Alexa T.Dosreis
9/22/2013
Period F
BMI Testing
Many
students worry about their grades on their report cards, social status, where
they measure up to in life. But now students have to worry about a whole new
measurement, their body mass index. Schools
in nineteen states already have started conducting annual tests and the results
are sent home to inform their parents whether or not their child is considered
to be overweight. Some families and health experts have started speaking out
against this testing from worry it will hurt the child’s self-esteem, but
others suggest it’s the best way to know whether a child’s weight is healthy or
not. In today’s society health concerns are at an all-time high, ones physique
is not considered to be healthy if considered to be overweight, and that should
be business that stays between the parents and the physician, not written,
recorded, and determined by the school whether or not the student deserves to
be sent home with a “fat slip”.
The
Body Mass Index test is calculated by dividing their weight by the square of
their height. Next this figure will be compared to growth charts that accounts
for a person’s weight depending on the gender, age, and height of the child. This is done so the results can be understood
when compared to the rest of the students. A child or teen’s BMI that falls
between the 85th and 95th percentile is considered to be
overweight, any above is measured to be obese. Spokesperson for the American
Academy of Pediatrics, Dr. Larne Omojukin Falusi, told ABC News BMI readings are the
“best means we have to determine whether a weight is healthy or unhealthy,”( Medical Daily). This test is effective, but it
should be done in private because this is a very sensitive matter. Students
should not have to endure that uncomfortable moment where they feel belittled
by the judgments passed by their own school, a place where they should feel
comfortable and accepted.
Michelle Obama is also a very
big part in the encouragement of these testing in school. She comments on how
the country needs to watch what they eat, and also discusses her daughters
weight problem as well. She stated on national television, on a show called The
View that her daughter indeed had a weight problem and never once spoke of
herself as having one to. This is why weight should never be a matter of
discussion outside the privacy of the home and parents. Michelle Obama is
always attacking the weight of children; however parents need to teach their
children how to eat properly so that way they will develop good eating habits
at a young age. Education on your weight can be an even more efficient way to
keep your weight down than receiving a “fat slip”.
Schools should take the time to
educate the kids on healthy food choices before they get to the stage of
obesity so no child will ever have to feel insecure about what they are being
perceived as to their peers. Since today’s society is so focused on the health
of the younger generations then it’s necessary to educate them about food and
keep the conversation private so that way when the child is feeling insecure
they have someone who them can reach out to and trust to receive guidance.
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