Parents at fault for overweight children?

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wjewell
wjewell Posts: 282 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Today I was at the Chiropractor and a little girl told her mom "I want an apple!" they had them sitting out along with some other fruit for patients to eat. Her mom just ignored her. Once again she told her mom "Mom, I want to eat an apple!" The girl was about 4-5 years old at most. After a few times of telling her how badly she wanted an apple, her mom replied "You want an apple? Wouldn't you rather have a big juicy burger or a nice pizza?" The girl said "no, I want an apple". The mom actually told her "No, it might ruin your appetite, we're going to get burgers when we leave". REALLY? It made me so disappointed.

I'm not saying that EVERY child that is over weight should blame their parents choices. However, I think in cases like this- the mom should have allowed her daughter the dang apple. I was chubby as a kid, I don't blame my parents. I'm definitely not saying that every parent with a chubby child is to blame for that. Obviously there are tons of reasons as to why children are chubby...But if you're denying your child fruit and making them eat greasy pizza and burgers.. shame on you. Okay, off my soapbox.

Thanks for letting me vent.
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Replies

  • dakotababy
    dakotababy Posts: 2,406 Member
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    I absolutely blame parents 100% for overweight children. Children rely on parents to teach them healthy eating habits - not unhealthy eating habits! This is a shame, and that lady should be embarrassed.

    I wish my parents taught me proper eating habits :( maybe things would have been a lot different for me.
  • Lift_hard_eat_big
    Lift_hard_eat_big Posts: 2,278 Member
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    I totally blame parents for overweight children. Just as I would blame parents if their children were malnourished .
  • slkehl
    slkehl Posts: 3,801 Member
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    Yes, I think it's the parents fault up until a certain age, like junior high or high school when the kids earn their own cash and can buy food from school or while hanging out with friends. Parents should be restricting snacks and cooking healthy for their kids. There's really no excuse for them when it comes to their overweight kids.
  • sincerelyfckwit
    sincerelyfckwit Posts: 1
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    100% true. Sadly enough, I partially have my parents to blame for my eating habits, as I don't have my own income, and I can't purchase the food that I know I need. Instead I work around their awful diets.
  • lyttlewon
    lyttlewon Posts: 1,118 Member
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    Nothing annoys me more than going somewhere, the kids insisting on ordering food they are not hungry for, and then they waste it. They won't tell me they are too full for the food I am buying. My husband and I are obese and my children are not. Go figure.
  • ToughTulip
    ToughTulip Posts: 1,118 Member
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    I absolutely blame parents 100% for overweight children. Children rely on parents to teach them healthy eating habits - not unhealthy eating habits! This is a shame, and that lady should be embarrassed.

    I wish my parents taught me proper eating habits :( maybe things would have been a lot different for me.

    Completely agree
  • nataliefamily3
    nataliefamily3 Posts: 190
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    I feel parents are at least 80% of the problem. Yes there are exceptions like health problems, other people feeding your kid crap, kid sneaks food etc. However A lot of people think kids don't like healthy foods or "adult" foods. There are ways to make good foods interesting and edible for kids. But also if every time you have a treat its ice cream oreos etc it is shown these are the yummiest and most desirable foods. If you treat fruit or healthy snacks as a treat so will your kids. Yes I do have a child btw.
  • HannahsBestLife
    HannahsBestLife Posts: 209 Member
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    I remember talking about this at my pre-natal classes a few years back, supposedly the worst eating habit you can teach a child is to always finish everything on their plate.. So many parents do this so their child can't just be fussy and not eat their veges or whatever but supposedly this is why so many people have problems with portion control, because they are taught to finish everything on their plate whether they are full or not
  • Nicole_69
    Nicole_69 Posts: 5
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    My parents have 6 kids & none of us were overweight! They were/still are very firm believers in getting outdoors & playing! The only reason why I gained weight is because my life changed after I got married. Long story short I'm busting my butt daily & I have my Dad to thank for helping me lose 35lbs before my husband came home from this past year. He would come home from work & workout with me everyday of the week. He's in the Army as well as my husband so he didn't have to do that but he still cares for his child even though i'm 22. I blame parents 100%.....why on earth would you tell a child no you can't have an apple.
  • It_never_ends
    It_never_ends Posts: 105 Member
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    I blame parents until the kid hits15-16. At that point they can make there own choice. My parents didn't teach me anything about eating. There was food and we ate it. I eat very fast and I don't stop till i feel sick. I was never taught to eat slow, chew well and drink between bites. I still struggle with that as stupid as it seems.

    Also candy was a way to "shut us up" When they wanted us out of the house they gave us money to go to the quick stop and buy candy. Fanta and fudge rounds were 50% of my diet till I was 13-14. Then I started to notice my diet was CRAP. I had always been fat and I thought that was just how I was till I started learning about nutrition in school. No joke.
  • mahlerosa
    mahlerosa Posts: 56
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    I see both sides...I want me kids to eat there dinner...even a healthy snack will ruin there apetites. But an apple is such a good choice... BUT in general we have a problem with our food supply. It is cheap food that is loaded with refined carbs and sugar. The food industry is killing us. Some people don't have access to healthy food. Please visit my facebook page https://www.facebook.com/WhyWereFat Have you see Dr Lustig's Sugar The Bitter Truth OR HBO's special? You can find the links on my page. I to am determined not to raise fat kids as I am battling it and have my whole life. But our Food industry must take some of the blame. They even put sugar on a "healthy" salad at McDonald's and Wendy's.
  • AZKristi
    AZKristi Posts: 1,801 Member
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    Yes, I judge the parent when the child is overweight because the parent is the one making the choices of what to buy or cook. Was this particular child overweight? I don't think you can judge a person's diet based on one conversation. Maybe the kid had already had plenty of fruit today and needed something with protein.
  • avir8
    avir8 Posts: 671 Member
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    Today I was at the Chiropractor and a little girl told her mom "I want an apple!" they had them sitting out along with some other fruit for patients to eat. Her mom just ignored her. Once again she told her mom "Mom, I want to eat an apple!" The girl was about 4-5 years old at most. After a few times of telling her how badly she wanted an apple, her mom replied "You want an apple? Wouldn't you rather have a big juicy burger or a nice pizza?" The girl said "no, I want an apple". The mom actually told her "No, it might ruin your appetite, we're going to get burgers when we leave". REALLY? It made me so disappointed.

    I'm not saying that EVERY child that is over weight should blame their parents choices. However, I think in cases like this- the mom should have allowed her daughter the dang apple. I was chubby as a kid, I don't blame my parents. I'm definitely not saying that every parent with a chubby child is to blame for that. Obviously there are tons of reasons as to why children are chubby...But if you're denying your child fruit and making them eat greasy pizza and burgers.. shame on you. Okay, off my soapbox.

    Thanks for letting me vent.
    Yes it's the parents fault. IMO childhood obesity is child abuse/ neglect. It is your job to provide your child with good health, as well as being able to take some time and teach them proper nutrition and exercise. No child should be suffering from preventable diseases like diabetes, respiratory problems etc.
  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
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    I would, for the most part, say yes, parents are at fault. But I don't know the specifics in each circumstance so I try not to judge.

    And yeah, fruit is the only thing I'll let my kids have before meals.
  • lyttlewon
    lyttlewon Posts: 1,118 Member
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    Today I was at the Chiropractor and a little girl told her mom "I want an apple!" they had them sitting out along with some other fruit for patients to eat. Her mom just ignored her. Once again she told her mom "Mom, I want to eat an apple!" The girl was about 4-5 years old at most. After a few times of telling her how badly she wanted an apple, her mom replied "You want an apple? Wouldn't you rather have a big juicy burger or a nice pizza?" The girl said "no, I want an apple". The mom actually told her "No, it might ruin your appetite, we're going to get burgers when we leave". REALLY? It made me so disappointed.

    I'm not saying that EVERY child that is over weight should blame their parents choices. However, I think in cases like this- the mom should have allowed her daughter the dang apple. I was chubby as a kid, I don't blame my parents. I'm definitely not saying that every parent with a chubby child is to blame for that. Obviously there are tons of reasons as to why children are chubby...But if you're denying your child fruit and making them eat greasy pizza and burgers.. shame on you. Okay, off my soapbox.

    Thanks for letting me vent.
    Yes it's the parents fault. IMO this is child abuse/ neglect. It is your job to provide your child with good health, as well as being able to take some time and teach them proper nutrition and exercise. No child should be suffering from preventable diseases like diabetes, respiratory problems etc.

    Telling a kid they can't have an apple isn't child abuse. Good grief. Maybe the kid already at a ton of fruit that day.
  • SmileyFaceGuy
    SmileyFaceGuy Posts: 201
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    Yes, I think it's the parents fault up until a certain age, like junior high or high school when the kids earn their own cash and can buy food from school or while hanging out with friends. Parents should be restricting snacks and cooking healthy for their kids. There's really no excuse for them when it comes to their overweight kids.

    Just because parents don't moderate the food intake of their older, self-sufficient children doesn't mean that they aren't responsible for the children's eating habits. I think being taught poor eating habits growing up puts you at a life-long disadvantage. If the poor eating habits are developed after they've started choosing their own food, then that's different.
  • Eve23
    Eve23 Posts: 2,352 Member
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    Wow that is an incredible and sad story. The child was making a healthy choice and the parent was making a not so great choice. Very sad indeed.
  • lilacsun
    lilacsun Posts: 204 Member
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    Usually it is the parents fault. My special needs daughter had a weight problem and is learning how to eat healthy and has lost 25 lbs so far.
  • Serenstar75
    Serenstar75 Posts: 258 Member
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    It's absolutely a parent's fault when a child is overweight. Sometimes the budget is hard on families too if there are many kids, but this mom was horrendous. My daughter was thin. She never really wants soda, candy, cake or anything like that. I taught her what to eat even though I was far from perfect. I grew up with cakes and cookies and I fought with that my whole life. I didn't want her to do that. She's 18 in a couple of days and she's thin. I encouraged her to be active as well and now I can only hope she stays with those healthy habits.

    I do notice too, when it's a special needs child, things can be different. Body types, ability to get them to understand exercise, certain things like that. They changed my niece's intake greatly as she was a chubby bubby and now she's a little too thin, but it's all her heart can handle (at 7 years old.)
  • islandmonkey
    islandmonkey Posts: 546 Member
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    I see both sides...I want me kids to eat there dinner...even a healthy snack will ruin there apetites.


    I don't quite understand this whole "keep the kid hungry so they can eat when *I* say they can eat", and that feeding when they are hungry is somehow "ruining" their appetite?


    Definition of appetite: "A natural desire to satisfy a bodily need, esp. for food"

    So....we don't want to "ruin" this uncomfortable, hungry feeling for them? We want them to keep feeling hungry?


    I just don't get it.

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