Childhood obesity continues to be a serious problem in the United States and around the world. According to Evans et al. in the article Changing Perceptions of the ChildhoodObesity Epidemic, obesity is a leading cause of preventable death in the United States and costs billions of dollars annually in health care costs. Their article discussed a study in which the attitudes of adults in the United States were investigated, as well as participants' thoughts on the best ways to reduce childhood obesity. According to MacDougall et al in the article We Have To Live in the Future, getting children to increase their levels of physical activity is the key to reducing childhood obesity. They conducted a study of 204 children living in South Australia which attempted to answer two questions: what do children think about sport and physical activity; and how do they express these thoughts to adults. They conducted the study using several methods: focus groups, interviews, and allowing children to take photos related in some way to physical activity. The study concluded that it is important and necessary to give children a voice in determining how they engage in physical activities. activity. The children participating in the study were happy that their voices were heard. They overwhelmingly expressed that they enjoyed playing according to their own ideas, as opposed to the more organized sports and activities that adults tend to view as physical activity. Vickii B. Jenvey, in her article The Relationship Between Television Viewing and Obesity in Young Children: A Review of Explanations, points out that studies show that children spend more time in sedentary leisure activities, such as watching television, playing video games, ...... middle of paper ...... ppen during the night, but following these recommendations, progress can begin to be made. Works Cited Evans, WD, Renaud, JM, Finkelstein, E., Kamerow, DB and Brown, DS (2006). Changing perceptions of the childhood obesity epidemic. American Journal of Health Behavior, 30, 167-176. doi:10.5993/AJHB.30.2.6Jenvey, VC (2007). The relationship between television viewing and obesity in young children: a review of existing explanations. Early Childhood Development and Care, 177(8), 809-820. doi:10.1080/03004430601119851MacDougall, C., Schiller, W., & Derbyshire, P. (2004). We must live in the future. Early Childhood Development and Care, 174(4), 369-387. doi: 10.1080/0300443032000153426 Signorielli, N. and Lears, M. (1992). Television and childhood conceptions of nutrition: unhealthy messages. Health Communication, 4, 245-257. doi: 10.1207/s15327027hc0404_1