New Research Reveals Overweight Teens Get Bad Grades
There are many dangers that can come from being an overweight or obese teenager, including the risk of developing chronic conditions like heart disease, Type-2 diabetes and stroke.
However, new research indicates that teens suffering from obesity might be at risk for acquiring more than just poor health, but lower school grades as well.
According to Dr. Antonio Convit, professor of psychiatry and medicine at NYU School of Medicine, children struggling with obesity may have lower grades than children with a normal weight, which could ultimately lead to subpar professional achievements for them later in life.
In a study of more than 100 teenagers, with almost half of them being either overweight or obese, researchers analyzed the aptitudes of the participating students after applying some fine-tuning in regards to their age, gender and cultural differences.
What they found was that teens who were overweight had poor language and math skills. Brain scans revealed lower levels of activity in that part of the brain that assists with a person’s ability to remember new information, as well as showed that the overweight participants seemed to have lower attention spans and higher levels of cerebrospinal fluid, with the contention that teens with higher metabolic health risks seemed to have more difficulty learning.
Dr. Convit says that it is imperative to take obesity and physical activity in our children more seriously because it is apparent that just being overweight is affecting their young brains.