What are "we" doing to our children in America?

[TDC Nala]

I agree with people minding their own business but there are things that can be done. When i was a teacher i would see kids go through the lunch line and come out with 4 cookies, fries, 5 slices of pizza, a milk shake and about 6 twix bars, this is true and i am like ok lunch lady are you not going to say anything, hello. It was a dean that came over and told the student to put the items back, he told the student he was not going to eat all of that.

I would have told him to go you-know-where, I was going to buy what I wanted.

 

[FayeW]

sure what ever you say, nice try at a comback though

You seem very intent on picking a fight with me...any particular reason why?

 

[I Love Pluto]

TimeForMe - Thank you for responding using your intelligence. I enjoyed reading your post - causes of obesity.

The family model is exactly what I was talking about. My kids didn't have a parent who exercised and ate healthy. But - now they do.

Doing something about it.

 

[Kendra17]

QUOTE=Kendra17]

I didn't mean to imply that you personally were judging fat people or that you think all people should be size 8 or less. While you might not have meant anything judgmental by your comments, you are putting forth claims (without any medical/scientific backing) that often are part of anti-fat attitudes—that ALL fat people chose to be that way and that they all could (with a REASONABLE change in diet and exercise alone) be quite thin. While you might stop there, others go further and conclude that since fat people refuse to make such reasonable changes, it's okay to express negative attitudes toward them

I think there's a problem with the idea that simply because something is a choice it therefore is okay to be judgmental or discriminatory regarding it (see all the threads talking about whether homosexuality is a choice) but that's another story. Since people (not necessarily you) do, in fact, justify fat-phobia this way, it seems we should be very careful about throwing about unsupported claims about how EVERY person (or almost all or the great majority) who is not a size 8 choices not to be by not undertaking reasonable steps to become a size 8.

The fact that your friends have gone from being obese to being a size 8 (assuming they did so undertaking reasonable dietary and activity changes) is great evidence that THEIR bodies are such that they CAN be a size 8. But this type of anecdotal evidence is not evidence that EVERYONE can do what they did. In fact, one might take the fact that some people do manage to lose a lot of weight and others who have tried all types of dieting and who have been fat throughout their lives regardless of the type of food or exercise they were engaging in at the time would be evidence that people's bodies are very different. Perhaps some people can, within reasonable means, become a size 8 and some can't.

It doesn’t seem like a stretch at all to think that some fat people couldn’t become a size 8 no matter what reasonable means they took. For instance, I can’t think of anything more extreme one can do than have part of their digestive system rearranged. Yet it seems that most of those undergoing gastric bypass surgery lose 65-80% of their “excess weight” and keep it off. One has to have at least about 100 lbs of excess weight to begin with in order to be a candidate for gastric bypass surgery, and even more weight if they’re not having any health problems. So someone getting gastric bypass would have to be at least around 240 lbs and then only if they have health problems; if they are healthy, they would have to weigh more. So take someone who is 300 lbs and has gastric bypass and loses and keeps off 75% of their excess weight—that is, after surgery they weigh 180 lbs. Now I don’t know much about how women’s sizes and weights line up, but I’m pretty sure that there is almost no way a 180 lb 5 foot 6 inch woman is going to fit in a size 8. If someone who has parts of their stomach and intestines blocked off still can’t be a size 8, then is it really reasonable to think that there is any way they could be?

I understand your concern with defeatist attitudes. Certainly, if someone is trying to do something it won’t do them any good to tell them it’s impossible—unless of course it IS impossible. For instance, take the woman mentioned in the NYTimes article whose weight gain stumped the doctors. It supposedly would take about 3000 calories a day for her to maintain her weight assuming she got absolutely no activity. But somehow she managed to gain a pound a day where a pound is supposedly equivalent to 3500 calories that have not burned off. Her body was acting as if it had received 6500 calories a day, not 3000. Now what would it have taken for her to become and stay a size 8 if her body continued to process calories this way? Well, to maintain a weight of 140 lbs one would normally need just over 2000 calories a day (with moderate exercise). But if one’s body essentially more than doubles the calories it receives, then one would have to have less than 1000 calories a day to maintain that weight. What good would it do someone like this to hear “of course you can be a size 8” when in order to do that she might very well have to eat 800 calories a day. This is not reasonable nor healthy. It is not defeatist to say that if one’s body consistently metabolizes calories in this way, then one can NEVER be a size 8 (at least not without continually starving oneself). In fact, it would seem cruel to tell such a person that, if she just tried harder, she could be a size 8.

What we need, I think, is some type of middle ground--encouraging everyone (fat or thin) to attain what they can...the most healthy lifestyle they can reasonably create for themselves.

This is interesting, but it still isn't the point. The cases where obesity is actually medically related are infrequent. In MOST cases, weight loss is possible with a healthy diet and exercise. So, you can post a few articles like this one, but that is NOT the norm. I have been interested in health and nutrition for several years. There are cases like the one you describe, but most often it is lack of knowledge and/or eating incorrectly and not being physically active. The exceptions to this are few and far between.

There are MANY people who lose the extra weight. We all (with the exception of a few) have the ability to be healthy and physically fit. It is a HARD road, but it is possible.

I DO agree with your comments about being rude to people who are overweight. Insults shouldn't be tolerated. There was no place on this thread that I was discriminatory or insulting to overweight people.

The main point of this thread is that we are raising a generation of obese children and not teaching them healthy habits. And, there are many people who seem to be unhappy regarding their weight yet think it's impossible to do something about. Just because obesity affects so many Americans doesn't make it okay, and we shouldn't just accept this because it's becoming the norm.

In Europe, portion sizes are less than HALF of what we eat here. Here, we pile on 2 cups of pasta for dinner and how many meatballs? Here, we eat a 12 ounce steak for dinner and a big scoop of mashed potatoes. We drink 24 oz. sodas. Please don't argue that it's just the way things are. In Europe-- unless they are adopting our diet ( and they are), people eat so much less than we do. Portion sizes are smaller, drink sizes are smaller, people walk everywhere.

If obesity couldn't be helped, you'd see an equal amount of obese people throughout the world. You don't see this. You see fat people here in America because too many lead sedentary lifestyles and eat too much.

 

[Chilehead Too]

Television, the drug of a nation
Breeding ignorance and feeding radiation


Many people are lazy. There's not an epidemic of "thyroid problems". There's an epidemic of laziness with television, fast food, and pizza delivery at the heart of it.

The G-ds honest truth, my kids are very limited to the amount of television time, and we NEVER and I mean NEVER go out to eat fast food. My kids will occasionally have it if out with friends, but I have never taken them to McDonalds. And honestly they never even ask for it.

There are so many kids in our shcool that are overweight and it is so sad to think that the parents are contributing to it. My dd had an overweight friend over last week and the kid wanted to watch the Food Chanel, I just shook my head and made them go bike riding.

 

[KirstenB]

I wasn't going to post on this thread, because it is such an inflammatory topic..but....

Today I was at Kohl's. I saw 2 girls about 8 and 10 yrs old. They were both big enough to not be able to easily shop in the kid's clothes section. None of my business, and I forgot about them. I was looking through the sale racks in activewear, and their mom was telling them to look for the petite's section, which was right next to activewear. Then I understood. Many years ago I worked in retail in dresses. Sometimes moms would bring in a "big" kid for an outfit, because they couldn't wear regular kid clothes. The mom was bringing them to petites because they could find "missy" sizes, but short, because the kids were young. Anyway, this mom was talking out loud, and saying she wanted to find the kids something cute, not "grown up". It made me sad, because no kid wants to shop in petites, because they're too big for regular kid clothes.

These kids are stigmatized in so many ways. And yet, they arent' responsible for grocery shopping for the family. I remember when there were a couple of big kids in the entire elementary school. Now each grade has several of them. These kids are losing their childhoods. Who wants to wear grown up clothes at the age of 8 or 10?

 

[Kendra17]

Who wants to wear grown up clothes at the age of 8 or 10?

I don't know if this is sadder or not, but many clothing manufacturers have been adding to their regular sizes to accomodate these children. Is this better for them or worse? It seems as if they are both poor choices.

My 9 yr old son also had a heavy friend (nice kid) over a couple of weeks ago. He just wanted to watch tv or play video games, too (usually my son's outside with the neighborhood kids playing tag, skating, etc.). I sent them out. .. they came back in. . . I sent them out. . . they came back in.

I took both of them to a skate park a while back. Within 15 mintues, this child wanted and expected a snack. Within the next hour, he wanted another one. Both his parents are extremely heavy. I had served them lunch right before we left, too.

 

[goofyforlife]

QUOTE=Kendra17]
In MOST cases, weight loss is possible with a healthy diet and exercise.

kendra, if it were only that simple... gentics and body type and metabolism and chemicals one has in their stomach is definately not an understood science. Otherwise there wouldn't be a need for gastric surgery.....

There are literally hundreds of decent non-lazy people waiting for surgery at this time because diet and exercise hasn't worked for them.....

 

[JimFitz]

kendra, if it were only that simple... gentics and body type and metabolism and chemicals one has in their stomach is definately not an understood science. Otherwise there wouldn't be a need for gastric surgery.....

There are literally hundreds of decent non-lazy people waiting for surgery at this time because diet and exercise hasn't worked for them.....

This is an absolute cop out for people. Diet and excersize does work for almost everyone, when they stick with it. Food is a drug for people........a socially acceptable drug.

There are people with rare medical conditions that have issues with weight, but they are few and far between.

 

[Reflection]

QUOTE=Kendra17].....


If obesity couldn't be helped, you'd see an equal amount of obese people throughout the world. You don't see this....... .

Actually this is not quite true, we are starting to see increasing incidences of obesity globally. Unfortunately, in the developing world, under- nutrition and over-nuttriton (overweight/obesity) are occuring simultaneously and are serious public health issues.

 

[PatriciaH]

What I don't understand is people keep saying... but they have medical problems, they may not be able to exercise, etc.. When I was a kid we had maybe one overweight kid in our whole grade school. Now there are a few thin ones and 75% are overweight. You look at old park videos-I was watching one from 1993 the other day (not too long ago) and you would be hard pressed to find one overweight person in the crowds/CM's. The "then and now" picture thread-no overweight people. I think I saw one beer belly guy but the rest of him was skinny. So what has happened? All of a sudden people are sick with all of these medical problems? Cancer maybe has become more rampent but why all the obesity all of a sudden? Fast food, cars, video games, tv, no home cooking, stress, no gym class, etc...

 

[cardaway]

This is an absolute cop out for people. Diet and excersize does work for almost everyone, when they stick with it. Food is a drug for people........a socially acceptable drug.

There are people with rare medical conditions that have issues with weight, but they are few and far between.

There's pages and pages of back and forth between people talking about a very small percentage. We should be talking about the majority, and the majority of really big kids have parents that simply didn't do what it took to keep them from getting that way.

 

[goofyforlife]

There's pages and pages of back and forth between people talking about a very small percentage.

You "fit" people might not want to believe it but it's not that small of a percentage.

I do agree with you though that we owe it to our children not to feed them Mc D at every meal or sugery cereals every day...... or sit them in front of the TV as a babysitter.

Dateline had something on the people who sued McD's tonight. It was sad because there was a mom on there that said she took her kids there every day for breakfest......

 

[cardaway]

You "fit" people might not want to believe it but it's not that small of a percentage.

Who said I was fit? I am however willing to admit that the size I am is all on me. No excuses.

The percentage I posted about is the small percentage of people that can blame their size on anything other than their lifestyle.

 

[Amity 3]

This is an absolute cop out for people. Diet and excersize does work for almost everyone, when they stick with it. Food is a drug for people........a socially acceptable drug.

There are people with rare medical conditions that have issues with weight, but they are few and far between.

darn right. losing weight is easy to do, simply burn more calories than you take in each day.

as far as the ECV's, you should provide your own or need a doctor's note to be able to rent them or use the free ones grocery stores provide these days.

 

[Reflection]

.....Dateline had something on the people who sued McD's tonight. It was sad because there was a mom on there that said she took her kids there every day for breakfest......

This is just madness. Suing McDonalds, BK and the like, or applying 'sin' tax to junk food is not the answer. Nobody is forced to eat at McD or other fast food places. Obesity has multifactorial causes. However, the research I've read suggests the majority of overweight/obesity cases is related to lifestyle/behavior. Better nutrition education (particularly portion size and the notion that all calories count) will hopefully encourage people to make better food choices for themselves and their children

 

[louie694]

:yes:: ....the majority of really big kids have parents that simply didn't do what it took to keep them from getting that way.

hi!

this is a great point. i agree with you and brady scholarship would back you up on this point! well said. if you look back at the way mike and carol raised the kids, well, the only crazy foods they had were when sam the butcher came by to visit alice. there was that one episode in the fifth season (brady 5:1) when peter's friend stan elliot came to visit. this was an experimental episode where the writers were trying to get some "new blood" into the show. unfortunately, oliver was chosen for the role after some vicious backroom infighting at the studio. several lawsuits were filed but they all remain sealed to this day! very controversial stuff. but, daniel was a heavy boy, and carol said,
stan, would you like to stay for dinner and have some casserole?
stan replied, well, only if i can eat the entire platter, mrs. brady. at my house my mom tells me not to share and to eat everything on my plate and everybody elses at the table, too.
carol, stan! that is terrible!
stan, well, i'm just doing what my mom tells me to, mrs. brady!
carol replied, stan! what is your mom's name? i am going to call her this instant!
stan says, gee, mrs. brady, i just call my mom "momma". everybody does.
carol, goodness! everyone calls your momma "momma"?"
stan, i don't know why but lots of people know her.

so, stan elliot would have made a better addition to the brady household, in my opinion, than oliver. oliver had a large fan base for three episodes, then it suddenly evaporated after the "night of vandalism and violence" episode aired.

so, do we blame the same people for the victory of oliver over stan for stan's weight problem? i think not. we must blame his mom, "momma". mom must take a stand for stan and didn't. well, she did, but it was the wrong one. i don't have to tell you which television shows stan starred in after his disastrous appearance on that brady episode - because, sad to say, there weren't any. it's really very sad.

thanks for reading. i have to watch episode 34 now. i've been waiting for this one for quite a while. i've got a magnum of francis ford coppola merlot waiting for me!

 

[Aidensmom]

You "fit" people might not want to believe it but it's not that small of a percentage.

I am a "fit" person so maybe I just don't get this, but are you saying that most "unfit" people have a medical reason they are that way? DH and I have always been athletes, so we have always been very active, it is just part of our lifestyle.

I really do believe that our habits in this society are probably a bigger factor than medical reasons. We tend to demand to have everything easy and convenient. And while that is nice, it is not necessarily the best thing for our health. I am not talking about weight, I am talking about eating right and exercising for our health. I do believe we all have a certain weight our body tends towards, for some people it is a little over the weight on the charts, for some a little under, for others right on target. I don't think that is much a factor as our cholesterol levels, blood sugar, energy levels, etc. Yes, there are some exceptions to this, but again, it is a small percentage.

If an adult does not care about their fitness level, I really don't care, it is their life. But I do think we should teach our children about healthy lifestyles.

My child eats healthy and loves sports, not because we force him to exercise and harp on his weight, but because he follows the example of his parents. I fail to see how focusing on good health is a bad thing.

 

[Kendra17]

kendra, if it were only that simple... gentics and body type and metabolism and chemicals one has in their stomach is definately not an understood science. Otherwise there wouldn't be a need for gastric surgery.....

There are literally hundreds of decent non-lazy people waiting for surgery at this time because diet and exercise hasn't worked for them.....

People are waiting for their surgery because they don't stick to a healthy eating plan and do not exercise. It's not because all of a sudden the majority of the citizens in the United States started having a metabolism malfunction. People who have stretched their stomachs as they've eaten themselves to a grossly obese weight do not get filled by a 1/2 cup of pasta, a serving of vegetables, and 4 ounces of protein. So they overeat. And, once someone IS this big, they don't have enough energy to exercise.

It really is that simple.

Actually this is not quite true, we are starting to see increasing incidences of obesity globally.

Yes, that's what I was trying to say. As Europeans have adopted our American diet, they are seeing an increase in obesity, as well. Thank you for clarifying this point.

 

[Planogirl]

I believe that there are people who can't help but be overweight and they need extra help. However, by and large, I believe that most overweight people are so due to lack of exercise and eating the wrong foods and too much of that same food. I'm a bit overweight and I take full responsibility. I know that if I ate a certain way and got up and MOVED, then the weight would come off.

The question is why I don't get rid of the weight. And why are there so many people like me who also don't do what it takes. I don't know the answer to that.