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Thursday, October 3, 2013
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COMBATING CHILDHOOD OBESITY n PART ONE OF THREE
Shutdown stalemate still going White House meeting yields no agreement By DAVID ESPO
Day 2 details
The Associated Press
Photos by Monica Maschak – mmaschak@shawmedia.com
Nathan Knight, 6, runs through an inflatable obstacle course during Healthy Kids Day on April 27 at the Kishwaukee Family YMCA. The event was for kids in the county to get up and moving as part of a national YMCA movement to promote active lifestyles for children. It’s one of many programs or activities offered by DeKalb County organizations and schools as they take steps to ensure local children are living healthy lives.
HOW TO KEEP CHILDREN FIT? Communities struggle with issue of overweight youth By CHRIS BURROWS news@daily-chronicle.com and SHAWN SHINNEMAN sshinneman@shawmedia.com Land of the free. Home of the glutton. America’s appetite for excess has reached its children, and the consequences threaten to be devastating. Within Illinois and across the country, the issue has gone from troubling to downright alarming. The problem of obesity itself is both straightforward and complex – stripped down to an individual level, the solution is simply to eat healthier and increase exercise. Yet experts know that to turn the trend around, they need to understand and alter how the fitness level of children is influenced by forces like parents, schools and society. In simple terms, a child with excess body fat is considered overweight or obese. Doctors take several factors into consideration – including weight, age, height and gender – to determine whether a child fits one of those categories. A child well
Molly Fell (center), 5, looks to her sister, Anna Fell, 7, while they learn Zumba moves in a Zumbatomic demonstration class April 27 during Healthy Kids Day at the Kishwaukee Family YMCA. The event featured educational and physical activities such as games for families, bounce houses and a bike rodeo. above the normal weight for his or her age and height is considered obese, according to the Mayo Clinic. In 1980, U.S. children ages 6 to 11 and 12 to 19 had obesity rates of 7 percent and 5 percent, respectively. By 2010, obesity rates in both age groups had increased to 18 percent, according to a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association. That study also found
that about a third of children ages 2 to 19 were considered overweight or obese in 2010, compared to about 69 percent of adults. The effects are serious and widespread, and there might be no better illustration of obesity’s rapid incline and the corresponding detriment to health than an observation in a 2005 study in The New
FIGHT
TOBEFIT ABOUT THE SERIES Children in the U.S. today face the possibility that they will live shorter lives than their parents. Changes in American society, from increased portion sizes to foods with little nutritional value to technological devices of all kinds that discourage physical activity, have led to an estimated one-third of children and adolescents being considered overweight or obese. The Daily Chronicle presents a three-day series on childhood obesity and its effects on our children.
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama brought congressional leaders to the White House on Wednesday for the first time since a partial government shutdown began, but there was no sign of progress toward ending an impasse that has idled 800,000 federal workers and curbed services around the country. The standoff continued after a White House summit with chief executives as financial leaders and Wall Street urged a resolution before serious damage is done to the U.S. and world economy. Obama “refuses to negotiate,” House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, told reporters after private talks that lasted more than an hour. “All we’re asking for here is a discussion and fairness for the American people under Obamacare.” But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada said moments later, “We’re locked in tight on Obamacare,” and
• The Republican-controlled House approved legislation to reopen the nation’s parks and the National Institutes of Health. But the bills face dim prospects in the Senate. • An attempt by Democrats to force shutdown-ending legislation to the House floor failed on a 227-197 vote, with all Republicans in opposition.
See SHUTDOWN, page A5
Casey’s to open this month in north Sycamore By FELIX SARVER
“We realize that’s the only place to buy gas and food items north of the city – until people get to Genoa or Burlington – so we think they will do very well.” – Ken Mundy, Sycamore mayor
fsarver@shawmedia.com
n Today: The root causes of childhood obesity n Friday: Obese children risk physical, mental health issues n Saturday: Tips to make the whole family healthier
SYCAMORE – A new Casey’s General Store on Sycamore’s north side has a city-issued liquor license and is expected to open Oct. 17. Sycamore officials approved a Class F liquor license for the store at 105 Plank Road. It will offer an expanded coffee bar, beer and made-toorder submarine sandwich operation. The store’s liquor license allows it to sell beer and wine for consumption off the store’s premises. Casey’s General Stores Inc., headquartered in Ankeny, Iowa, expects to have beer available for sale Oct. 17, said Brian Johnson, vice president of finance for the company.
ONLINE Visit the “Real Nutrition” blog at Daily-Chronicle. com for suggested healthy meals to feed to your kids
INSIDE Learn how to determine your child’s weight status. Page A6
See OVERWEIGHT, page A6
See CASEY’S, page A2
Inside today’s Daily Chronicle Lottery Local news Obituaries
A2 A3-4 A4
National and world news Opinions Sports
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