Childhood Obesity
Today, more than ever, our nation has become “larger” in stature. 
If you look at our children today, we adults have set a miserable example of what health should be.
Here’s something I bet you didn’t know from the auto industry.
Did you know that import vehicles are built a bit bigger for U.S. consumption because we, as a nation, are more overweight than the other markets they sell their cars in?
More leg room. Longer seatbelts. We take up more room than the average European and Asian.
I know! I was the perfect example. I barely fit behind the wheel of a Jeep Wrangler in my day. I guess I did fit, if you didn’t mind the steering wheel rubbing your belly when you turn.
In my plight to expand my weight loss agenda to the world, I thought I might take a quick look at where the problem started. I’ll use myself as a child as an example.
I was always a “husky” child. Literally “Husky” when I went clothes shopping. “Husky” was a really cool brand of jeans that Sears sold that was marketed to the chunky kid. I wasn’t eligible for the cool Levi’s Acid Washed 501’s.
I hated wearing those damn things. You might as well have painted “Fat Ass” on my shirt and sent me to school.
But I digress.
It has become more and more convenient for parents to provide quick meals and microwaveable foods too. Home prepared meals were replaced by the more efficient “Pop Tarts” and “Hot Pockets”.
Crap you can even get a steaming pizza delivered to your door.
This stuff isn’t horrible. But it’s got to be moderated.
Playing outside has been replaced with hours of online gaming, web surfing and television. I guess my generation saw the progression the best. I remember the onset of the Atari, Commodore 64 and Cable TV. I became an “indoor” child over the years because I really enjoyed these electronic time magnets. I still do.
I’m a nerd. Can’t help it…
A Visual Experience for You
I read this challenge in a book by Mike Huckabee* that touched on this subject and thought you might find it interesting.
Find a class photo from your childhood from the third or fourth grade if you can. Then find pictures of the third and fourth grade classes today and compare them.
This exercise makes a powerful visual statement.
A child carries a lot of emotional baggage when they are overweight. Even though, as a society, we have become physically larger, it still isn’t socially acceptable to be fat. Kids that have weight problems tend to be more introverted and have an increased risk of depression.
So, what can be done?
Here are a few ideas…
1) Encourage healthier snacks.
2) One hour minimum of some form of exercise.
3) Reduce TV, Internet and Gaming to a maximum of two hours a day.
4) Educate ourselves and our children on weight control.
5) Look at our school systems (on a local level).
Basically we have to help them make better choices when they are young. It’s easier to learn when we are young. And we need to get them (and ourselves) off our butts and get a little more active.
We need to educate ourselves and our children.
I am strongly opposed to government control of our school’s lunch menus. Maybe more local and parental control in schools would be more ideal.
Is this the legacy we wish to leave?
- Heart Disease
- Diabetes
- Low Self-Esteem
- Greater risk of cancer
Hell, we’ve already screwed up their financial future through our government.
Maybe we can fix this before it’s too late.
*©”Simple Government” by Mike Huckabee, 2010
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