Comments on: Childhood Obesity Doesn’t Need More Money, But Better Education

By: Rob

Rob — Fri, 15 Sep 2006 22:02:00 +0000

This is why acculturation concerning diet is a very serious and very difficult remedy to solve. Assuming that the mainstream buys into the idea of “low-carb”, which I highly doubt, it would take a generation, if not more, before things may improve.

It’s like smoking. There’s been a concerted effort since the 70′s to change the smoking habits of Americans. It didn’t happen overnight, and eventually the children of the children who grew up around heavy smoking have a different view of smoking than say the way smoking was viewed in the 40′s and 50′s.

By: LindaLCforLife

LindaLCforLife — Fri, 15 Sep 2006 21:34:00 +0000

When I was a kid I never exercised, exercise wasn’t emphasized back in the 50s, yet childhood obesity was rare when I was in school then and even in the 60s. I remember the occasional 1 or 2 chubby kids in my classes. When I got home from school, bussed or driven, I sat on the couch and watched TV, didn’t do chores, didn’t participate in sports either. I was never allowed to have a bicycle. I was pretty much just like all the other kids in my area, didn’t have a weight problem and neither did they. I don’t believe the exercise bull*&*x#. The difference was I didn’t grow up on all the garbage kids eat today. They ate a lot more fat and protein back then and lot less carbs. Since then I’ve seen the changes take place in the supermarkets with the high carb, sugar, white flour, processed junk food and fast food places gone up everywhere right in front of my eyes. They built the first McDonalds in the city I grew up in when I was about 10 or so. I ate there maybe twice a year. Just put 2 and 2 together. How hard is it.

By: kesmadia

kesmadia — Fri, 15 Sep 2006 19:52:00 +0000

I have a way to help solve the problem and save money too. WALK TO SCHOOL seriously. i live in a rural area w/wide side walks on all main streets yet every kid is bused to school What the heck, when i was a kid i walked .75-1 mi each way (and this was without real sidewalks)

By: Mary

Mary — Fri, 15 Sep 2006 18:49:00 +0000

I agree that parents need to amend their own diets in order to get their kids to eat healthier. We also need to stop insisting on eating til their plate is clean, or praising our kids for doing “such a good job eating all of their food”. Why do we do this? I watch my mother-in-law do it constantly, insisting that the kids “eat just one more bite” of each thing before they can have their dessert. Wait a minute? Dessert? Oh yeah, she can’t not have dessert, and in turn trained my overweight husband to be the same way, and now she is training her grandchildren the same way. So let me get this straight, they are probably already full from dinner, then she tells them to eat more before dessert, so by now they are exploding, but just keep on eating so they can get that chocolately goodness? The woman has been on a diet for 60 years, and is passing the same fate on to her kids and grandkids. Why don’t we just let kids eat what they feel they need to. They won’t starve themselves, will they? And lets make “dessert” a thing of the past. We don’t need to follow each of our meals with a tasty treat. Why not wait until later, when we might need something to nibble between meals? And then, lets make it some berries, or carrots. Sorry. Venting. I just had dinner at the in-laws last night, and it was driving me nuts!