maraqxa
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Post by maraqxa on Sept 26, 2012 21:51:48 GMT -5
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Green Eyed Lady
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Post by Green Eyed Lady on Sept 26, 2012 21:55:50 GMT -5
I don't have kids, but one of my friends has a little girl who is obese (at least she looks like it to me). The cause is that her parents don't place any limits on what she eats.
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Phoenix84
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Post by Phoenix84 on Sept 26, 2012 21:58:53 GMT -5
Don't have kids. I wasn't obese as a kid either, in fact for a long time I was quite the opposite, rail thin.
Anyway, causes?
Blaming junk food and TV/video games is easy, calling the kid lazy is easy, but I think it goes deeper than that.
I think many parents are too busy to cook healthy meals. Many kids would likely eat healthier if their parents weren't so exhausted from work to cook every night. Some of it is lack of discipline on the parents part, they let their kid snack because it's easy, these are the same parents who likely don't have a bed time or things like that.
Some of it is the Urban lifestyle. If you don't live in a safe area, you probably won't be going out and exercising. Some parents don't feel safe letting their kids just go out and play. Whether this is paranoia of helicopter parents or a legitimate concern is up for debate. This also goes with busy roads. If you live in a area with lots of cars, traffic, and busy streets, you generally don't want your kid running amok in your general area. It's hard to get a kid to want to ride a bike when there's thousands of cars on the road zipping around.
Junk food has become much more commonplace in our society, as has fast food. Used to be there wasn't a McDonald's or Burger King on every corner. Which sort of goes along the lines of kids (and parents) being a lot busier now than in the past. There's no time/energy to cook so it's McDonald's again.
Some of it is lack of health education I'm sure. And it's hard to find stuff that isn't junk food when I shop.
That's all for now, off the top of my head.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 26, 2012 22:01:36 GMT -5
Less activity, More bad foods (not just sugar/fast, but preservatives/processing/gmo), genetics... pretty much the same for most obese people.
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maraqxa
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Post by maraqxa on Sept 26, 2012 22:04:15 GMT -5
I don't have kids either. I think that being busy is really just poor planning, I make meals on the weekend and freeze and even when I want to cook after work at the most a meal from scratch takes 1 hr, but then again I like to cook and my DH helps too.
I think on not living in a safe area you are right, also just not having places to play like a park and such, I watched "the weight of the nation" on HBO and they did talk abou this.
I think another issueisthat junk food is too cheap.
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weltschmerz
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Post by weltschmerz on Sept 26, 2012 22:04:41 GMT -5
My son was always as thin as a rake. Lots of biking and playing hockey as a kid. Now that he's grown, he's still very thin. Almost 6 feet tall and only about 150 pounds, but covered in ropey muscles. He's a mover, and hauls fridges up and down stairs. I suspect he'll always be thin, just like his dad.
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maraqxa
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Post by maraqxa on Sept 26, 2012 22:05:20 GMT -5
Less activity, More bad foods (not just sugar/fast, but preservatives/processing/gmo), genetics... pretty much the same for most obese people. But wouldn't still be calories in vs calories out?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 26, 2012 22:16:02 GMT -5
Not always. Sometimes genetics plays a role. Some times I think food sensitivities/intolerances play a part.
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midjd
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Post by midjd on Sept 26, 2012 22:19:55 GMT -5
My hypothetical kids are perfect DH's family is split between overweight and the annoying rail-thin ones who can eat anything without gaining weight. DH takes after the former. No one in my family is overweight (high metabolisms). So it will be interesting to see what happens, I guess.
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Sam_2.0
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Post by Sam_2.0 on Sept 26, 2012 22:46:51 GMT -5
Shoot, my DD is not even on the chart (she's well below it), but when I was her age I apparently was the same weight/height and according to my mom I was in the 25th percentile or around there. Have chubbier kids really skewed the numbers up? (also very possible that mom didn't remember correctly). DD gets some junk food, but most of her meals are fruits, veggies, and some protein (cottage cheese, cheese sticks, meat if she will eat it). Kid drinks 1gal of whole milk per week and gets protein powder added to it. She's still 18lbs at 14 months, and 30'' tall. She was also EBF until she was 6 months old, and then only got some table foods once a day (still BF until just this last week, will still get breastmilk until the freezer stash runs out around Christmas or so).
In my extended family, my mom's siblings are all extremely overweight, and so are most of their children. Low activity levels and high amounts of junk foods are most likely the cause. My mom was insistent that our family would not be like that, so she restricted the amount of junk we had available and encouraged active play (shoot, she would tell us to go outside after breakfast and not come back in until lunch). Seeing how others in my family have struggled with it, I fully intend to not allow copious amounts of junk in the house, and we will be encouraging physical activities for many reasons (this just being one).
And while I can understand the junk = cheap theory, here (in a pretty urban area) I can get food at Aldi to feed all three of us + the babysitter for about $60/week. Fresh fruits, frozen veggies, meat for dinners. Yogurt and cereals for breakfast. Yogurt, cereals, and leftovers for lunches. We do eat some junk, but in my experience, the junk is more expensive than the good food. I can get 1 bag of oranges for $1.99 or one pack of cookies for the same price. They last just as long, but one is far healthier.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 26, 2012 22:55:02 GMT -5
DS used to be at the 100th percentile for weight. He's steadily moved downward. If you calculate his age and weight he is obese. If you calcualte weight, age and height he is healthy. He is very active every day - rides a few miles on his bicycle, plays soccer, and runs.
DH and I are overweight so we focus on giving DS plenty of opportunity to be active. We also limit sugary fluids.
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Sept 26, 2012 23:21:42 GMT -5
I've never been fat, the word "fat" wasn't even in my vocabulary - until I had those kids of mine. Now, I can't loose the weight.....
My DH's family is fat. So, yeah, I am very worried that my kids inherited the tendency to gain weight. My oldest was a tiny baby and now a pretty skinny 4yr old - he moves A LOT (despite watching ooodles of TV). My 2.5 yr old was bigger, but also seem to be skinning down. My youngest.....let's just say that people are shocked to find out how old he is bc he is that huge. But it's not like I can put a 13 mo old on a diet.
So, we'll see. As far as foods - since I didn't grow up here, I am not used to a lot of junk food, so it's not on my mental shopping list and I don't buy it. And until we started meeting new people lately, my kids really didn't know about existence of pretzels or potato chips. I don't really deny them on purpose, and they can eat whatever they want when we are out and if they like it and ask me to buy it, I do. So far, it's been a very passing interest.
Also, I've noticed that my oldest is great at self-regulating, but my 2.5 yr old - no so much.
Lena
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 26, 2012 23:34:28 GMT -5
Part of the problem is that parents cannot just toss their kids out to play for hours like we did. And, there were tons of kids to play with in the neighborhoods back in the day. I am very fortunate that i live in a small town near the school and there are tons of kids for my kids to play with. My kids play street hockey, bball, football, airsoft wars, you name it, they are outside almost all the time.
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Phoenix84
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Post by Phoenix84 on Sept 26, 2012 23:51:26 GMT -5
If we're talking about ourselves, it depends on who you ask. According to the "offical" charts I'm overweight, but if I was what the offical charts said I should be at I'd be like skeletor. I seem to "carry" weight well, or I'm naturally muscular, not sure.
When I asked my doctor for my ideal weight, he gave me a number more in line with what I thought I should be at.
All in all, I could probably stand to lose 15-20 lbs. like most Americans, but I wouldn't say I'm obese or anything.
It's actually kind of baffeling since I don't think I eat that much...
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Sept 27, 2012 0:03:39 GMT -5
Why not???
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Formerly SK
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Post by Formerly SK on Sept 27, 2012 0:10:29 GMT -5
DS is almost 8yo and weighs 48lbs. He's like 5th percentile. DD is 6.5yo and weighs 34lbs. I think she has to gain five pounds to even get on the chart. We've spent thousands trying to figure out if there is something medically wrong with her. They aren't particularly active (seem average to me ) but they don't eat much. DD can eat half a yogurt cup for breakfast and not eat again for 4 hours. They never snack, and their meals are tiny. I have friends whose kids eat all day long starting at 6am. Despite my kids' size, I try not to have our lives center around food. They are healthy and happy and frankly I'm tired of stressing about their eating.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2012 0:12:09 GMT -5
Um, pedophiles?
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giramomma
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Post by giramomma on Sept 27, 2012 3:14:54 GMT -5
DS used to be at the 100th percentile for weight. He's steadily moved downward. If you calculate his age and weight he is obese. If you calcualte weight, age and height he is healthy. He is very active every day - rides a few miles on his bicycle, plays soccer, and runs. DH and I are overweight so we focus on giving DS plenty of opportunity to be active. We also limit sugary fluids. This, sort of. Two of our kids are at the 95-100th percentile for height and weight. I'm actually quite tired of the peds telling us our kids are overweight and hinting they will be obese as adults. I've seen kids half the size of mine with a bigger tummy than my kids have. We do all the right things: limit screen time to about 40 minutes a day, minimal junk food/deserts/little to no juice, etc. No soccer, but plenty of other opportunity to get active. Our kids also have 3 recesses a day at school. Our last seems to be trending in the 50th percentile. At least the peds can't complain about that,
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milee
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Post by milee on Sept 27, 2012 6:23:17 GMT -5
It's actually kind of baffeling since I don't think I eat that much... This statement gets to the heart of one of the main reasons of why Americans are overweight. I'm not talking about Phoenix personally - don't know him and he may be at the perfect weight - but his sentiment of "how can this be? I don't eat that much" is a common theme among overweight people. Study after study shows that people consistently underestimate the amount of food and calories they eat and whatever they eat for a few days becomes the new "normal" to them. In the 70s, fast food hamburgers were almost all the size of the current McDonald's hamburger that now only children seem to order. A large order of fries would easily fit into the new small bag and a large drink was the size that is now considered small. So over the last 30 years, it became "normal" to eat what used to be considered a large portion at every meal. It all adds up. While not evidence since it's not a large enough sample, I've never known an overweight person who didn't hugely underestimate what they were eating or selectively ignored/didn't remember the daily treats or binges. Even for people that are fairly conscientious what they eat, it's usually a big surprise when they start keeping a food journal and seeing how it all adds up. So a combination of society moving to larger/fattier portions as normal and people being unaware how much they're consuming is a deadly result, IMHO.
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Phoenix84
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Post by Phoenix84 on Sept 27, 2012 7:01:56 GMT -5
"Um, pedophiles?"
Well, there's always been pedophiles, it's not like it's a new phenomenon. But it seems only in the last 10-20 years parents actually started worrying about it and keep their kids inside all the time because of it.
So an interesting question would be is there a real danger for kids now that didn't exist in decades past, or are parents now just more paranoid than parents in ages past?
"While not evidence since it's not a large enough sample, I've never known an overweight person who didn't hugely underestimate what they were eating or selectively ignored/didn't remember the daily treats or binges. Even for people that are fairly conscientious what they eat, it's usually a big surprise when they start keeping a food journal and seeing how it all adds up."
That's certainly possible. I think in my case it's not that I eat a lot, but I eat a lot of carbohydrate heavy foods, breads cereals and the like, and not enough fruits and vegetables. It's something I've tried to work on it, but I can't seem to stock fruits and veggies as fast as I eat them.
And yes, portion sizes are out of whack. That's why I only eat two meals a day normally. I have no idea how some people manage to eat three meals a day and not gain weight.
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Regis
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Post by Regis on Sept 27, 2012 7:25:45 GMT -5
My kids are all healthy weight mostly because they're active. DS21 does triathlons so he runs, bikes, swims (some combination) six days a week. DS18 is a freshman in college in athletic training so he has observation hours in the afternoon and then sticks around to do his own workout with some of the other students. DD16 is a dancer and does cardio and weight training on her "off" days.
Their active lifestyle came by watching my wife and I with active lifestyles. If you keep most kids involved in non-sedentary activities and eat reasonably healthy, there usually is not much of a problem of obese children.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2012 7:30:05 GMT -5
"Um, pedophiles?" Well, there's always been pedophiles, it's not like it's a new phenomenon. But it seems only in the last 10-20 years parents actually started worrying about it and keep their kids inside all the time because of it. So an interesting question would be is there a real danger for kids now that didn't exist in decades past, or are parents now just more paranoid than parents in ages past? "While not evidence since it's not a large enough sample, I've never known an overweight person who didn't hugely underestimate what they were eating or selectively ignored/didn't remember the daily treats or binges. Even for people that are fairly conscientious what they eat, it's usually a big surprise when they start keeping a food journal and seeing how it all adds up." That's certainly possible. I think in my case it's not that I eat a lot, but I eat a lot of carbohydrate heavy foods, breads cereals and the like, and not enough fruits and vegetables. It's something I've tried to work on it, but I can't seem to stock fruits and veggies as fast as I eat them. And yes, portion sizes are out of whack. That's why I only eat two meals a day normally. I have no idea how some people manage to eat three meals a day and not gain weight. Well, first of all you can't even leave your kid sitting in the car while you run in and get groceries cuz it is against the law. And, i am not talking about 100 degree day. Back when i was a kid, i used to sit in the car while mom shopped at the grocery store. It was no big deal. Now it is a freaking' federal offense. You can't have a child outside unsupervised. Kids legally cannot be left alone in my state until they are 12. And, in many areas, there just aren't as many kids around anymore because nobody is home. The parents all work, the kids are all shuttled around to activities and there aren't kids just hanging out to play stickball in the playground anymore.
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milee
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Post by milee on Sept 27, 2012 7:34:03 GMT -5
His father was normal weight as an adult - but was obese as a child - in London in the 70's - that was really rare. In the 70s, obesity in children was pretty rare here in America as well in most areas. I remember out of our school of 600 children, there were 3 that were considered the "fat" kids. Two of them were in reality just overweight - and would be considered pretty average by today's standards - and they both slimmed down by 10th grade with diet and exercise. The 3rd was probably technically obese and was still obese when he graduated.
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973beachbum
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Post by 973beachbum on Sept 27, 2012 7:53:51 GMT -5
I had big babies. My DD was right at the 100th percentile when she was born. My son wasn't even on the chart. I am pretty small and was skinny when I had them. I gained a whopping 13 lbs when I was pregnant with my son so I have no clue how he was so large. As they grew they did average out. I didn't put them on a diet as infants. They could play as much as they wanted although they did watch more tv than a ped would recommend. My 9 yr old son is tall for his age, but also pretty skinny. He eats literally everything and in vast quantities. My teen daughter on the other hand is 5'2 and not skinny. She acutally eats a more healthy diet than most people and not as much as I would, we are the same height, and yet she seems to carry extra lbs no matter what she does. I should say she is pretty active. She doesn't play soccer but she walks a mile every day and rides her bike ten miles a few times a week. Where this gets strange to me is that when I was her age I ate more than she did and much more junk but was less active. So why was I skinny and she isn't? I am sure there are things like candy I don't know about etc but I ate those things when I was young also so there has to be more involved that I just can't figure out.
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Sept 27, 2012 7:57:04 GMT -5
I have 2 kids.
DD is considered obese. DS is normal.
DS isn't really too interested in food. DD loves food, and I often have to limit what she eats to the point that it's a battle. She is more active than DS. I try to focus her on different activities other than food, and I try to keep food out of sight, out of mind for her. It's tiring. And difficult. And I feel guilty and I'm trying very hard not to give her food issues, but I think she already has them.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2012 7:57:05 GMT -5
Part of the problem is that parents cannot just toss their kids out to play for hours like we did. And, there were tons of kids to play with in the neighborhoods back in the day. I am very fortunate that i live in a small town near the school and there are tons of kids for my kids to play with. My kids play street hockey, bball, football, airsoft wars, you name it, they are outside almost all the time. So you can't toss your kids out to play for hours but you do with your own kids?
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Sept 27, 2012 7:59:08 GMT -5
I toss my kids out to play all the time.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2012 7:59:27 GMT -5
I mean in a lot of other neighborhoods. My sis lives in a city and there just isn't the same sense of community there. Everyone here knows everybody and everything about everyone. And, i can send my kids out cuz there is a pack of them to play with but that isn't so for some other people i know who have kids but there aren't any other kids around depending on where they live. My house just tends to be the congregation place.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2012 8:06:41 GMT -5
I mean in a lot of other neighborhoods. My sis lives in a city and there just isn't the same sense of community there. Everyone here knows everybody and everything about everyone. And, i can send my kids out cuz there is a pack of them to play with but that isn't so for some other people i know who have kids but there aren't any other kids around depending on where they live. My house just tends to be the congregation place. Don't make excuses for everyone else. You sound just like a liberal.
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973beachbum
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Post by 973beachbum on Sept 27, 2012 8:08:06 GMT -5
I have 2 kids. DD is considered obese. DS is normal. DS isn't really too interested in food. DD loves food, and I often have to limit what she eats to the point that it's a battle. She is more active than DS. I try to focus her on different activities other than food, and I try to keep food out of sight, out of mind for her. It's tiring. And difficult. And I feel guilty and I'm trying very hard not to give her food issues, but I think she already has them. I really struggle with trying to make my daughter healthy but not give her a complex about it. I'm not sure it worked. I did do the best I could and she did get a good veriety of healthy food that she learned to love. She is much more active than me or DH was at her age, yet she is still overweight according to those charts. And not borderline either.
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