The increasing rates of childhood obesity
With children spending more time living a sedentary lifestyle indoors rather than spending more time playing outdoors, it is no surprise to see an increasing trend of childhood obesity in recent times. Just in the last four decades, the rates of childhood obesity more than tripled from 5% in 1978 to up to 18.5% in 2016.
Of course, the rates of obesity could be attributed to unhealthy eating behaviors, however, we cannot ignore that such levels of obesity are compounded and worsened due to the reduced outdoor activity time for children. Children are also seen to be spending less time outdoors because they are studying for tests, resulting in 50% of school-age children in the US being overweight. Other studies generally show that the more screen time a child experiences per week on their electronic devices (computer, television, or videogames), the higher their body fat count.
Obesity occurring at such a young age could turn into serious long-term physical health risks, such as hypertension, coronary heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, respiratory problems, stroke, and even some cancers. It could even be possible that the effects of nature deficit disorder could lead to the younger generations having a shorter life span than their parents because of these long-term health risks starting so early in their lives.