Stuart is among the approximately 15 percent of children between the ages of 6 and 19 who are overweight or obese -- a 10 percent increase since the 1970s.

For many overweight children and teens, their physical health and well-being is the least of their problems. Much more relevant is the teasing, taunting and poor treatment they receive from other children at school and in the community. And for many, it’s not only how others think of them, but how they think of themselves. A sizable percentage of overweight kids – particularly girls – are clinically depressed as a result of a preoccupation with being overweight.

Teenagers require a healthful, balanced diet in order to continue to grow. Many studies report that frequent dieting by adolescents not only inhibits growth, but also appears to result in weight gain over the long term. Diets made for adults, such as the South Beach Diet, The Zone Diet, Atkins Diet, and other popular diets may mean you aren't getting the right nutrition that a growing young adult needs.

"When I came into treatment, I really didn't want to be here at all -- not just not in therapy; I wanted to be dead. The prospect of being teased for being fat every day of my life just made me shut down emotionally. I went through the motions but my grades were poor and I was just plain numb most of the time. No one really knew how awful it was. Not even me."