Research, though sometimes confusing and construed to fit the whims of the day, can be very helpful in piecing together the puzzle that is childhood obesity today.

One such piece of research released this month in the American Journal of Public Health (February 2010, Vol 100, No. 2 | American Journal of Public Health 334-340 © 2010) has shed light on the link between childhood obesity and the exposure to TV food commercials.

In this particular study, it was the exposure to and influence of TV commercial content, not the “couch potato” (sedentary activity) effect of watching TV, that was a significant influence on the increase in BMI over time.  How can TV food commercials impact childhood obesity in such a profound way?

Researchers believe that the TV advertising had the significant effect of influencing food preferences – especially among the younger (0-6 year old) children in the study.  It was concluded that the more TV commercials (for sweetened cereals, junk food and fast food chains) viewed, the more likely the child will want to try the food.  And we all know what happens once a child tries a colorful, sweet or highly palatable salty-crunchy food …

“… much of the food we’re eating–this trifecta of fat, sugar, and salt–stimulates us.  And we now see from the science–this highly palatable food is excessively activating the neural circuitry of our brains.  We now know… the reason we keep on eating is because of this sustained stimulation.” Dr. David Kessler, pediatrician, former FDA commissioner, former dean of the Yale & UCSF medical schools, author of The End of Overeating: Why a chocolate chip cookie has such power over us- Fat, Sugar, Salt and the Brain

… they always want more.

Thanks again to First Lady Michelle Obama for keeping childhood obesity at the forefront of the national news.  Although Colorado is perceived at the “healthiest state”, today’s Denver Post article : “Obesity plan feels at home in Colo.” points out that the number of obese children in Colorado climbed from 48,000 in 2003 to 72,000 in 2007!  The end is not in sight.  There’s still a great deal of work to do on every front.  Obama’s four-part campaign includes serving healthier food in schools, increasing the access to and affordability of healthier foods, encouraging physical activity among the nation’s children… and my personal passion… helping parents make better food choices.  I feel privileged to be “in the trenches” of the childhood obesity epidemic.  To sit across the table from a family and see them make eye-opening discoveries about the foods that are going into their bodies is so rewarding.  It is not easy to motivate a young teen who cannot yet feel the effects of their elevated cholesterol and borderline blood sugar readings – yet I do it, because their future is at stake.  Parents, educators, nutrition professionals, legislators and childhood advocates must continue to lock arms and do what is necessary, though sometimes challenging, to help the nation’s children be more fit from the inside-out!