who are interested in the information would find it very useful. As well as, give them a sense of knowledge on the childhood obesity epidemic in the United States. Also, if you never knew what childhood obesity was and what caused it and how to prevent childhood obesity from entering into adulthood

Although school sports or organized sports teaches children lessons in life to be successful human beings, the most important reason that children should play sports is to be healthy. When children are school sports or organized sport teams, they are going to get the exercise that they need to get healthy and stay healthy. “An increase in physical activity has many health benefits: it lowers the risk of obesity, coronary heart disease, type II diabetes, hypertension, and osteoporosis”. (Collard, 2008) Exercise teaches children to be physical fit, but also teaches children that nutrition is also important. Child obesity is on the rise in the United States. In today’s society we lead very busy lives and it is convenient to stop at fast food restaurants between work, home and sporting events to pick up dinner. Also, there are a lot of entertaining shows on television that children are interested in watching. We can help our children become healthier by leading healthy lifestyles as a family. Exercising is important to keep children fit and healthy to prevent injuries. Injuries can happen to healthy children

Childhood obesity is associated with a poor diet and lack of physical exercise. Determining the level of a healthy weight in children is calculated by using a growth chart, such as the standard growth chart developed by the Center for Disease Control. An accurate assessment is easily determined by measuring the weight and height of a child. Body Mass Index, or BMI, is also used to further determine a healthy weight for an individual. Once the determination is made by measurement, it is necessary to consider other factors such as the type of diet and exercise that is practiced. It is imperative that a diet be well rounded and not overloaded with starches, fats, and sugars and a minimum of 120 minutes of physical exercise take place on a daily basis. There are many health issues that are associated with overweight and obese children, but luckily there are methods to stop this problem. As Ezzeldin Aly states in “Childhood Obesity in the United States of America”, the solution to childhood obesity is the community and education. An overweight child’s “community” plays an important part in their general health. This community consists of: parents, family, doctors and teachers. It is in these relationships that diet education and physical activity are developed. Childhood obesity continues to grow at an alarming rate in the United States potentially causing long-term health issues but can be reversed by incorporating a healthy diet and physical

The research hypothesis for this question is, that family exercise will have more effect on obesity in children and adolescents ages 12 to 18 years old than individual exercise. The null hypothesis is; for children and adolescents age 12 to 18 family exercise compared to individual exercise does not have more effect on obesity in this age group.

In the stages of childhood and adolescent, exercising is a needed task. This task is what can lead the children in a positive development. The exercising can be risky for children, which all relies on the proper or improper performance. As the proper ways take place, there can be an improvement in physical and mental health; whereas, the improper ways can result in the opposite.

Observations were made on groups of adolescents ranging from 12-15 years of age. With one group being measured via direct calorimetry, each individual’s daily energy expenditure was recorded after a session of exercise during various times throughout the day. It was recorded that morning energy expenditure was significantly higher during session without regards to levels of intensity, while afternoon sessions showed to be lower. Obese adolescent were observed that in response to acute sessions of high intensity exercise followed by a reduced physical activity.

Physical activity is important in chronic disease prevention including hypertension, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease. When children get these diseases, they escalate much quicker than they do in adults (Sothern et al. 1999). Physical activity is very important in determining the adiposity rebound phase of preschool children. Adiposity rebound is the period in which BMI increases after reaching the lowest level during development. This period is a critical period that determines the risk of obesity later in life. Earlier adiposity rebound correlates to higher rates of obesity in adulthood (Rolland et al. 2006). Nutritional intake does not correlate to the time that adiposity rebound occurs, but the amount of sedentary behavior may play a role. There is not enough data to determine what effects the time in which adiposity rebound occurs (Dorosity et al. 2000).

Instituting weight training in secondary level students will hopefully lead to an adult who is active and healthy. Promoting a healthy lifestyle at a young age can influence one person and have an effect on many. The hope is to have the student’s take their knowledge gained and share it with friends and family. Then once they become adults they will continue to stay active and live a healthy lifestyle. “Parents should be active with their children from a very young age and not depend on the school system to keep their children fit; thus, changing parental exercise behavior may improve childhood fitness” (Landry & Driscoll, 2012, p. 831). Having parents who are active with their children will show them how fun it is. The principles of being physically active can be taught with games and activities to promote a healthy lifestyle. Once they become age appropriate their parents can incorporate weight training as another for of physical activity.

In the words of (Corbin, 2014), physical exercises are encouraged among the youth since they have a high risk of becoming obese. They consume food with high contents of nutrients that facilitate their growth. They can benefit from regular exercise since body organs develop as a result of generic factors and organs are

Regarding lipid and lipoprotein profiles, data showed that exercise impacted the concentration and average size of LDL particles (p=0.03 and p=0.009), concentration of HDL-C (p=0.03), average size of HDL particles (p=0.05), and triglyceride levels (p<0.001) along with a noticeable trend of significant exercise affecting the concentration of large HDL-C (p=0.06) and IDL-C particles (p=0.007). Limitations to these results predominantly encompassed the fact that the study did not intervene in the specific diets of the participants but rather tracked dietary patterns, which makes it difficult for the researchers to gather conclusions in relation to diet. Similarly, the dietary patterns were gathered via a self-reporting method and thus quantities could have been altered and under-reported which would skew the typical dietary pattern for those involved, and once again make it difficult to draw conclusions about diet and lipid results.15

Physical activity is important for the population’s health, emotional well being and achieving a healthy weight. It has become increasingly clear that a person’s health and well-being are improved by physical activity, as well as by a well-balanced diet (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention & National Centre for Chronic Disease and Health Promotion, 1996). Physical activity and diet are related in order for the human body to be able to cope with the stresses of exercise a well balanced diet with the correct nutrients must be consumed (Coyle, 2000). However, exercise alongside a balanced diet is said to improve weight loss (Kirkwood et al., 2007; Shaw et al., 2006), where as the relationship between different types of diet and performance or between muscle hypertrophy and fat loss is still controversial (Manninen, 2006; Pitsiladis & Maughan, 1999; Wolfe, 2000).