Why Kids Need CATCH

The percentage of overweight children in the United States has grown to a point where many experts are calling it an epidemic. Overweight children are at risk for health problems during their youth and as adults. Overweight children and adolescents are more likely to have risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and Type 2 diabetes. Overweight children and adolescents are also more likely to be obese as adults with studies showing approximately 80% of children who were overweight at aged 10–15 years will be obese adults when they reached the age of 25. While there are many factors that have attributed to these alarming trends, we are now faced with the prospect of whole generations being unhealthy which will have dire consequences to our health care system.

We can help prevent obesity with programs like CATCH. Through physical activity, proper nutrition and teaching our children how to be healthy, we can reverse these trends, but only through a long-term and coordinated approach that involves changing the environment in which our kids live. Schools and after-school settings play a critical role in creating these environments to help students adopt a healthy lifestyle. Not only are schools and after-school programs ideal for teaching children how to make healthy choices, they are in many ways the front line in the fight against childhood obesity.