While you'll hear a number of explanations for the current problem, often they are blanket statements that really don't offer much help to families that are actually trying to do something about this problem. Yes, people eat unhealthily. Yes, kids are more sedentary today than they were 15 years ago, but what is really causing these things to happen? Identifying the roots of the causes is the only way to take steps in the right direction.

First, the world is simply not as safe as it was 15 years ago....or at least our perception is that it isn't. When I was growing up, our afternoons were spent running around the neighborhood, playing games, and having fun. We didn't realize it, but we were also exercising during all of this play. Today, so many parents are scared of the outside world that many kids do not spend enough time running around outside. Instead, parents encourage them to stay inside where they feel safer and they sit on the couch and play video games or watch TV.

Second, the boom of "information age" has exposed more and more people to more and more advertising and marketing gimmicks than ever before. Next time you're watching TV with your kids, make a note of the commercials that are on TV and think about the messages that they are sending to your child. When was the last time you saw an ice cream commercial that had a kid in it eating an appropriately sized ice-cream cone? Probably never - they're usually bigger than the kid's head!

So, how do you deal with these things? The key is to find creative and fun ways for your child to exercise where you feel they are safe and to get your child eating healthier. Team sports are a great way to get your kid involved, but they also create problems of their own. They are seasonal and usually only take a couple of hours each week, which isn't enough exercise. Instead, work with other parents to arrange times for each parent to keep and eye on a group of kids at the park or something similar.

You can also get your child involved in a fitness or weight loss camp over the summer. These camps are great for a number of reasons. First, they separate children from both of the issues discussed above by putting them in a safe environment free from the pressures of the world. Beyond that, they show the kids numerous ways to have fun exercising and teach them how to choose healthy foods to eat.

There really is not much you can do to control the advertising and information that your child is exposed to. Sure, you can control their TV time, but they will still be exposed in one way or another. However, you can control what your child eats and this is all you have to do. One of the most successful things that you can do is to begin eating all of your meals as a family, seating around the table. This will allow you to monitor how much and what your kid eats and will enable you to plan meals that are healthier.