"Junk food is within the child's reach and budget. And families find it easy and feasible to buy prepared food than cook it. With time, children learn to reject healthy home-cooked meals and demand junk instead," said one concerned mother.
To make matters worse, many fast food companies target children in their marketing campaigns by offering tailored meals and giving away gifts to attract them.
Some parents sometimes reward children with candy and snacks, which encourages bad habits.
"Some people think that obesity is simply a fitness or appearance issue, but it's not. Obesity is a silent killer, because it drags other diseases along," said Dr. Hissa Moammar, who is a fellow at the American Academy of Pediatrics.
She strongly recommends yearly checkups for children. Moammar says that exercise accompanied with a healthy diet is one way to prevent obesity.
"Children need to start their day with a healthy breakfast and should have any kind of sport hobby that they enjoy daily. Kids see their parents as role models and they always want to copy them, so parents should also lead a healthy lifestyle."
Schools play a significant role in children's lives and they should promote morning exercise and healthy food, said Moammar.
However, that is not happening in the Kingdom, as school cafeterias sell fatty food and sugary drinks and children are allowed to have all sorts of candy there.
The World Health Organization has indicated that schoolchildren have a high incidence of diabetes, especially in the Gulf region, because the relatively high standard of living promotes a lack of physical activity and unhealthy eating
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