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Web Edition > July/August/September 2011 > Health: What to Do
about Childhood Obesity?   What to Do about Childhood Obesity?
Changes in patterns of eating and playing are shaping today's
youth in unhealthy ways, but reversing the process is simple and
achievable  Over the past three decades, childhood obesity rates
in America have tripled, and today nearly one in three children
in America is overweight or obese. In Europe, around one in five
children is overweight, and one-third of those are obese. How
did we get here?  I remember growing up in India: we walked or
biked to school; we had three recesses a day, a lunch break when
we all ate from our lunch boxes and two small breaks to just get
out on the grounds and play. After arriving home, eating a warm
snack prepared by our mothers and finishing homework, everyone
was out of the house to play with friends until being called
back for supper. It's certainly not the same for children
growing up i