Are our kids going to be ok?

[ladycollector]

My kids eat their share of junk. They have ice cream every night, eat crap for lunch at the babysitters house, etc. BAD, BAD, BAD, but they have great genes and both are slim. They are not slim because of anything I did. BUT, if they were not blessed with their wonderful metabolisms, I would do something about it. They would not be eating out of a can of frosting at the store.

So its okay for your kids to eat bad, BUT since they're slim, it doesn't matter. But if another kid eats the same diet, and is chubby, he is NOT healthy!!

Almost all kids eat bad today, really bad. I see it all the time. Kudos to you parents whose kids eat healthy foods most of the time. It is a hard thing to inforce. All I am saying is that it is wrong to single out the chubby child on the left as having "bad eating habits", but the slender child on the right has great eating habits. When in fact they might have exactly the same diet.

A friend of ours has a slightly chubby 13 yo dd, and a super slim 10 yo ds. They are always together, and eat almost the same things (of course sometimes kids choose dif things) and still the 13 yo remains chubby. Who knows why, but I guess the 10yo is healthier..

Just because on some kids it doesn't show, doesn't mean they aren't eating a buncha junk food.

They are all eating a bad diet and that is what we should be worried about, not cosmetics.

PS- I am not referring to obese kids, I am talking about the kids who are called "fat" because they are a little bigger. 1-2 sizes bigger. Obese children need special help, but most of the kids I see arent obese they are just chubbier. I also feel for this generation because it is not really their fault. And we are all in this together and I am in no way here to start an argument or be mean spirited. This is just a sore subject with me because of the 13yo girl who is told by her "friends" and piers that she shouldnt be eating those chips but there is her brother eating a push popcicle AND a bag of chips right beside her. What kind of messages does that send her?

 

[tw1nsmom]

I think it's very important for parents to teach their children good eating/exercise habits. However, it's more important that we teach our children to not judge others by their appearance and that it's not okay to tease/criticize others about their weight. I know from personal experience what it does to a child's self-esteem to be teased about their weight. Looking back at pictures of myself, I wasn't thin, but I wasn't exactly fat. However, after being told numerous times that I was too fat to be good at sports I stopped trying and actually did become fat (it's something I'm finally getting a handle on). Had others encouraged me as a child instead of judging me I may have stayed/become fit through exercise. Even if you aren't directly criticizing overweight children, your kids may pick up from you and the media that heavy children are tragic and pathetic. I'm sure you'd be shaking your head if you saw my DD. She is a technically overweight, extremely beautiful child. She is also in physical therapy for poor muscle tone,extremely loose joints(can hyperextend her knees very easily) and poor balance (these are developmental delays due to being premature). She has always found certain physical activities more difficult than other children her age and is already avoiding participating in them. Through her therapy strengthening her muscles and DH and I encouraging her and telling her how beautiful and strong she is, she is starting to participate in more activities and has managed to maintain her current weight for eight months. There is no way of knowing all this by looking at her, but please don't label her a tragic overweight child with lazy parents. Concentrate on your own children's emotional, moral, and physical well being instead.

 

[Rutt and Tuke]

Originally posted by Dan Murphy
I always was 'large boned'.

I used to be large boned.

But we broke up and then I lost some weight.

 

[Christine]

Originally posted by ladycollector
So its okay for your kids to eat bad, BUT since they're slim, it doesn't matter. But if another kid eats the same diet, and is chubby, he is NOT healthy!!

Uhhhh, where did I say it was okay??? I was trying to point out that I am NOT a perfect parent. I am just very lucky that my kids have not turned into blobs because of my imperfect parenting skills. I doubt that they are any healthier than the chunky kid, but they are "LUCKY" as I stated.

And yes, I do feel bad that they don't have the perfect diet. I could do better. But I do insure that the actual meals I feed them are good. They do not eat Pop-Tarts for breakfast or sugared cereals. It is either oatmeal, shredded wheat, eggs, and the occasional homemade pancake--despite the fact that I'm on the run to get to work in the morning. Lunch is a wild card while they are at daycare. Predominantly, their daycare provider makes them frozen pizza, bagel bites, pizza bowls (what the heck are those), hot pockets, etc. I would never serve this at home. Their dinners are a meat and two vegetables--sometimes of which they grudgingly eat. My biggest sin is that I let them have dessert every night. Either a bowl of Breyer's Ice Cream, a popsicle, etc. and they have a glass of soda each day.

Now, that is not a fabulous diet. But I KNOW it is better than the Pop-Tart kids, the cocoa puffs, and the doughnuts that many children eat. While I realize the individual metabolism plays a role in weight gain, it does not account for the large numbers of overweight children out there.

 

[CEDmom]

Gee, I'm glad you weren't in Las Vegas when we were on vacation to see that one day DD mostly ate cookies, chips and ice cream. She never gets to indulge like that when we're at home. Yes, she's a tiny thing but that doesn't really matter from a nutrition stand point.

My nephew is on the chunky side but he gets lots of exercise and eats a pretty healthy diet.

Unless you see children truely being abused/neglected maybe you should just worry about your own family. I bet none of us could stand up to the judgement of others.

 

[PatriciaH]

A lot of junk food is not good for thin people either I like those cholesterol commericals with the in shape person with really high cholesterol-you never know! However-when I was growing up (born 1970) we had one overweight child in our class-just a few in the whole school. You look at old movies, tv shows, etc.. no one was out of shape. We were watching the Walt Disney Studios and Disneyland USA (Disney Treasures) DVD's and everyone was in shape! Even people just walking around in the background (100's of folks.) What has happened!?

 

[CEDmom]

Originally posted by PatriciaH
A lot of junk food is not good for thin people either I like those cholesterol commericals with the in shape person with really high cholesterol-you never know! However-when I was growing up (born 1970) we had one overweight child in our class-just a few in the whole school. You look at old movies, tv shows, etc.. no one was out of shape. We were watching the Walt Disney Studios and Disneyland USA (Disney Treasures) DVD's and everyone was in shape! Even people just walking around in the background (100's of folks.) What has happened!?

I agree with you on this to a point. Although probably just as many people were having heart attacks etc in the 1970's as they are today but they were generally slimmer. Being is shape is another matter entirely. What has happened is several things some that come to mind are food establishments/manufacturers serving much bigger portions, schools not having PE as frequently, children not being able to run around their neighborhood as they once did, families relying more on takeout/fast food because of time constraints.

 

[jinxed]

I want to first comment about the poster who mentioned that when we were younger we would be out all day playing until the street lights came on. How true! But nowadays, both parents need to work or like my situation, I am a single mother and I have to work. I don't like my kids to go out unless I am home. They are 10 and 12, very mature, but I still worry. Other kids may have to be at a babysitters and aren't given the choice to go out and play.

Because of the active lifestyles of both parents, it is more difficult to always feed healthy food to our children.

My 10 yr old is slightly overweight, but for her, it's not the junk food that does it. She just loves to eat and overdoes it. She doesn't distinguish between full and "over full". We have talked to her doctor about this and she said that my daughter isn't listening to her body's on/off switch. I feel this is true, but it's also a bad habit that my daughter got into that when she isn't doing something, EAT.

My 2 older children are such picky eaters and always have been, I would talk to the doctors about them over the years to make sure they were getting all the nutrition that they needed and was always told they are fine. My only mistake was after having two kids that didn't eat, along came the 3rd who loved to eat, I was like "wow, I finally have a kid that eats." So I think I may have helped create the problem by not refusing her food when I should have known she was full. But again, it wasn't junk food, it was seconds on meals, or even an extra meal.

 

[Cinders]

You can't just blame parents for bad eating habits when schools are adding to the problem. In the elementary school the teachers teach the kids about the food pyramid, which is good. But when the kids go to lunch there is a separate line for the junkfood. Everything from "good" candy bars to ice cream to bags of chips.

 

[disykat]

I don't worry about junk food on vacation. I do worry about the number of children who eat junk food daily - whether they are fat or skinny. I also agree that school lunches are a huge culprit, as well as vending machines in schools and teachers that give candy as rewards.

 

[mom2boys]

schools are adding to the problem

So true. At my children's elementary school, corn chips & "cheese" sauce is considered an entree.

 

[jinxed]

Up until last year, my son's high school had soda vending machines! I couldn't believe it. I guess too many parents complained and they replaced the soda with water and fruit juice drinks. Now all the students are complaining. I explained to my son the good reasons that they did that and all he said was that he was glad that he was graduating. I can't believe they had soda in the school to begin with.

 

[Lewski709]

I don't worry about what other people's kids are eating.

The comment on playing outside all day and all night can't be used. I am not living in the same house I grew up in, so the circumstances are totally different. If I were living there, my kids could play freely all day, every day. We lived on 5 acres. I live in the city on a very small lot, no bigger than a square of toilet paper. Apples and oranges for comparison. Also, quite simply the times have changed.

I wasn't allowed junk food while growing up. Never did I have a Little Debbie, Dorito, Fruit Loops, Captn Crunch etc...., ever in our house. Maybe if I would have I wouldn't be battling with weight today.

When I went to college, I started eating badly. When I got out of college, I was eating better. But through most of my 20's, I wasn't making the best food choices either. In my late 20's and now in my 30's, I began making good choices.

I think a mix of both healthy and non-healthy is good. Portion control and not denying myself of anything, but rather limiting the amounts.

And again, my concern for the food choices of other's children is not necessary unless I chose to run a daycare or foster home.