My niece is 15 years old, however to look at her you wouldn’t believe it. I thought she was a grown woman in her late twenties when I first saw her after 10 years. She stands about 5.5 ft tall with bright brown eyes, a beautiful face and weight of about 400 pounds. She may weigh more or she may weigh less but not by much. My heart broke for her when I saw her. I knew she must be in torment. I have been heavy my whole life and I know how cruel kids can be. Society in general can be cruel to the overweight. There are many reasons a person becomes overweight. There are 7 critical reasons why a teen becomes overweight.

1. Low self-esteem

2. Popularity

3. Lack of nutrition in diet

4. Endless supply of junk food

5. Feel good food

6. Bad eating habits

7. Overweight parents

Let’s now combat each of these reasons beginning with the number one reason being Low Self-esteem. Most teens have low self-esteem because they are still at the phase where they are defining who they are. Sometimes they find they don’t like what they see and think others won’t like what they see either. I saw this very clearly in my niece. She didn’t want to participate in the family photos. She would sit off by herself and withdraw from everyone. I would find her and talk to her telling her she was beautiful. She soon began to believe my words and she began to interact with others. This is what we should do for everyone in our lives let them know they have self worth to us. Eventually they will have self self worth for themselves.

Popularity coincides with low self-esteem. If a person feels worthless than they won’t care how they look because they feel no matter what they do it will never be good enough so why bother. To combat this we must tell our youth they are worth something. We must let them know that they matter. We must let them know they are loved. Being popular is not as important as feeling that you matter. This is where fell good foods come into play. We turn to these foods such as chocolate and ice cream because they taste soooo good. Food doesn’t judge you and all are welcome. Once it has you you are hooked.

Lack of nutrition in their diet also plays a big part in contributing to obesity in teens. My niece loves french fries and she eats carbs a lot. To combat this parents must set boundaries in their diets. You must keep healthy snacks on hand. If you are like me and you hate to cook then there are pre-prepared well balanced dinners that are on the market. These dinners such as healthy choice include all you need for a healthy well rounded meal.

Once what was an endless supply of junk food has now changed to include healthy food choices. Restaurants such as McDonalds and Subway have started to include healthy food choices on their menus. This should help combat the bad eating habits of our teens. Now eating on the go can be a healthy choice.

The last and biggest reason for teen obesity is obese parents. A lot of obese parents unknowingly pass their bad eating and abundant eating habits off on their kids. My sister-in-law is a big woman. She looks as if she could weigh 500 pounds. She and my niece like to go out to eat at fast food restaurants and all you can eat buffets. Don’t get me wrong I too enjoy all you can eat buffets. They are great if you have self control, which obviously they don’t.

The bottom line is I love my niece. I want to see her happy and living a long and healthy life. My wanting this for her is not enough. She has got to want this for herself. The weight is not going to fall off by itself. She must make provisions and decisions for herself in order to make a change in her life. She must decide that she is tired of being obese and she must want to do something to change it. Parents who are also obese can decide to make a change in their life too. For teens it is not too late. As parents we must set boundaries for them by limiting their food intake and making sure the food they do eat is healthier. Parents you can exercise with your teen and motivate each other. The key is to never give up.

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