Speak Out!
Parents Should Take the Lead
Sun, 09/16/2007 - 23:15 | FamilyHealthYouth
Results of a Consumer Reports poll show that 50% of parents who have overweight or obese children don't realize their children weigh too much. USA Today followed up with an article asking “Why are parents in denial about kids' weight?”
Experts in childhood nutrition aren't surprised by a poll this summer that shows 50% of parents who have overweight or obese children don't realize their children weigh too much. An estimated 25 million children in the USA are overweight or obese, which puts them at risk of developing type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and other health problems.What can be done to get more parents to acknowledge their kids’ weight issues?
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Brother Smiley, The problem
Brother Smiley,
The problem with childhood obesity appears to be an additional function of the overall deficiencies with parents. Basically, food is another pacifier. Just like
video games,cell phones, clothing, web time, etc... The focus has strayed from raising kids, to pacifying them.
Parents don't seem to take the strong leadership position with their kids. I constantly see parents asking their children for proper behavior. I suppose these parents believe that their child's future employer will do the same. "Mike, could you please turn in those year-end financial reports? I'll give you a cookie buddy?!"
From the top down, our country is being pulled down by the powerful weight of excuses. Thus, people do not have the courage to stand up against even the smallest of hurdles presented to them, such as the difficult statement, "No. You don't need a donut."
As a child I ate all the time: Oranges, celery with peanut butter, bananas, pee-cans and my favorite cantelope with ice cream. Usually, this was just after I came in the door huffing and puffing from whoopin up on somebody playing football, swimming, tennis, chasing the dog, or just chasing my own butt running in circles.
No, I didn't always eat healthy. Yes, I wolfed down a few boxes of yellow cake mix...just the mix...with a spoon...and it was good...and I'll do it again!
The solution to the issue of childhood obesity begins with making parents feel, or rather understand, what they are doing to their child. Pounding them over the head with the resulting health issues, and quality of life deterioration that they cause. Helping parents to understand that that are encouraging the habits that their child will display for the remainder of their life - good or bad.
We know where parents are. They are not hard to find, and their is no shortage of organizations that serve the purpose of community health. When they come to these places, they must get "jumped' with the information. If you come to this daycare, you will get jumped. If you come to this grocery store, you will get jumped. When you leave this waterpark, you will get jumped. We must jump on people, because plain and simple: people are hard headed, and nobody is perfect.
When I didn't do as my parents thought was best for me, I got jumped - mentally, if not otherwise. I am glad my parents jumped on me, and I'm now happy to jump on kids. The best wish to come out of a child's mouth is: "I wish they would get off my case!" That means their case got jumped on. Gotta go, before
my boss jumps on my case.
Supercalifragilisticexpealidocious! - my Moms favorite word
I have worked for 15 years to
I have worked for 15 years to increase awareness of hepatitis C in the black Community. I have a video made by my dear friend, Ronnie Howell, who died of hepatitis C in his forties.
I do not know where else to put this on your site but I am here today to tell you this: the black community is in serious trouble due to obesity and hepatitis C, tattooing, and other risks. While the pharmaceutical companies have been busy selling a toxic and ineffective treatment to inmates, and patients of all races, the prevention message which is critical in the black community is not being heard.
I cannot tell you why. I cannot begin to guess what comes internally from the hearts and minds of this rich and wonderfully warm community. I can tell you this: an obese 12 year old child can have cirrhosis of the liver. If that child's mother has hepatitis C, the child may have it also making that strike two. If that same child chooses to be tattooed, they may add another strain of hepatitis c. If that child experiments with anything inhaled (any smoke at all, pollution lead dust, etc), injected (steroids, whatever) or ingested (alcohol, for example) that child is is infectious to others and on the path to a painful demise or a liver transplant (which, due to disparities in access to healthcare specialist, they may never be referred for) Black people do not donate organs.
My race and my gender have nothing to do with this message because the virus has no race or gender. Black people do not respond to the available medications. That means that prevention, education, awareness and lifestyle choices, including food, exercise, etc matter and it matters so much that if the black community fails to listen, black men, in particular will be dying in larger numbers from liver cancer and cirrhosis.
I have, literally, funded black community leaders to attend a conference on this topic at the NIH in 1999. Yes, 1999.
What came of it? NOTHING.
You have to love your community enough to take action to save yourselves and each other. I tell you this with a pure heart: it is either that or perish. I can train you but you have to go into your community and use what you are given for your own benefit.
Jesse Jackson would not hear me, Dr. Barrow would not listen to me. Surgeon General Satcher tried and failed.
Please tell me how is someone you lock out able to help you help yourselves or, at least, motivate you to take up he issue?
I know I can't. I will not take pharmaceutical money and will not last long without something to go on. I have given it my best shot. Now, it is up to you, and you, and you, and you, and you.
Do something!
Teresa Hanbey
Hepatitis C Outreach Project
www.hcop.org
African American mothers are
African American mothers are the least likely to breastfeed their children. This is the beginning of the problem. Breastfed Babies work harder to get their food. Breastfeeding babies will stop nursing when they are full. Bottlefed babies will stop when mom takes the bottle out. Therefore children who were breastfed tend to stop eating when they are full and bottlefed babies stop when their plates are clean whether they are full or not.
Formula is based on cows milk and is loaded with fat. It's for baby cows! Breastmilk is low in fat and has living components to protect the child from illness and disease and has factors for eye and brain development. A child can survive for the first six months of life on breastmilk alone without a drop of water. I know I've breastfed six.
Feeding behaviors begin at birth. Why are our sisters not breastfeeding?
It's a sad testimony to the
It's a sad testimony to the state of the spiritual disposition of man when we have become so bitter we have lost the ability to discern humility, dedication, respect, and true concern when we see it. (I refer to this as post traumatic spiritual disconnect syndrome.) As a hopeful cynic, that exercises faith in an ever-darkening world, I understand it is only through grace that any of us can remain calm under stress, contain our emotion under attack, and maintain our integrity while expressing our views and beliefs.
My father was one of the smartest, committed, and strong black men I have ever known; his ability to make his point effectively without sacrificing his dignity and honor, priceless. I equate Tavis's demeanor, character, and attitude with that of my father, and because of his presence in this world, I in turn am becoming slightly less of the cynic I used to be. I feel fortunate that we have such a man as Tavis, in such a time as this, working daily to shed some light in an ever darkening world. Thank you Tavis, for all you do and all you aspire to do; I'm proud to call you brother.
First of all I sincerely
First of all I sincerely offer my gratitude to Mr. Smiley for organizing the forum for people of color; he didn't have to do it but he did. There is only so much time allotted in these forums, and I think the questions asked were pertinent. I gained a bit more insight into the candidates that showed up and I am now better informed about their political framework and intentions. I understand there's another debate scheduled for you-tube, perhaps you can submit your questions there, respectfully, I don't believe Andersen Cooper will ask every question you deem important either, it just doesn't work that way.
As far as blackness, I'm not quite clear about what you meant; and so I won't assume. I will just say actions speak louder than words, and in my thought,
Mr. Smiley has shown his proficiency in both aspects when referencing the Black Community.
Two things I found disappointing, the front runners concluding the black community was not worthy of their time or attention, and some of the responses from the attending candidates, even though it was not unexpected. Ron Paul on Darfur was extremely upsetting, although many of us may find this issue unimportant.
Peace Be with you
Tavis , WHY WHY WHY WHY r u
Tavis ,
WHY WHY WHY WHY r u SO TRUSTFUL OF THE RACIST PART OF AMERICA. WHY DO YOU HOST A DEBATE AND APPEAR AFRAID TO GET DIRECT ANSWERS FROM THOSE WHO NEED TO GIVE DIRECT ANSWERS ???
I KNOW THAT YOU HAVE DONE MANY GOOD THINGS, BUT COME ON; SHOW SOME MAN-UP ,SOME PASSION, SOME GET ANSWERS-NESS, SOME MORE BLACKNESS, SOME LESS SO PERFECTLY POLITE...BE LEADER-FUL.
I WAS DISAPPOINTED THAT THERE WAS SO MANY QUESTIONS LEFT UNANSWERED AND THEN NOT EVEN CHALLENGED. OUR GROUP WAS HIGHLY DISAPPOINTED..IT WAS NOT WORTH WATCHING
Yes, parents have a big
Yes, parents have a big responsibility but as a working single mother I have to rely on the school system - what has happened to the P.E. programs in school? My oldest daughter who is now 16 years old has never really had P.E. in any of the schools she has attended. My 7 year old has P.E. but all they do is play outside. There isn't any structured exercise program.
In the African American
In the African American community, we seem to be confused. We do not want anything to do with things that are old fashion except when it comes to food. We do not want to let go of what we think an old tradition of eating certain foods is. Why is this?
My daughter was teased for being skinny by other kids who were all overweight. They were the norm and my child was the odd one out. How did the exception become the rule? Being overweight seems to be normal. How many time have your heard, you need to put some meat on them bones. Well, we’ve accomplished that.
My daughters are fit and healthy due to parental awareness. I know that food today is not of the same quality it was when I was a child. When I was a kid, overweight children were the exception not the rule. My daughter would fit in with children during my childhood years perfectly.
As a parent, I first solved my weight and health issues and began to focus on my children’s health and wellness as well. This is what other parents have to do. They need to know that balance and moderation is the key to good health. They also need to know that today's food contains lots of additives like growth hormones, preservatives, pesticides, MSG, Gluten, and sugar. If it is packages, are most likely contain sugar, preservatives, MSG, hormones to name a few. All of these additives are eaten all day everyday by our families in large portions contributing to weight and health issues.
Producers, manufacturers, and the government have to bear some of the blame as well. The government allows some of these additives like MSG and Sugar go without warning. My research shows that MSG, Sugar, and Gluten are all linked to obesity and diabetes. We eat this every day for lunch, breakfast, dinner and our snacks add up to diabetes and/or obesity. We all know that you will eventually have high blood pressure as well.
These diseases were not in our family history for many of us. It is in fact fairly new for our parents and their parents if they lived past the 1980’s. Prior to the late 80’s our older adult population lived long and were healthy until the last few days, or weeks, or months of their life. Today we are getting sick in our late 30’s and remaining sick for the rest of our lives which is being shortened. Our children now have adult diseases.
We need to stay informed on topics that affect our families. My contribution to this epidemic is a web site called just that www.stayinformed.info where I have compiled information regarding these topics. Its purpose is to make people aware of the harm some our foods may cause.
Tavis, I notice that you seem
Tavis, I notice that you seem to be stuck on these weight issues, particularly with children. I wonder what your fascination with it is, especially since so many other people chose to ignore it? But I'm glad that at least someone wants to talk about it.
As far as getting parents to acknowledge the weight issue, I don't know what else can be done. Same thing applies to this situation as with getting parents to monitor the kids' behavior in anything else like school, and staying on the right course in every other part of life. But I do know that if parents don't show any concern, they will continue the cycle of rearing unhealthy people.
If a parent were physically
If a parent were physically abusing their child, he or she would be arrested. If a parent knowingly allowed his child to drink alcohol or do drugs, that parent would be penalized. Failure to monitor your child's eating and exercise habits IS A FORM OF PHYSICAL ABUSE which leads to tangible negative effects of the child's mental and/or physical abilities, and, although it sounds radical, I think it may be time to consider charging irresponsible parents with Child Abuse or Child Endangerment.
Tavis; Parents should be very
Tavis; Parents should be very mindful of their children's health, which should start in infancy. If the parents would start their children out in eating a balanced diet, [which includes vegetables and fruits, plus whole grain foods] and none of fast food; there shouldn't be any problems. But the parents [or grandparents/
guardians] let the children graze just about all day at the wrong places; which the children have seen on TV. I have seen and known children from the ages of 4years to 24+years that were obese from eating the wrong foods; because they lacked true love, attention and affection. The parents don't think about the child[rens]health until they [the children] come up with childhood diabetes, heart conditions, high blood pressure, teeth/gum problems, etc.
These may be medical problems that the children will have for life. Even if the child[ren] were born with certain medical health issues, [i.e. diabetes, etc.] the parents/guardians should still train themselves and the children how to eat healthy, stay physical fit/active and not potato couches. Personally, my parents taught me at a very young age how to eat healthy, take my own lunch from home, not to eat in fast food eateries, etc. in which I do right today. When I
do go out to eat; I choose the healthy foods over the popular fast [greasy] foods. Also the parents/guardians should realize that an overweight child[ren] are not cute and that the overweight is going against the child[ren's] health.
When I see overweight children/young adults; I want to do something for them, such as taking them where they can get help to eat healthy and lose weight. Tavis, there is much that we can do, but it first must start with the parents/guardians, and then the community groups like school counselors, and Big Brother/Big Sister organizations.
Many people's problem with
Many people's problem with eating is the problem of overeating. This problem usually develops by eating that little extra helping of food. Although, society doesn't look down on overeating that much we are facing a huge fork in the road concerning our kids. The Bible declares this is a serious sin and warns us to resist yielding to this kind of appetite. But with some Christian’s families, we become so comfortable in giving our kids what they want and when they want it. We become proud and irresponsible parents when we give our kids their desires without discipline.
I heard some parents say that being able to feed their kids is a blessing; and yes it is a blessing, but when the blessing becomes extreme without discipline we have crossed the line of scrimmage right into heath problems… We can love our kids enough to say enough is enough. As a parent it is our responsibility to nurture our kids in a healthy way that would help them become productive and active in society and our eating habits is not excluded…
I remember as a kid my parents had poor eating habits. For dinner it was unhealthy soul food just about everyday. You name it- pig ears, tails, souse meat, chicken and dumplings, all the things I loathed as a kid. This food was considered guttered food to me and I wouldn’t touch it. My grandmother use to get so mad with me for sorting through the garbage to eat my vegetables-I guess that’s why I love veggies so much today-it was my survival food for a long time. But because my family had such poor eating habits those habits were transferred to me but not with the same foods but the overeating part… That’s all I knew – it was all the knowledge that I had… It wasn’t until last year, 2006, I decided to come away from my bad eating habits to a new world of discipline and healthy foods. And in doing so (not boasting) but I lost thirty pounds… I reduced dramatically from a fourteen to a size eight…
If we use discipline principles in eating for ourselves and our kids I think that we would see a lot of good results.
And another thing we should be demanding our schools to include Physical Education back into the schools. We should take more responsibility in helping our kids become more active. Stop thinking if I give my child more gadgets to play with more clothes to where then maybe he/she won’t bother me while I rest… Kids need an outlet and it’s not the game-boy or television…It’s our time and energy that we incorporate into our kid’s daily lives that will help them the most…
Over weight is associated with many illnesses... Sugar consumption over a period of time begins to wreck havoc on our organs that’s when we begin to see glaucoma, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and the list goes on… Check out the list of harmful things sugar does to the body-you will be surprised!
I think parents should
I think parents should monitor what their children eat. I feel, and I am guilty of this myself at times, that many parents give their children empty calories, i.e., soda, chips, cookies, etc. Families should work together to come up with a nutritious menu that is pleasing to all members. I know my children love to eat fruit and vegetables and I buy them every time I shop. I limit the snacks and try my best to buy natural fruit juices or fruit for them to snack on. Exercise is also a very important factor. After their homework is done, children should be allowed to go outside play and have a good time. The most important thing is to make sure your child has a well-child checkup regularly. This will also help keep them healthy. Prevention is key to having a healthy and happy child.