What is teen obesity and how can we tackle it? This parent's guide to teenage obesity examines obesity statistics and the causes and effects of this syndrome. You will find out how to decide whether your teen is at risk of teen obesity and how to tackle the problem.

What Is Obesity?
The body mass index (BMI) is one of the common measures of whether someone is obese or merely overweight. To find out your BMI, divide your weight (in kilograms) by the square of your height (in meters). If your BMI is over 25, you are defined as overweight; if it is over 30, you are defined as obese. These figures give a rough guide, though people can be obese with lower BMI ratios.

Since BMI is meant as a measurement of adult obesity, the standard calculation doesn’t tell the whole story for teens, who have yet to reach their full height. To find out if teens are obese, their BMI is measured against the average for most teens of their age and gender. Since teens are constantly growing, there are also other measures to use in conjunction with BMI. Checking the thickness of the skin at the back of the arm is one measure. You can also compare your teen's weight to the norms on a growth chart.

Facts and Figures
Childhood and teen obesity have reached epidemic proportions in some parts of the world. In America there are now twice as many overweight children as there were in 1980. Among teens, the 1980 obesity figure has tripled. The US Surgeon General's figures suggest that between 1966 and 1991, the rate of obesity in boys ages 12 to 17 increased from 5% to 13%. Among girls, the percentage rose from 5% to 9%. The National Center for Health Statistics puts the 2004 obesity figure at 17% of adolescents between 12 and 17 years old.

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