Let's talk childhood obesity....

[Nerissa]

it is all about education. Many parents in todays society lack the education. A good friend of mine goes into schools and teaches the kids about fresh fruits/veggies and healthier options. You would be amazed at what the kids do not know and have never been exposed to. The last one she did was on cantaloupe. The kids had no idea what it was.

My DH went and had lunch with our oldest at school and he came home and said he was so saddened by what many of the kids brought from home for lunch (not the actual school lunch) he said one kid pulled out a bag of dorritos, candy bar and a fruit by the foot. that was his lunch.

[crazyeyesmcgee]

Originally Posted by Kiliki I agree with this. I think it comes from the evolution of food and how our culture views it. It used to be that green beans were healthy. They were fresh and green and good for you. Now we have green beans in a can w/sodium and interesting chemicals. How come they aren't healthy? It used to be that meat was MEAT. Meat was healthy for you, it came from a healthy animal, on a small farm, where it was fed grass. Now we have meat that is mass-produced, animals that live in their own feces and are diseased. It's hard for people to think about things like this, to understand HOW the food industry has changed in the past 60-70 yrs.. My mom is like this. She is completely clueless. I was raised on pop tarts, cereals, canned foods. Now that I am adult, and I turn my nose up to the food options my mom has at her house, I OFTEN hear things like, "What? It's a pop tart! It's just bread and jam, like a PBJ sandwich!" No, no, it is very much UNLIKE a PBJ sandwich. .... or, "What? It's just Vienna Sausage! It's meat, it's protein, it's GOOD for you!" .... again... No. Just, no. It's not GOOD for you. My mom is totally baffled by the idea of eating half a plate of veggies and a quarter plate of meat. When I grew up, each person got a HUGE chicken breast all to themselves to eat, or two chicken thighs, or three drumsticks, ONE spoonful of a canned veggie, and ONE spoonful of some quick and easy rice from a box ---- and my mom really TRULY thinks this is a HEALTHY way to eat. If I'd never learned more about overall health, and HOW to eat healthy, I would be feeding my kids the exact same way. I think the overall society we live does not place a high enough priority on vegetables and fruits being a HUGE portion of our diets. Fruit snacks are not fruit. Fruit juice is not fruit. Canned fruit is a sorry excuse for fruit. A fresh, raw pc of fruit is FRUIT. Same for veggies.

I think this pretty much sums up my thoughts. Very well said.

[crazyeyesmcgee]

Originally Posted by Nerissa My DH went and had lunch with our oldest at school and he came home and said he was so saddened by what many of the kids brought from home for lunch (not the actual school lunch) he said one kid pulled out a bag of dorritos, candy bar and a fruit by the foot. that was his lunch.

[DesertRat]

Originally Posted by Nerissa You would be amazed at what the kids do not know and have never been exposed to. The last one she did was on cantaloupe. The kids had no idea what it was.

DH used to teach in an inner-city school where they ate in-class snacks. Thankfully they were fairly healthy snacks, but he said when they brought plums in the kids weren't sure how to eat them.

[JennTheMomma]

I agree with what has been said. It's a lot of things. Many parents are uneducated about proper nutrition, how to read a lable, etc. I also think that the mainstream food industry has taken our food away from being real/normal/etc. Then you also have many families having either a 2 working family household or a single parent home. School lunches in many areas are seriously lacking as well, and then the cost of food. Many can not spend much on weekly/monthly groceries, so they have to settle for less than healthy foods because that is what they can afford.

I find it all sad

[DesertRat]

Also, a few years ago I watched a documentary about the poverty in the Appalachian mountains. There was family who put Pepsi in the toddler's bottle because it was cheaper than milk. Another lady complained that her food stamp benefits only covered enough to buy meat each month. I couldn't help but think of all the really healthy foods that are so much cheaper than meat! (like beans!)

While it's really sad that so many people are completely ignorant about nutrition, I don't think it's the government's responsibility to educate people. We need to take responsibility for ourselves, educate ourselves, and then make better choices. Even when we were dirt-poor when DH was in school, we ate healthy and I learned to make a lot of stuff from scratch. I look back fondly on those years because I learned a lot!

[JennTheMomma]

The education *is* out there, you just have to find it. Many great documentaries on Netflix, the internet, books, even free dieticians in food stores, your Doctor, some communities do a garden or other free food information programs.

[DesertRat]

Originally Posted by JennTheMomma Many can not spend much on weekly/monthly groceries, so they have to settle for less than healthy foods because that is what they can afford.

I don't think this is necessarily true though. I read a blog that was talking about the price of cereals, for example. Ounce for ounce they are SO MUCH more expensive than buying regular grains, like oatmeal or cracked wheat. Sure, they take more time to prepare, but they are cheaper and a lot healthier than the stuff in the cereal aisle.

Also, some of your ready-to-cook meals like Rice-a-roni or pasta where you just add water (those instant-type meals) can be made cheaper if you buy plain rice or pasta and add your own seasonings. It takes more work, but again, it's cheaper.

[JennTheMomma]

Originally Posted by DesertRat I don't think this is necessarily true though. I read a blog that was talking about the price of cereals, for example. Ounce for ounce they are SO MUCH more expensive than buying regular grains, like oatmeal or cracked wheat. Sure, they take more time to prepare, but they are cheaper and a lot healthier than the stuff in the cereal aisle. Also, some of your ready-to-cook meals like Rice-a-roni or pasta where you just add water (those instant-type meals) can be made cheaper if you buy plain rice or pasta and add your own seasonings. It takes more work, but again, it's cheaper.

I think it's regional. Where I live store brand cereal is generally a dollar cheaper than store brand oatmeal, or an oatmeal that isn't instant (non instant is really expensive). Store brand pop tarts are also super cheap compared to a granola bar or something like that. Also most people here are trying to get more for their buck, so usually it's all store brand stuff, boxed, frozen and canned. I don't buy those things, but I use to be an independent BF counselor for WIC and most of the families I saw at only store brand, really cheap food that had very little nutrition in it.

[ajane]

I just don't understand how people need to educate themselves on nutrition to prevent their kids from being overweight.

How do us parents fail so bad at being so ignorant on what we should be feeding our children?

How can a parent send a bag of doritos, fruit by the foot, and a candy bar and thin that is a lunch for a child?

I'm just baffled.

We are not a non junk house. The kids get McD's once a week, however they don't get fries. DD2 is the only one who actually likes them, so we let her have a few....meaning 5-8. We do eat somewhat healthy, only whole grains, lean protein, fresh fruits and veggies, dairy. We do limit sweets and treats and the kids can have chips with their lunch at home (we don't send them to school), but they get 4 or 5 chips. We teach them moderation. They do get lots of exercise though.

We only buy whole grain breads, pastas, cereals. I can't imagine giving them white bread or white starches. When we have a potato they always get sweet potato. In fact, since they have never had white potatoes they don't even like them....baked, mashed, ect.

The last episode of BL, the one obese child said he played video games 9-12 hours a day. HOW do his parents let that happen? I.just.don't.understand.