Too Fat for Fifteen

LuckyLeprechaun

but it's a lot smaller of a battle to get them to finish their milk

this is why schools allowed chocolate milk into the scene. Parents give in to avoid the "battle" and kids come to expect that they will have their way.

my mom gave us a choice: milk (white lowfat), or water. or, if you prefer, stay thirsty. we drank our milk. or not. but childhood stubbornness didn't make my mom budge an inch. and me and my siblings were of healthy weights all of our childhood.

SHBoss1673

I'd much rather my kids drank the premade chocolate milk than the syrup any day! It's much better for you than mixing syrup with regular milk. Granted, when I buy chocolate milk at home, I cut it 1/3 and fill the rest of the glass 2/3 with regular milk. They don't know the difference (unless they see me do it) - but it's a lot smaller of a battle to get them to finish their milk. Especially my 3 year old who really doesn't like milk unless it's chocolate & has been that way ever since I quit nursing him.

I don't know, IMHO it's not a matter of which kind of chocolate milk they drink, it's a matter of not giving them the choice. I wasn't given the choice of chocolate milk at home. It didn't matter if I cried or screamed, I was simply sent to my room with no lunch or dinner if I did. Eventually, I got the picture. My mom was (I can say this now that I'm older and wiser) AWESOME about that. She didn't need to hit (well, usually at least, different times) to get her point across, she'd put the milk down, I'd either drink it, or I didn't, if I didn't that's fine, but I wasn't getting anything else. If I complained loud enough, she had this look, this unyielding, terrifying (to a 4 year old at least) look that said I was on the edge of certain annihilation, and if I did happen to work up the courage to continue to complain or scream, off to my room I went (and that was well before xbox or Wii) until I calmed down or (at night) went to sleep. That was that, there wasn't any discussion, no games, no bartering with her. I look back at those times and am in awe of her strength (4 kids, full time job, always 3 kids in a sport, supermom is right!).

All I'm saying is that we are the adults, we should be the ones making the rules, not giving in to the kids wants, and that's all chocolate milk is, a want, it's not a need, the kid isn't going to choke to death if he/she drinks plain milk (unless allergies are involved), so at that point it's a matter of parental choice.

All my opinion guys, everyone has their own parenting skills, I'm not making any judgement, just stating my own observations.

lee112780

We also have to think about the obesity problem, and WHEN it started. When my parents were kids, there wasn't a problem with obesity. I was born in 1980. I think that the problems started around that time. I also think it's tough to know what to do when you don't even realize how big of a problem obesity is going to be. NOW, we obviously know its a huge problem and we need to watch what our kids eat, but back then, I don't think they realized the problems that their actions would cause down the line.
We don't know the problems we are causing now with our kids for the future. NO parent is perfect and honestly, if you put all of your time into watching what your kid eats, they may end up with self esteem issues, which is going to do much more damage than being a lil chubby.
Its a sticky situation and I dont have kids yet, I just hope that I help them make the right choices. I will make sure my child is involved with sports, and try my best to teach them what food is, its fuel! I think if you just teach them on their terms, they should be ok. My sis in law is a great example, I ask my nephew what his favorite food is, and he says " Broccoli, because its good for me "

Unknown

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hopfroggyfrog

This is a great topic. It's interesting to see everyone discussing how deeply they feel about this issue, and in a mostly respectful manner!

HOPEful27

I had to comment on the giving kids choices issue. I only buy water & white milk at the store, if you don't like it, too bad. My kids 4, 8, & 9 know that if they are thirsty they get water. My nephew drinks Kool Aid, tea, & coke, NEVER water at home. When he would come to my house he would tell me he didn't like water , and my response would be then you must not be very thirsty. Yes he whined & cried, but now he knows I will not budge on the issue so guess what? He drinks the water. I ask my kids every day what they ate for lunch & what kind of milk they get. My 8 year old recently went a whole week getting flavored (sugar) water with his lunch. When I found out I made him take a lunch box all week, he did not like this at all. Now he is back to buying his lunch with the promise that it will be back to white milk every day. I have had weight issues all of my life, do I blame my parents??? No, my brother & sister are not overweight. Do I wish I would have been taught about diet & exercise at a young age? Absolutely. My parents didn't have weight issues, so maybe they didn't know they needed to teach me these things. Hind sight is 20/20. I, however know what growing up overweight is like so I made it a priority to teach my kids about nutrition & exercise. My kids do the 30 Day Shred with me!!! But you look at my brother & sister who don't do these things with their kids. Do you call it abuse or neglect? In some extreme cases yes, when your six year old is over 100 pounds or something extreme like that. But others, I think it is just a case of you teach your kids what you know.

edorice

I had to comment on the giving kids choices issue. I only buy water & white milk at the store, if you don't like it, too bad. My kids 4, 8, & 9 know that if they are thirsty they get water. My nephew drinks Kool Aid, tea, & coke, NEVER water at home.

Most of us drank Kool-aid already sweetened, but we went outside on our bikes, to our friends house, walked to school, in the pool, hopscotch, jump rope...

sillygoose1977

I had to comment on the giving kids choices issue. I only buy water & white milk at the store, if you don't like it, too bad. My kids 4, 8, & 9 know that if they are thirsty they get water. My nephew drinks Kool Aid, tea, & coke, NEVER water at home.

Most of us drank Kool-aid already sweetened, but we went outside on our bikes, to our friends house, walked to school, in the pool, hopscotch, jump rope...

BINGO! We didn't sit inside and play video games

I just had to add that I was looking through our recreation center catalog for classes for my daughter and they now have a wii sports camp. WTF??

edorice

Haha, now our daughter's have Playstation 2 (husband has PS3), Wii, DS games, etc. But they also did the Power 90 workout all summer and now back in school and have PE 4 days a week. It's about balance.

sillygoose1977

Haha, now our daughter's have Playstation 2 (husband has PS3), Wii, DS games, etc. But they also did the Power 90 workout all summer and now back in school and have PE 4 days a week. It's about balance.

Nice! My daughter did my first day of couch to 5k with me today. And now she is plopped on the couch watched Food Network Challenge.

Dencrossgirl

I have four children and one of my precious children is very overweight. It is terribly heartbreaking to deal with. The other two that are still at home are a normal weight. My 18 year has terrible eating habits, she will go to the store and buy a big bag of doritos and a jar of cheese dip and eat the whole thing in one sitting and she is thin. My overweight child, I think, eats ok, but is very inactive and has a super slow metabolism. Recently she went to Jenny Craig and is exercising regularly now, but she asked me to go to JC, if I would have suggested it she would have exploded. She has lost 18 pounds so far and I think she will keep it up and lose more. She has a long road ahead of her, but I going to with her every step of the way. I have tried many many things with her over the years, but she had to make up her mind to do it. If someone would have told me that I was abusing my child, well let's just say they would have been sorry. It is always easy to talk if you haven't had to deal with the problem.

Dencrossgirl

I have four children and one of my precious children is very overweight. It is terribly heartbreaking to deal with. The other two that are still at home are a normal weight. My 18 year has terrible eating habits, she will go to the store and buy a big bag of doritos and a jar of cheese dip and eat the whole thing in one sitting and she is thin. My overweight child, I think, eats ok, but is very inactive and has a super slow metabolism. Recently she went to Jenny Craig and is exercising regularly now, but she asked me to go to JC, if I would have suggested it she would have exploded. She has lost 18 pounds so far and I think she will keep it up and lose more. She has a long road ahead of her, but I going to with her every step of the way. I have tried many many things with her over the years, but she had to make up her mind to do it. If someone would have told me that I was abusing my child, well let's just say they would have been sorry. It is always easy to talk if you haven't had to deal with the problem.

Dencrossgirl

I have four children and one of my precious children is very overweight. It is terribly heartbreaking to deal with. The other two that are still at home are a normal weight. My 18 year has terrible eating habits, she will go to the store and buy a big bag of doritos and a jar of cheese dip and eat the whole thing in one sitting and she is thin. My overweight child, I think, eats ok, but is very inactive and has a super slow metabolism. Recently she went to Jenny Craig and is exercising regularly now, but she asked me to go to JC, if I would have suggested it she would have exploded. She has lost 18 pounds so far and I think she will keep it up and lose more. She has a long road ahead of her, but I going to with her every step of the way. I have tried many many things with her over the years, but she had to make up her mind to do it. If someone would have told me that I was abusing my child, well let's just say they would have been sorry. It is always easy to talk if you haven't had to deal with the problem.

mrsyac2

When I was a kid I was always active. I would come home from school do what needed to be done and go outside and stay out there until the street lights came on didn't matter the weather. we (all the neighborhood kids) played kickball,football, baseball, basketball you name it we played rain,sun, or snow. I cut the grass and shoveled snow. Didn't sit in the house and watch tv. On saturdays I would count down to 12:00 to be able to go outside with my friends. Now as a mother my girls are always outside. They come home and finish their homework and hit the door they play while I cook and I'm in and outside with them while I'm cooking we come in eat dinner and go right back outside until the street lights come on. My kids own every gaming console that is out and yet they are still outside riding bikes,skateboards,playing basketball, or just running around. They are also active in sports for every season except the summer where we are still outside playing or swimming.

Parents say they are so busy but I think its pure laziness now that is my opinion but thats so it may offend some. I gained weight because I got lazy and was still eating like I was that active. Now I'm active again.
I'm a very busy mom working fulltime, taking care of the house,kids, and yard, going to school as well, working out 5 days a week, cooking dinner for the family but Everyone stays active it's a balancing act. My girls eat junk food not all the time they know too much of something isn't a good thing healthy or not you can still gain weight. My girls are all about looking good and feeling good. My daughters are 6 and 9 years old and have ran a 5k this past spring the susan komen breast cancer walk or run. I was so proud of my girls for doing it and for the fact that they did it for a good cause.

Parents need to lead by example there is so much you can do with your kids to get active go play basketball, race the neighborhood kids (I do that and man are they fast) We play catch. The problem is the parents don't want to go outside either. Why would the kids want to go outside when their parents are just plopped on the couch. Lead by example don't follow the rule do as I say not as I do.

DancingYogini

My kids were "trained" early to love water. I rarely buy juice, maybe 2 times per year. We don't drink cow's milk, we have soy/rice/almond milk instead. My 5 year old loves to drink rice milk straight (I only buy plain). Now, my older ones, when out with friends, do have soda. I am ok with that. I had a lot of food restrictions as a young kid. My mom didn't let us have any thing that wasn't "hippie" food LOL...so, of course we snuck around and found ways to get candy, soda, etc...I let my kids have junk food occasionally, mainly because I don't want them seeing it as the "forbidden fruit" and sneaking around to get it like I did as a kid.

HealthyChanges2010

That's the other thing, what's with all the flavored milk these days? Am I the only one who remembers my mom ALLOWING me to mix in chocolate syrup once or twice a week as a treat? When did chocolate or strawberry milk become acceptable as a lunch food in our public schools? What A$$H0le made that ok? I mean, even in the 70's when I was growing up, we knew that you shouldn't drink chocolate milk every day.

Totally agree! When I was in school we only had chocolate milk on fridays. And when my mom let me have hersheys in milk I called it dessert. The one good thing I will say is that now water is also an option with school lunches.

Aww yes, I remember it well, Chocolate milk Fridays for a nickel, every other afternoon milk time was white only! :drinker: I love the idea that when you were young you called 'Hersheys in milk' your dessert.....perfect!

lee112780

Just a silly thing that came to me...why would this show be on the STYLE channel? Has absolutely nothing to do with Style! lol

exercisesucks

You are absolutely right. These fat kids are freaks. And it is there parents fault. The only way to address the issue is to claim it as an issue and deal with it directly. No sugar coating or eggshell walking. A child should not be that fat at that age. An adult shouldn't be that fat. The 17 year old girl had a starting weight of over 500lbs! That means she weighs more than 70% of professional football players. Her parents have turned her into a freak by not taking care of her. If the term 'child abuse' hurts someones ittby bitty feewings than I will call it 'child NEGLECT.' These children did not get this way overnight and their parents watched them grow bigger and bigger and did not make a move to fix it. Scotty's mom took him to a freaking buffet! A BUFFET! And lets not forget she took the easy way out and got gastric by pass, and so did his father. So they are not even setting an example and working out with him to help him. It is abuse. If you have kids and you are not enforcing healthy eating habits you are abusing/neglecting your child's basic needs and shame on you!

exercisesucks

I grew up in a household of unhealthy eaters. My parents ate like crap and taught us to eat like crap. I had to become a Marine to get away and learn what healthy eating and fitness were and I am thankful for it. These fat kids are neglected. And it is there parents fault. The only way to address the issue is to claim it as an issue and deal with it directly. No sugar coating or eggshell walking. A child should not be that fat at that age. An adult shouldn't be that fat. The 17 year old girl had a starting weight of over 500lbs! That means she weighs more than 70% of professional football players. Her parents have turned her into a freak by not taking care of her. If the term 'child abuse' hurts someones ittby bitty feewings than I will call it 'child NEGLECT.' These children did not get this way overnight and their parents watched them grow bigger and bigger and did not make a move to fix it. Scotty's mom took him to a freaking buffet! A BUFFET! And lets not forget she took the easy way out and got gastric by pass, and so did his father. So they are not even setting an example and working out with him to help him. It is abuse. If you have kids and you are not enforcing healthy eating habits you are abusing/neglecting your child's basic needs and shame on you!

mrsyac2

I grew up in a household of unhealthy eaters. My parents ate like crap and taught us to eat like crap. I had to become a Marine to get away and learn what healthy eating and fitness were and I am thankful for it. These fat kids are neglected. And it is there parents fault. The only way to address the issue is to claim it as an issue and deal with it directly. No sugar coating or eggshell walking. A child should not be that fat at that age. An adult shouldn't be that fat. The 17 year old girl had a starting weight of over 500lbs! That means she weighs more than 70% of professional football players. Her parents have turned her into a freak by not taking care of her. If the term 'child abuse' hurts someones ittby bitty feewings than I will call it 'child NEGLECT.' These children did not get this way overnight and their parents watched them grow bigger and bigger and did not make a move to fix it. Scotty's mom took him to a freaking buffet! A BUFFET! And lets not forget she took the easy way out and got gastric by pass, and so did his father. So they are not even setting an example and working out with him to help him. It is abuse. If you have kids and you are not enforcing healthy eating habits you are abusing/neglecting your child's basic needs and shame on you!

Definitely no sugar coating there. But I do agree it's the parents fault hands down. Pure laziness

nopeekiepeekie

I haven't watched this show because I think it's wrong, but I just wanted to say, that it's sick that the parents AND this "school" are exploiting these children in this way, all for 15mins of fame and a few bucks. It's obvious to me these parents do not care about their child's health and mental well being or they would have tried every way possible to get them out of the situation they are in without having to cause them mental anguish of having this televised to millions of people. How is that child going to feel when they are in their adult years and someone sees them and says that they saw them on a show called Too Fat for Fifteen?

sillygoose1977

You are absolutely right. These fat kids are freaks. And it is there parents fault. The only way to address the issue is to claim it as an issue and deal with it directly. No sugar coating or eggshell walking. A child should not be that fat at that age. An adult shouldn't be that fat. The 17 year old girl had a starting weight of over 500lbs! That means she weighs more than 70% of professional football players. Her parents have turned her into a freak by not taking care of her. If the term 'child abuse' hurts someones ittby bitty feewings than I will call it 'child NEGLECT.' These children did not get this way overnight and their parents watched them grow bigger and bigger and did not make a move to fix it. Scotty's mom took him to a freaking buffet! A BUFFET! And lets not forget she took the easy way out and got gastric by pass, and so did his father. So they are not even setting an example and working out with him to help him. It is abuse. If you have kids and you are not enforcing healthy eating habits you are abusing/neglecting your child's basic needs and shame on you!

"These fat kids are freaks." Do you have kids?

robinsnest0326

If my kids don't go to school I am held responsible, If my kids don't eat and are filthy I am held responsible, If my child is underweight the schools won't hesitate to counsel you or report you to child services.. now why if a child is beyond overweight the parents aren't responsible? Something is wrong with that picture.
I totally agree with this, My kids all three had my high metabolism, like i said before i was 90lbs all through high school and dropped my pregnant weight in the hospital, I struggled to gain weight during my pregnancies. I don't know how many times i had to deal with dfs coming to my house when my kids were little because someone at school or elsewhere felt i wasn't feeding my kids. Once i took my youngest to the ER because he had a 105 temp that was climbing and the doctor said oh i have to check him for malnutrition, I was like whatever call his pediatrician. The doctor later came back with the results and said oh i'm sorry but we had to check, I told him then i would much rather have my kids under weight that over weight, but let me guess how many overweight kids come in here and you don't do a dang thing! Yeah there are more over weight kids and i feel they are the ones that should be under the microscope!

toots99

These fat kids are freaks.

And I'm sure you, sir, are absolutely perfect.

edorice

If my kids don't go to school I am held responsible, If my kids don't eat and are filthy I am held responsible, If my child is underweight the schools won't hesitate to counsel you or report you to child services.. now why if a child is beyond overweight the parents aren't responsible? Something is wrong with that picture.

Yes, something definitely wrong with that picture.

exercisesucks

You are absolutely right. These fat kids are freaks. And it is there parents fault. The only way to address the issue is to claim it as an issue and deal with it directly. No sugar coating or eggshell walking. A child should not be that fat at that age. An adult shouldn't be that fat. The 17 year old girl had a starting weight of over 500lbs! That means she weighs more than 70% of professional football players. Her parents have turned her into a freak by not taking care of her. If the term 'child abuse' hurts someones ittby bitty feewings than I will call it 'child NEGLECT.' These children did not get this way overnight and their parents watched them grow bigger and bigger and did not make a move to fix it. Scotty's mom took him to a freaking buffet! A BUFFET! And lets not forget she took the easy way out and got gastric by pass, and so did his father. So they are not even setting an example and working out with him to help him. It is abuse. If you have kids and you are not enforcing healthy eating habits you are abusing/neglecting your child's basic needs and shame on you!

"These fat kids are freaks." Do you have kids?

I do have kids. And yes these kids are freaks and IT IS NOT THEIR FAULT! It is the fault of the PARENTS! The parents sat and watched these kids grow into this massive freakish size and did nothing about it at all! NOTHING! These parents are cruel and neglectful of their children's state of health and it is criminal to not provide the guidance and PARENTING that is part of the job of raising children. My kids eat healthy because I dont have bad food in the house. Don't go complaining about my 5 year old will only eat (insert crappy food here)! The kid is 5 and the parent is the adult. Who is the boss?

rfialkiewicz

... who can stick to 10 grams of fat per day....

I did. For several months, actually. Really, it's not that hard to do. To this day I rarely hit the fat mark I have set now.

My father has been under 10 grams of fat a day for almost ten years.

exercisesucks

These fat kids are freaks.

And I'm sure you, sir, are absolutely perfect.

I am far from perfect. But my children are at a healthy weight, know what fruit and vegetables are and prefer healthy food, to junk food, because their parents actually parent them. We educate them on what the difference is between a protein and a carb. They know what saturated fat is and they...GASP...read the labels on the foods they eat. Nobody is perfect but my kids are not obese because I wont let them be.

mrsyac2

These fat kids are freaks.

And I'm sure you, sir, are absolutely perfect.

I am far from perfect. But my children are at a healthy weight, know what fruit and vegetables are and prefer healthy food, to junk food, because their parents actually parent them. We educate them on what the difference is between a protein and a carb. They know what saturated fat is and they...GASP...read the labels on the foods they eat. Nobody is perfect but my kids are not obese because I wont let them be.

I like how your being upfront because i am an upfront person as well. Not many people can take the truth they want their hands held all the time and pats on the back for simple accomplishments. I as well will not allow my kids to be fat nor do they want to be fat. It's all about balance physical activity and eating right. My kids are beyond ripped muscle wise and have minimal fat percentage. It's disgusting to see such young kids being so overweight. It isn't healthy! Everyone knocks smokers all the time because of health issues. But being overweight causes many more health issues and they aren't being targeted.

Type 2 Diabetes is rampid and it's actually the Diabetes that is self inflicted through bad food choices and weight. Kids these days are getting diagnosised with Type 2 Diabetes at such young ages. There is no excuse for it. Parents need to step up to the plate and stop being so lazy.
Gaining weight is pure laziness a small % comes from a health condition.

toots99

You are absolutely right. These fat kids are freaks. And it is there parents fault. The only way to address the issue is to claim it as an issue and deal with it directly. No sugar coating or eggshell walking. A child should not be that fat at that age. An adult shouldn't be that fat. The 17 year old girl had a starting weight of over 500lbs! That means she weighs more than 70% of professional football players. Her parents have turned her into a freak by not taking care of her. If the term 'child abuse' hurts someones ittby bitty feewings than I will call it 'child NEGLECT.' These children did not get this way overnight and their parents watched them grow bigger and bigger and did not make a move to fix it. Scotty's mom took him to a freaking buffet! A BUFFET! And lets not forget she took the easy way out and got gastric by pass, and so did his father. So they are not even setting an example and working out with him to help him. It is abuse. If you have kids and you are not enforcing healthy eating habits you are abusing/neglecting your child's basic needs and shame on you!

"These fat kids are freaks." Do you have kids?

I do have kids. And yes these kids are freaks and IT IS NOT THEIR FAULT! It is the fault of the PARENTS! The parents sat and watched these kids grow into this massive freakish size and did nothing about it at all! NOTHING! These parents are cruel and neglectful of their children's state of health and it is criminal to not provide the guidance and PARENTING that is part of the job of raising children. My kids eat healthy because I dont have bad food in the house. Don't go complaining about my 5 year old will only eat (insert crappy food here)! The kid is 5 and the parent is the adult. Who is the boss?

So if your kids did just happen to have a weight problem, (I know you said they don't, and that's great, but suppose for a second they did) you'd be okay with some adult calling them freaks, and commenting on their "massive freakish size"?

I don't know, maybe it's just me...I was fat at 15, and if someone called me "massively freakish in size", it'd have killed me to hear that. "Like "I know I'm fat, I don't need someone pointing out I'm a 'fat freak'."

Insulting doesn't help, just like sugarcoating doesn't. Sensitivity helps. Helping helps.

People pointed out my whole life that I was fat...made all kinds of insulting comments like you made. Do you think that motivated me to go out and get fit? No, it made me hide from everyone and eat.