Childhood obesityhas increased dramatically in many countries and become a situation for concern. For example, in the U.S., according to the latest childhood obesity statistics from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, an estimated 16 percent of children and adolescents ages 6-19 years are overweight.
In the U.K., the government has set aside £372 million to reverse the rising trend of obesity with the initial focus on children by helping them to have healthy lifestyles.
Obesity causes the occurrence of some diseases such as insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension, obstructive sleep apnea and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (fatty liver).
In addition, obesity can handicap a child physically and socially. Peers are often cruel in their ridicule of an overweight child. Thus they usually have poor self esteem. And according to some findings, overweight children have a 70% chance of becoming overweight adults.
Childhood obesity is caused by a number of risk factors. These include the following:
· Nutrition - many overweight children are eating oversized portions. In addition, many of them eating wrong foods such as high-fat, high calorie junk foods. They also take sugar-containing beverages such as soda and other high calorie drinks. As a result, even though obese children are overweight, many of them are poorly nourished.
· Learn from family behaviors (as when all family members overeat).
· Sedentary environments - a lack of physical activity. For example, watching TV or playing games all the time.
· Sleep - Not getting enough sleep which increases the risk of childhood obesity.
· Genetics - a family history of obesity.
· Some body malfunction (such as underactive thyroid).
Although we can't change genetics nor some body malfunction by ourselves, we can work on changing some other risk factors that we can control. We can encourage healthy eating and guide the children to choose healthy food to eat. Most importantly, we have to set as a role model not to overeat and eat healthily ourselves.
Because adolescents frequently rebel against having someone supervise their eating or control them what to eat, they should be given a great deal of nutritional information instead. If they can understand what they should eat and why, the chance that they take healthy diet would be higher.
Then how does hypnosis play a role here? If obesity is due to bad eating habits, hypnosis can help to build healthy eating behaviors. As mind controls our body and behaviors, if our mind can guide us to the proper and healthy way of eating, we would then have the weight we desire without any of the side effects.
Under the hypnotic state, the suggestions go directly to our subconscious mind, which is more powerful than our conscious mind. And so if the suggestions related to our eating habits go straightly to our subconscious level, the change would take place more effectively and permanently.
