Metabolic protection and habit formation in adolescents: Overcoming misconceptions about intergenerational care and the value of early exercise intervention

Long-term unhealthy eating habits are a major cause of childhood obesity. Many only children, in addition to overeating, prefer fried foods, sweets, meats, and sugary drinks-high-fat, high-calorie foods-while consuming too few fruits and vegetables. Young parents often lack the time to care for their children, leaving them in the care of grandparents, who may even feed them. Studies have found that children raised by grandparents are more prone to obesity. It is crucial to educate grandparents about scientific childcare and proper nutrition, and to raise awareness of the dangers of obesity, especially the harm it poses to growth, development, and health in children and adolescents.

For children and adolescents in their growth and development stage, energy metabolism should be in a positive balance, meaning that energy intake should appropriately exceed energy expenditure. However, if calorie intake far exceeds the body's expenditure, the excess calories will be stored in the body as fat, leading to weight gain and eventually obesity. Numerous studies have found that childhood and adolescent obesity increases the risk of obesity in adulthood. 75% to 80% of obese adolescents remain obese as adults, and adolescent obesity increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes in adulthood, significantly increasing the risk of hypertension, fatty liver, atherosclerosis, and coronary heart disease.

Teenage students typically have heavy academic burdens, with long hours spent in class and doing homework, leaving little time for dedicated exercise and weight loss during the regular school year. Summer and winter vacations, however, present the optimal time for obese teenagers to engage in systematic exercise and weight loss. A regular daily schedule should be established, with two sessions each day dedicated to planned exercise for at least three hours. Consistency is key to success. Participating in a fully enclosed summer camp organized by a relevant organization is highly recommended, as it not only helps achieve weight loss goals but also cultivates healthy eating and lifestyle habits.

In our interventions for obesity through exercise, we often find that some obese adolescents, although not meeting the diagnostic criteria for metabolic syndrome due to their age, still exhibit hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and hyperinsulinemia. While most obese adolescents have fasting blood glucose levels within the normal range, they are often at the upper limit, suggesting a predisposition to metabolic syndrome. In 2013, we treated a 12-year-old obese boy who had already been diagnosed with hypertension and type 2 diabetes. After 28 days of exercise and weight loss, all indicators showed significant improvement except for a persistently high fasting insulin level.

Obesity is a key factor in the development of metabolic syndrome. Even in adolescence, obesity can lead to insulin resistance and disordered glucose and lipid metabolism, making metabolic syndrome highly likely. During summer camp, obese adolescents not only exercise to lose weight but also undergo appropriate dietary control to cultivate a healthy lifestyle. Numerous studies have confirmed that obese adolescents who engage in exercise and proper dietary control show a significant improvement in their tendency to develop metabolic syndrome.

Compared with obese adults over 40 years of age with metabolic syndrome, obese adolescents, after appropriate exercise and dietary intervention, showed faster improvement in metabolic syndrome as their obesity level decreased. Through intervention, the degree of obesity decreased, and blood indicators showed significant improvement. Early intervention is of great significance for promoting the health of obese adolescents. Moderate-intensity, long-duration aerobic exercise can significantly improve leptin resistance in obese patients, and the combination of exercise and dietary control has a particularly significant effect on improving insulin and leptin resistance.

Early exercise intervention is crucial for adolescents with obesity to reduce the incidence of metabolic syndrome in adulthood. A fully enclosed exercise program, through participation in fun group physical activities, can gradually reverse negative psychological states and foster a confident, cheerful, optimistic, and socially integrated mindset.