Childhood Obesity= CHILD ABUSE
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Wait, what happens to the parents that feed their kids pure junk but the kids aren't fat??? :huh:
I guarantee that they are at risk for other medical problems. I have a six year old cousin who suffers from high cholesterol (due to his diet) yet is not classified as obese. That is just as much as a problem as obesity.... and it has happened because his mom has let him eat junk for wayyyyyyyy too long. The whole cabinets are stocked with it and easily accessed by the kid when no one is looking. I would like to point out that I did NOT once say don't let kids eat "junk" foods....... I said that parents need to teach moderation........ and you can eat anything in proper moderation and balance. MFP proves that itself, as the whole idea of counting calories doesn't completely ban or limit foods. However, weight is not the only problem you could have from eating junk all day and nothing nutritious.0 -
You don't have kids. You don't know what it's like raising them. Your opinion counts for nothing.
Wow. This right here is why having constructive, adult conversations is impossible on a forum.
It's not impossible - but when you're a parent and literally everyone has a freaking opinion about your parenting when they've never me you or your child you get frustrated. There is *so* much judgment being thrown at parents.
I don't automatically discount opinions of non-parents, but some are so ridiculous that I have to. Does that make sense? You can have an opinion - of course you can. But it's like me having an opinion on your golf swing - I literally have no experience, so you wouldn't take my opinion very seriously, would you?
Well, technically no one came out and said your parenting skill/style was poor. If anyone did and I missed, then I don't agree with that. My belief is that a morbidly obese child is that way due to a significant failure on the part of the parent(s). First, morbidly obese means really, really overweight. Not just chubby, or obese according to the accursed BMI. Second, by child, I mean less than 16. The age where the child is still really dependent on the parent.
Lastly, you would be right about my golf swing. I almost killed my mother-in-law at a driving range :happy: Critique away... But even though you don't swing a club, maybe your sibling/parent/friend is a pro golfer that you've picked up a lot of info from? See, don't be so quick to judge/make assumptions.0 -
How is that a problem with the capitalist system itself? What economic system do you believe is best suited for food production?What I'm reading is a lot of excuses. "My parents weren't educated about nutrition" "Nobody knew any better"......... hmmmmmm with all of the resources available for free on the internet nowadays, although I know back in the day it was much harder to access information.... there really is no excuse other than poverty to not be educated and implementing proper nutrition into a child's lifestyle. I DO agree with other posters that this is not just a parenting problem, this is ALSO a problem with the capitalist system in general. For example:
It is NOT solely the parents fault, however........ the fact that parents on here believe they should have no responsibility and the responsibility should be on the innocent child have flawed logic it seems to me.
I don't think that kids should be put in foster care in the majority of cases IF the parents are willing to educate themselves or become educated.
This is a problem with the capitalist system because companies are willing to serve low quality foods at cheap prices in order to make maximum profit. In the capitalist system, competition and free market economics are the prominent dynamic, thus, the cheaper a company can make a product, without sacrificing quality to the point that no-one would buy it.... the cheaper the company will do it to stay on top. This is why McDonalds has been on top for ages......... yet........ go to McDonalds and try to buy a salad and the price is quite higher than cheeseburger.... Why is this? Probably not just because the ingredients are more expensive, but also because they know they have a large market audience of people looking to get healthy or stay healthy and therefore will sacrifice more money to have fresh healthy food when on the go. Simple supply and demand really.
The price for salad is higher because salad items are fresh (not frozen) and it costs more to maintain the supply chain of non-frozen items. McD's is in business because people buy their food. If people don't want to eat McDs food, then they can exercise some personal responsibility and make a different choice.
Or how about the cost is higher because corn is subsidized? And now that corn prices are going up, farmers are feeding their cows rainbow sprinkles and cookies because that's still cheaper. And why is it cheaper? Subsidies. There is no free market and people without sufficient funds to buy healthier food have no choice but to buy the artificially cheap subsidized foods, therefore personal responsibility does not apply.
It is possible to buy frozen veggies on the cheap. Actually, frozen vegetables are just as "healthy" as fresh veggies because they are frozen during their prime ripe time. There are also certain cuts of meat, beans and rice. So, yes, there are options out there. I'm not saying it's easy though and, surely, when you are busy fast food is an appealing option.0 -
I'm late to the party. And too lazy to quote anyone.
I had foster brothers/sisters growing up. Being in a foster care and going to therapy didn't prevent them from gaining weight.
I had an overweight dog, because of medication for his auto immune disease. Putting him on a strict diet worked.
I have an overweight cat. Mostly because I moved from the country, where she could run outside all day, to the city, where she now lives indoors. I began restricting her food intake, and within a year she gained more.
My child is not overweight. But she can be a picky eater. As am I.
Also, in for gifs. And judgey mcjudgerson on their high horse.0 -
Ive read this same argument adnauseum on these boards and truly wonder if any of the posters who disagree that healthy food is more expensive have ever been poor?
Not all cities have farmers markets to get cheap produce. ( So dont even use that as an excuse) There hasnt been one anywhere near me since the 70s. As for growing in your yard.... It doesnt grow all year round and i for one wouldnt eat anything grown in this soil lol ( I did SPEND the money to build above ground garden boxes though but i can afford to do that now)
Have you ever had to scrounge through furniture or for bottles to feed your family?
You manage to find $2 please tell me what you are going to buy to feed your family of 3?
a pack of hot dogs or a head of lettuce... You ever been in this situation?
And this. You can get two tacos from Jack in the Box for a dollar. I can literally feed my entire family for $5. You can't even get a pound of chicken for that, let alone an entire meal.
I know and micky D's has the dollar menu. I can buy 10 double cheeseburgers for 10 bux feed the entire family.
Hubby shops for us cause we have one car and every time I make a list of salad stuff and low-fat stuff, he comes home and tells me this stuff is way too expensive.0 -
There are four categories of child abuse- emotional, physical, sexual and neglect.
I happen to agree that allowing a child to reach the stage of obesity (we're talking obesity here, not being chubby, or overweight but a child being obese) is a type of neglect and is therefore abusive.
I trained as a social worker and did part if my training was done in a primary school. If a child came to school and they were clearly under nourished alarm bells would ring immediately. It is wrong to not feed your child enough because it is bad for their health, why then should it be deemed acceptable for a child to be fed so much that they become obese. Children today are getting type 2 diabetes for goodness sake.. if that isn't abusive I don't know what is.
That said, does that make the parents of obese children unloving abusers who need their children removed from their care? Of course not. Many parents who are physically abusive don't realise that they are and can be educated on better parenting techniques, a parent suffering from crippling depression might not be able to care for their children properly, are they an abusive person? Again, no. Should they seek out help for their children of course.
The issue is with education, and if a parent is unaware of how to help their child maintain or reach a healthy weight then they should find help or educate themselves. If they fail to do so they set their child ul for a life of obesity and all the may many associated health risks. That is irresponsible, it is neglectful and in my opinion it is abusive.
The very nice, educated user who posted this quote deserves an award for awesomeness. Kudos! Abuse is abuse! The word sounds extreme but the literal meaning of abuse is in accord with the idea I'm aiming at. Abuse doesn't always have to mean hitting or beating.
So then everyone on here are self-abusers? I just think its a bit rich to post on an a forum "childhood obesity = CHILD ABUSE"
But by all means if you want to advocate calling people abusers when actually most likely what you are looking at is families who love there children and lack education in nutrition... yeah take them away. Stick them in foster care. That will of course solve all problems.0 -
Ive read this same argument adnauseum on these boards and truly wonder if any of the posters who disagree that healthy food is more expensive have ever been poor?
Not all cities have farmers markets to get cheap produce. ( So dont even use that as an excuse) There hasnt been one anywhere near me since the 70s. As for growing in your yard.... It doesnt grow all year round and i for one wouldnt eat anything grown in this soil lol ( I did SPEND the money to build above ground garden boxes though but i can afford to do that now)
Have you ever had to scrounge through furniture or for bottles to feed your family?
You manage to find $2 please tell me what you are going to buy to feed your family of 3?
a pack of hot dogs or a head of lettuce... You ever been in this situation?
And this. You can get two tacos from Jack in the Box for a dollar. I can literally feed my entire family for $5. You can't even get a pound of chicken for that, let alone an entire meal.
I think this has a lot to do with where you live, too. Feeding a family at McDs here will cost more than $5, even with the dollar menu (which is limited and not really a dollar here).
ETA: At the same time, I do realize I'm lucky. I live in the country and there are numerous farms with community sharing programs.0 -
How is that a problem with the capitalist system itself? What economic system do you believe is best suited for food production?What I'm reading is a lot of excuses. "My parents weren't educated about nutrition" "Nobody knew any better"......... hmmmmmm with all of the resources available for free on the internet nowadays, although I know back in the day it was much harder to access information.... there really is no excuse other than poverty to not be educated and implementing proper nutrition into a child's lifestyle. I DO agree with other posters that this is not just a parenting problem, this is ALSO a problem with the capitalist system in general. For example:
It is NOT solely the parents fault, however........ the fact that parents on here believe they should have no responsibility and the responsibility should be on the innocent child have flawed logic it seems to me.
I don't think that kids should be put in foster care in the majority of cases IF the parents are willing to educate themselves or become educated.
This is a problem with the capitalist system because companies are willing to serve low quality foods at cheap prices in order to make maximum profit. In the capitalist system, competition and free market economics are the prominent dynamic, thus, the cheaper a company can make a product, without sacrificing quality to the point that no-one would buy it.... the cheaper the company will do it to stay on top. This is why McDonalds has been on top for ages......... yet........ go to McDonalds and try to buy a salad and the price is quite higher than cheeseburger.... Why is this? Probably not just because the ingredients are more expensive, but also because they know they have a large market audience of people looking to get healthy or stay healthy and therefore will sacrifice more money to have fresh healthy food when on the go. Simple supply and demand really.
The price for salad is higher because salad items are fresh (not frozen) and it costs more to maintain the supply chain of non-frozen items. McD's is in business because people buy their food. If people don't want to eat McDs food, then they can exercise some personal responsibility and make a different choice.
Or how about the cost is higher because corn is subsidized? And now that corn prices are going up, farmers are feeding their cows rainbow sprinkles and cookies because that's still cheaper. And why is it cheaper? Subsidies. There is no free market and people without sufficient funds to buy healthier food have no choice but to buy the artificially cheap subsidized foods, therefore personal responsibility does not apply.
It is possible to buy frozen veggies on the cheap. Actually, frozen vegetables are just as "healthy" as fresh veggies because they are frozen during their prime ripe time. There are also certain cuts of meat, beans and rice. So, yes, there are options out there. I'm not saying it's easy though and, surely, when you are busy fast food is an appealing option.
Instead of arguing with you when I know very well no study I post showing unhealthy food is cheaper will sway you, how about we all as a nation try this experiment: Let's get rid of all the subsidies for junky foods and corn and put them on fruits and vegetables instead, and then we'll see what happens. If everyone is still fat and stuffing their pie holes with twinkies, I'll admit defeat.0 -
Leaving aside that anyone that poor gets subsidized food, I can buy three pounds of chicken for what a McDonalds meal would cost me.Ive read this same argument adnauseum on these boards and truly wonder if any of the posters who disagree that healthy food is more expensive have ever been poor?
Not all cities have farmers markets to get cheap produce. ( So dont even use that as an excuse) There hasnt been one anywhere near me since the 70s. As for growing in your yard.... It doesnt grow all year round and i for one wouldnt eat anything grown in this soil lol ( I did SPEND the money to build above ground garden boxes though but i can afford to do that now)
Have you ever had to scrounge through furniture or for bottles to feed your family?
You manage to find $2 please tell me what you are going to buy to feed your family of 3?
a pack of hot dogs or a head of lettuce... You ever been in this situation?0 -
What I'm reading is a lot of excuses. "My parents weren't educated about nutrition" "Nobody knew any better"......... hmmmmmm with all of the resources available for free on the internet nowadays, although I know back in the day it was much harder to access information.... there really is no excuse other than poverty to not be educated and implementing proper nutrition into a child's lifestyle. I DO agree with other posters that this is not just a parenting problem, this is ALSO a problem with the capitalist system in general. For example:
It is NOT solely the parents fault, however........ the fact that parents on here believe they should have no responsibility and the responsibility should be on the innocent child have flawed logic it seems to me.
I don't think that kids should be put in foster care in the majority of cases IF the parents are willing to educate themselves or become educated.
Have you not read anything any of the parents on here have explained??? Seriously, all you see are excuses, are you kidding me???
I don't have kids but I can relate to every single parent on here. You cannot just shove healthy food down a kid's mouth and expect them to happily eat it. Making bean soup is not rocket science but getting many kids to eat it is. I have seen example after example of parents instilling very good eating skills in their children in this thread but still the children refuse the healthy food at times and the parents won't let them go without nutrition so they make sacrifices. When you become a parent it's not about you anymore.
I was born with IBS and extreme food sensitivities so I would get sick over random foods that I usually ate with no problem and then I would refuse them for months. What would you have done if you were my parents? My parents fed me what I could keep down, which wasn't always the healthiest food. I had many babysitters with the eat everything on your plate mentality who didn't understand I couldn't eat a lot at one time without getting sick and would make me sit at the table for up to 6 hours until my mom showed up to get me.0 -
totally disagree.
I am with you on that one... vile vile vile post0 -
Instead of arguing with you when I know very well no study I post showing unhealthy food is cheaper will sway you, how about we all as a nation try this experiment: Let's get rid of all the subsidies for junky foods and corn and put them on fruits and vegetables instead, and then we'll see what happens. If everyone is still fat and stuffing their pie holes with twinkies, I'll admit defeat.
interesting. I'm pretty sure you don't know me at all to make such an assessment. I'm also not arguing. I'm simply pointing to some options.0 -
Instead of arguing with you when I know very well no study I post showing unhealthy food is cheaper will sway you, how about we all as a nation try this experiment: Let's get rid of all the subsidies for junky foods and corn and put them on fruits and vegetables instead, and then we'll see what happens. If everyone is still fat and stuffing their pie holes with twinkies, I'll admit defeat.
interesting. I'm pretty sure you don't know me at all to make such an assessment. I'm also not arguing. I'm simply pointing to some options.
Sorry if I was snippy, but wouldn't it be a fantastic experiment to try? It sure couldn't hurt.0 -
Instead of arguing with you when I know very well no study I post showing unhealthy food is cheaper will sway you, how about we all as a nation try this experiment: Let's get rid of all the subsidies for junky foods and corn and put them on fruits and vegetables instead, and then we'll see what happens. If everyone is still fat and stuffing their pie holes with twinkies, I'll admit defeat.
interesting. I'm pretty sure you don't know me at all to make such an assessment. I'm also not arguing. I'm simply pointing to some options.
Sorry if I was snippy, but wouldn't it be a fantastic experiment to try? It sure couldn't hurt.
I believe in free markets. I would like nothing more than to get rid of subsidies.0 -
yes and no... many parents do not control the type or amounts of foods their child eats nor get them out playing/exercising... when a girl of 12 died from morbid obesity and the mom said I had no control over it... WRONG who the heck paid for and in this case since the child was bedridden brought into the house all this food?
CDC 1 in 3 morbidly obese child, ALSO 1 in 3 is suffering from anorexia.
Is putting them (children) in foster care the answer? nope not in MOST cases. What we need to do is teach the parents how to buy and cook meals, how to make healthy choices and make sure they have the funds to do this. We need to teach the children how to make healthy choices too as they age it will become a habit. We also could provide programs for FREE fitness, (and/or sliding scale fees) make sure they can access it and make sure they ALL know how to do the routines...0 -
Yea, attacking the parents isn't the solution.
Our problem is that crap food is the food that keeps the longest and is prepackaged for convenience. Convenience usually wins over healthiest. With two parent working families it gets harder and harder to provide fresh fruit and vegetables or even to prepare meals from scratch rather than a drive through at McD or BK.
Our society is JUST as much to blame because we let capitalism do this to us as much as anything else.
So, I don't buy this one. Why aren't sodas, candies, cakes and other obvious luxury junk foods taxed like cigarettes as a simple example.
There are solutions, but blaming parents isn't it.
If my kid was only offered whole and nutritious food, she would starve.... and then I would be charged with neglect... does she eat whole and nutritous food... sure... but not as much as she should... and force feeding a 30 lb bag of snakes in the body of a threenager... yeah, you try and see how that works for you.... I'm lucky if I can get her to eat two bites of anything that consists of homemade meals and snacks.
And you are taking personal responsibility for the fact that your child doesn't eat good solid nutrition that comes from home made meals and snacks???
I take it you groomed her taste buds to eat junk food all in the name of "at least she is eating something?"0 -
You don't have kids. You don't know what it's like raising them. Your opinion counts for nothing.
Wow. This right here is why having constructive, adult conversations is impossible on a forum.
It's not impossible - but when you're a parent and literally everyone has a freaking opinion about your parenting when they've never me you or your child you get frustrated. There is *so* much judgment being thrown at parents.
I don't automatically discount opinions of non-parents, but some are so ridiculous that I have to. Does that make sense? You can have an opinion - of course you can. But it's like me having an opinion on your golf swing - I literally have no experience, so you wouldn't take my opinion very seriously, would you?
Well, technically no one came out and said your parenting skill/style was poor. If anyone did and I missed, then I don't agree with that. My belief is that a morbidly obese child is that way due to a significant failure on the part of the parent(s). First, morbidly obese means really, really overweight. Not just chubby, or obese according to the accursed BMI. Second, by child, I mean less than 16. The age where the child is still really dependent on the parent.
Lastly, you would be right about my golf swing. I almost killed my mother-in-law at a driving range :happy: Critique away... But even though you don't swing a club, maybe your sibling/parent/friend is a pro golfer that you've picked up a lot of info from? See, don't be so quick to judge/make assumptions.
I'm speaking generally. Neither of my children are obese, so nothing in this thread is about me, even in a general sense.
I don't automatically dismiss any opinions, either. I'm not the poster you quoted, but I did want to try to explain the reason people feel strongly about it.
I am more apt to take advice from someone who is a parent. It's just like this battlefield we're all on together and though it's cliche, you cannot understand what it's like until you're there in the trenches.
Morbidly obese children - sure, in part it's the failure of the parents, but that doesn't mean it's intentional - and because of that I have a hard time calling it abuse.0 -
Yea, attacking the parents isn't the solution.
Our problem is that crap food is the food that keeps the longest and is prepackaged for convenience. Convenience usually wins over healthiest. With two parent working families it gets harder and harder to provide fresh fruit and vegetables or even to prepare meals from scratch rather than a drive through at McD or BK.
Our society is JUST as much to blame because we let capitalism do this to us as much as anything else.
So, I don't buy this one. Why aren't sodas, candies, cakes and other obvious luxury junk foods taxed like cigarettes as a simple example.
There are solutions, but blaming parents isn't it.
I am sorry, but it is the parents fault. Get up 10 minutes earlier in the morning to prep meat and veggies in the crock pot to have supper ready when you get home from work.
I will always blame the parents. They are the ones buying the frozen foods or running their vehicle through the drive through lines at the fast food joint.
Buy the fresh vegetables, fruits, meats, etc................prep them and eat them. If anyone says they don't have time, they obviously have no time management skills.
Per the CDC:
The dietary and physical activity behaviors of children and adolescents are influenced by many sectors of society, including families, communities, schools, child care settings, medical care providers, faith-based institutions, government agencies, the media, and the food and beverage industries and entertainment industries.
Schools play a particularly critical role by establishing a safe and supportive environment with policies and practices that support healthy behaviors. Schools also provide opportunities for students to learn about and practice healthy eating and physical activity behaviors.
http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/obesity/facts.htm
That doesn't absolve parents at all - but hopefully it will make you realize that there are many, many contributing factors that lead to obesity in children.
I agree with you. I do realize this............ I guess what I want parents to be held accountable for is TEACHING and EDUCATION from an early age on proper nutrition...... thus, when the child goes out into the public world..such as at school.... (without a packed lunch from home) they at least have an idea of what is good to choose. Not saying that the child would choose the best option, as kids want to eat what they see other kids eating...... but this knowledge will be in them, that way when they get old enough to understand they can make informed decisions about food choices. I'm not saying "Starve" your kids or keep them from eating cookies or drinking pop or having some pizza. I'm not saying that..........I'm saying teach them the appropriate amounts of these things to have and that some foods are only meant to have as treats or once in a while. Pop or soda is a great example because it really has no real nutritional value and should be enjoyed on a select basis... Not drank with every meal....... as water should be.. Let your kids know that milk is a better choice than soda pop and maybe they will gravitate towards milk if they are used to having that more often. Its not a perfect solution and its not going to SOLVE childhood obesity as there are many many factors. Nothing wrong with trying to change one factor at a time however. Effective change comes in small, incremental steps.0 -
Just so I get this straight, according to the OP, my son should have been taken away from me when he was younger because someone who is not his parent decided what was best for him without taking anything else into consideration other than his weight. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong, please.
Just because they are younger and fall into the "obese" category, doesn't mean they stay that way forever. My son was a chubby baby and a chubby kid, partly because of me and partly because of him. Would I change anything? Nope. He turned out just fine. Natural progression of teenage years, high school football, getting out with friends and being active. I never put him on a diet, told him he was fat or that he needed to fix anything, it just happened with him doing his things.
There is no blanket fix for the world.0 -
The weakness of your lack of argument shines through every personal attack.
A hamburger obviously CAN be, but since you seem unaware, the landslide majority of hamburger consumption comes from crappy fast food. Goes without saying that I'm not referring to the real deal. At least it should lol.
You wanna talk weak arguments?
You're a non-parent, telling other parents how easy it is to make their kids eat healthy food, when you clearly have a problem doing it just for yourself, much less anyone else, much less a child.
You may not like that it's personal. But I don't like people with no idea what they're talking about lecturing others.
There are not enough "boom"s for this post.
BTW i am a parent of a TRUE picky eater.. And he WOULD starve himself if he didnt like a certain food.. This a kid will eat eventually when they are hungry. How good would a parent be if a kid refused dinner because he didnt like it and wouldnt eat breakfast then had to go to school hungry.. It happens. Have you any IDEA how stubborn children really are? See how long you last as an actual parent when the true loves of your life do this. Soooo tell me how you can force a child to eat what they dont want? I really would love to know.. So please enlighten me.... My father was a marine. When i didnt want something I would be forced to sit there until it was eaten. If i still wouldnt eat it I would get cuffed upside the head. Try doing something like that today
Teach your kids to grow up and eat what you put in front of them. In many cases parents are scared of their kids and cave to their demands because instead of eating grilled chicken, they would rather eat a bowl of cinnamon toast crunch. I see this with my sister and her son often and it pisses me off. 6 year old kids should not be calling the shots to their parents.
So eating what is put in front of you is being a grown up? Then I guess I'm not a grown up. People aren't scared of their kids. They respect that kids are, believe it or not, actual human beings. And as human beings have preferences, tastes, thoughts and ideas all their own!
Why is it that parenting experts are always the ones without kids?[\b]
Because they are more dispassionate about the problem. When you have nothing invested, you can look at a problem objectively and apply common sense, instead of raising your defenses and coming up with a million different reasons why you can't do it another way.
There is a reason that babysitters and other childcare givers can often get kids to eat things their parents think they won't or properly behave when the parents think that is impossible. Because they can be dispassionate and the kid soon realizes that all the buttons they've learned to push with their parents don't work with the new person.
And yes, of course, there are always kids that are exceptions and this doesn't work for them - like someone else mentioned, autistic children might have such a hard time with textures that they just will not eat anything soft (or whatever). Those kinds of things you need to accommodate, that's not a 'picky' kid. That's a kid with an actual health issue that needs to be managed.0
This discussion has been closed.
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