Deteriorating children’s health isn’t a mystery

Now we have one more to add to the list: high cholesterol. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released the following data for 1999-2006: One in five children age 12-19 have high lipid levels (cholesterol or triglycerides) in their blood. More specifically, abnormal lipids were found in 14 percent of normal weight children, 22 percent of overweight children and 43 percent of obese children. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, one-third of all children are candidates for cholesterol screening.

We know that untreated cholesterol disorders in children are linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease in adulthood. If lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise aren’t followed or don’t work in the little ones, they may eventually be prescribed Lipitor or another cholesterol-lowering drug.

While working as a physician at a summer camp a few summers ago, I was struck by how many children were on prescription medications for all sorts of ailments. Of the 850 children in attendance, more than one-third would line up daily to receive medication they had brought from home - and this was a camp for healthy kids. Medications for anxiety, asthma, gastric problems, blood pressure, blood sugar, skin disorders, and weight issues were handed out three times a day. One night, a girl came to the clinic asking if we had any medication to help her sleep - she was 9. We did not have any such medication. But I was astounded at the number of medications these children, ages 6 to 16, received.

I wondered if this was an example of the pharmaceutical industry exploiting children or if this represented truly necessary medication being prescribed for real disorders. Or was it a sad commentary on the health of our children (and the dependency on prescriptions over prevention) - as well as the overall health of our society? I concluded that maybe all these reasons might be true.

I was equally shocked by the inability of children to do simple exercises without being short of breath. Many could not balance while trying to stand on one leg. Simple requests to hop or rise up on their toes as I examined them were impossible for some of the out-of-shape children. Rolls of fat bulged from beneath T-shirts and extra weight padded their jeans. For many, running down a hill or jumping off a wall (usually wearing flip flops) led to joint sprains, fractures, and dislocations. They often looked happier sitting on the sidelines listening to iPods or eating than taking part in any exercise.

Last fall, while I was hiking up a mountain in New Hampshire, I passed junior high students trudging up a hill with heavy overnight back packs. Only one or two looked strong enough to make it to the top. Many looked so winded and fatigued, I wondered if they were going to collapse.

It is not hard to figure out what is happening to our children’s bodies and why. We know what we are feeding them and exposing them to. We know they should have more exercise and out-of-doors activities and less junk food. But the ½seven and a half hours they spend tethered to an electronic screen each day, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, is most likely reducing their physical conditioning and setting them up for adult diseases. Texting does not build a healthy, strong body.

So what does all of this say about us as adults, as well as our society?

Historically, diseases in children have always served as important indicators of the health of our society at large. Now with such a rash of preventable childhood ailments and “necessary’’ prescription medicines, it seems that the canaries are crying if not dying to tell us an important message about the unsafe conditions of the mine shaft in the world we have created for them.

Terry L. Schraeder, MD, is an internist at Mt. Auburn Hospital and clinical assistant professor at Warren Alpert School of Medicine at Brown University.