U.S. Teems with Obese Teens in Technological Era

BARRY CHEUNG
Staff Writer

One of the nation’s largest health problems is obesity, which currently affects American children at an increased rate.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), obesity rates among teenage boys rose from 14 percent between 1999 to 2000 to 18.6 percent between 2009 to 2010. In addition, the CDC mentions that almost 17 percent of children and adolescents are currently either obese, while the number increases to over 33 percent in adults.

“There is a paradigm shift with people’s interests. With electronic devices here, people […] are being too involved in their video games,” school nurse Anita Man said.

According to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, more than two hours of electronic use, such as watching television, has been linked to causing individuals to becoming overweight or obese. In addition, NBC News states that for every 10 percent increase in what a country spends on information and communications technology, there is a corresponding 1 percent increase in obesity rates. In the U.S., that 1 percent translates roughly into 4.2 million people.

“With the increasing dependency on technology, teens spend more time on technology than on exercising,” sophomore Samantha Li said.