I thought this an interesting perspective from a young adult on the state of childhood obesity.
The 'why' of the obesity epidemic
“Hi, I just wanted to let you know that I loved the article on fat kids. I'm 20 years old and there are too many little kids, teenagers and even adults out there who are lazy and don't exercise enough. It was an excellent article and I'm sure you're going to get many e-mails from parents squawking about how their kid is fine and blah blah blah.”
Blah blah? You bet.
Judging from some of the reactions, there are parents who simply don't believe a fat kid is bad or should necessarily be a cause for concern. “They grow out of it,” as one reader told me.
But some do take exception to a grownup like me writing about fat kids. It amounts to ridicule. As one woman said, “You make [kids] feel bad.”
Me? How about this reader:
“I CANNOT believe how parents are raising their kids these days! Parents are making their kids fat! They buy "really cool' game consoles, thinking they're doing good for their children, making them happy. Really, they're raising them to be lazy kids who whine and cry every day that they "don't wanna go outside! I wanna play my video games!'
“Then, the parents are "too tired' to cook dinner, so they go to good ol' McD's and throw a cheeseburger and french fries in front of the kid, WHILE THEY'RE PLAYING VIDEO GAMES!!!”
Reading and listening to the feedback, and talking to parents and seeing the sharp emotions of guilt, anger and resentment it sparks, I wonder whether the “obesity epidemic” isn't so much about fast food manufacturers but us.
Think about it. How often have you heard that some people use food as a “drug,” that is, they eat to feel good.
Just like injecting your vein with heroin to feel good is abnormal human behavior, so is gorging to feel good. Isn't it?
When's the last time you saw a fat squirrel, bird or snake?
There is some weird pathology that has affected the natural appetite, and many are transmitting the disease to kids.
I witnessed a striking example of this in a supermarket. I was in the cereal aisle and had to make way for a fat guy riding one of those little electric carts. He had two chubby kids with him, which I assumed were his.
Each kid — they were about 9 or 10 years old — was allowed to choose his own cereal. Naturally, both kids chose the sugary variety.
The man (who was probably in his mid-40s) chose two boxes of Frosted Flakes for himself and wouldn't even stand up to get them from the shelf. He had the fat kids do it for him.
The boxes were put in a cart, which contained bottles of soda, crackers, chips, dip, frozen dinners.
“Dinner?” I thought.
It's above my pay grade to say what illness is on the loose when it comes to food.
I looked around and while I can find many articles detailing the scary prognosis of the “obesity epidemic,” the “why” this is happening never gets much deeper than blaming food manufacturers.
Maybe it's no more complicated than some people want to feel good, that food accomplishes this, the hell with the health consequences.
Druggies I have known have the same attitude. But even most of them would have the sense to do their drugs out of sight of kids, instead of showing them the way.
Childhood Obesity
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