Includes bibliographical references and index.

The United States is facing a health crisis of epidemic proportions: children are gaining weight more rapidly and at younger ages than ever before. Poised to become the most obese generation of adults in history, today's children are turning up at doctors' offices with an alarming assortment of "grown-up" maladies, from type 2 diabetes to high blood pressure. This book takes a clear-eyed look at what's behind the statistics and diagnoses, and considers what can be done about the major health crisis threatening American children. Sharron Dalton begins with the basics: what obesity is, what causes it, and why it matters. Integrating information from scientific and popular sources, she reviews current diet and exercise recommendations for healthy living, comparing these recommendations with everyday realities experienced by American families. When a third of our children are overweight or likely to become so, it's everyone's problem -- and this book argues for a united approach, promoting the complementary roles of parents, health professionals, and school and community leaders. For each group, Dalton outlines actions to combat the epidemic. She suggests new ways for parents and other adults to respond to children in interactions centered on food and physical activities. And she illuminates a number of issues raised by this epidemic, from the pain of fat discrimination to the economic, social, and political ramifications of widespread obesity among the young. At once authoritative and nontechnical, compassionate but no-nonsense, Our Overweight Children is a welcome prescription for treating the most dire problem threatening our children's health and our nation's future.

SACFinal081324