Child obesity - Your thoughts

[One]

No excuse for obese children. I find it inexcusable having a large amount of obese people in society. Now I'm talking about fat unhealthy people, not just big people. There are some "big" people who are fit, and strong or "solid" - however obesity is just inexcusable - though loads put excuses attributed to it, such as genetics being the favoured one as well as medical issues and so on (which is fair enough). However that's so rare it falls well outside of the standard distribution and undoubtedly less than a few % actually have a genuine issue.

Something I've found personally though is that you have to 'want' to lose weight to have any chance of achieving the weight loss. It's why I find it very insulting when people talk about 'acceptance' and how it's 'okay' to be overweight. It simply isn't, it's a health issue and a resource drain and all it does is give more fatties an excuse to quit the diet.

Can we blame the parent fully though? I don't think so. Food is a very interesting concept as it isn't just seen as a energy source, it's also a reward, a treat, it's a comfort, and it's even a form of payment. People are fed constant nonsense with the fad fact of the year, things like 5-a-day or breakfast being the most important meal of the day or any of the 'facts' about your metabolism. You can even mix them all up, skip breakfast and halt your metabolism and get fatter than if you ate breakfast, eat 5-a-day throughout the day so your metabolism doesn't slow. It's all a load of nonsense but it is all backed by some pretty convincing parties, even the government.

Fat kids I think can be blamed on a variety of factors not just the parents. Clinically obese kids though should have their parents named and shamed.

We should spend the NHS money you're inevitably going to later on them now so they won't need the pacemakers at 30 years old.

 

[realBabelfish]

If people struggle with cost then they should get an Allotment like me & grow there own. My Allotment costs me 19 quid a year.
If the fat ***** took there kids up the allotment then all of them would be healthier & not just because of the home grown food.

For those saying there are no gardens etc for the kids these days well there wasn't any gardens where I was brought up either.

I think kids these days are lazy ***** who would rather sit in front of the TV or play consoles than go out & build a go kart or a den/tree house.

Another thing that makes me sick is seeing toddlers in push chairs, When I was a kid I could run all day long & would never sit anywhere let alone in a pushchair.
I never stayed indoors & I mean Never, I had to do my chores in the morning then I was free until 6pm T time then it was out until I had to come in.
I don't see kids out on bike rides or racing home made go karts, I don't see any dens or tree houses being made & there's not even a rope swing over the local ditch.
Kids these days are just Rubbish.

i dont think the constant media scaring people of paedos helps this.

parents are also scared due to many more cars on the roads, so they dont like cycling or karting etc.

my wife is ~10 years younger than me (37 and 28), she had a different set of freedoms to me. i would be out all day over summer hols on my bike or playing footy. but then again. BBC model B games werent quite as impressive as today's games!

 

[Haggisman]

Regarding foods, there should be a dummy's labelling system. Something like:

Per Serving:
Red = more than 30% of daily adult recommended calorie intake
Orange = 20-29%
Yellow = 5-19%
Green = 0-4% (eat as much as you like, pretty much)

Rather than the multitude of info that many obviously can't be bothered to read.

Many of the supermarkets do have their own "traffic light" system, but get round it in sneaky ways like having a cake which realistically should be 6-8 slices, but suggesting it serves 12-16 people. By halving the suggested portion size they can then say a "portion" has half the calories/sugar/fat etc.

 

[Admiral Huddy]

Regarding foods, there should be a dummy's labelling system. Something like:

Per Serving:
Red = more than 30% of daily adult recommended calorie intake
Orange = 20-29%
Yellow = 5-19%
Green = 0-4% (eat as much as you like, pretty much)

Rather than the multitude of info that many obviously can't be bothered to read.

I thought there already was a colour system?

to be honest.. you can really eat what you like to a degree so the labelling is irrelevant providing :

a) the portions are controlled to a sensible level. Second helpings and food piled up high should be avoided.

b) you partake in some kind of daily physical activity.. This doesn't mean you have to join a gym or run 10km every evening.. Making simple changes like walking to school to drop the kids off can benefit both parents and children. Keeps road users happy too

Why does everything have come down to scientific measurements? It doesn't have to be like that.. Just some practical common sense needs to be applied.

 

[realBabelfish]

What exactly is wrong with that?
A lot of fruit is wasted when bought whole. Yes you might be able to buy more of one specific item, it a few items singularly for the same as the pot, but the pot could be more fruits and the right portion size.

i hardly ever bought fruit and veg when single. it just went off all the time.

we have a healthy stocked fridge now and shop at Aldi and local butcher. as there are 3 of us its much more cost effective. it is now bread that goes off too quickly.

 

[Dave M]

Regarding foods, there should be a dummy's labelling system. Something like:

Rather than the multitude of info that many obviously can't be bothered to read.

Not ideal but better than nothing, a few years ago I'd have thought nothing of buying a pork pie or a packet of pork scratchings - I'd never actually looked how many calories each had (it's quite a lot btw).

I also note macdonalds has started displaying calories on everything, it's a real shame things like this can't be legally enforced but obviously it'd be a nightmare for anyone selling food from abroad or small cafe's where the menu isn't mass produced.

The 'per serving' thing really has to go though, if there's 2500kcal of fat in something, tell me, don't say there's 50 kcal per serving (of one chip).

 

[krooton]

Actually with the pies example, averaging out the cost/g:

Chicken pie:84p/480g = 0.175p/g
Chicken breast: 200p/400g = 0.5p/g

That means that the 40g of chicken in the pie is costing 7p, whereas 40g of the chicken breast costs 20p. Almost 3 times as much for the same amount.

Of course this is because the other cheaper ingredients in the pie bring the average cost down, but you're still getting fed for less money.

The fact that it's not as healthy or nutritional is the whole point, if it was, we wouldn't be having this discussion.

I was comparing chicken content to chicken content.

Each pie costs 21p, has 10% chicken, which is 10g of chicken.

2.1p / gram of chicken

The £2 for 400g chicken breast fillets = 200p per 340g, so 0.6p per gram.

The chicken in the pie is 3 times the price of chicken on it's own.

 

[Dave M]

Actually with the pies example, averaging out the cost/g:

Chicken pie:84p/480g = 0.175p/g
Chicken breast: 200p/400g = 0.5p/g

That means that the 40g of chicken in the pie is costing 7p, whereas 40g of the chicken breast costs 20p. Almost 3 times as much for the same amount.

Of course this is because the other cheaper ingredients in the pie bring the average cost down, but you're still getting fed for less money.

The fact that it's not as healthy or nutritional is the whole point, if it was, we wouldn't be having this discussion.

You're still wrong, you're comparing lean meat to pastry.

Take an 8th of the chicken breast (almost 3 times cheaper) and add 2 slices of bread (still over twice as cheap) and you have the same meal, nutritionally, for a whole lot less.

 

[doofer]

Why's everyone hating on fat kids? They already have more than enough on their plates.

 

[realBabelfish]

To be fair Cas, from experience the people in poverty I have seen aren't that hard up and always have enough money for there scratch cards and white cider, let's not forget the lastest phones on contract too.

It seems they put their luxury items before the actual needs of their children.

but its the luxuries in life that make life worth living.

im not saying if you are poor you should spend all your cash on phones and booze but if you just spent it on food its not as much fun...

 

[Haggisman]

You're still wrong, you're comparing lean meat to pastry.

Take an 8th of the chicken breast (almost 3 times cheaper) and add 2 slices of bread (still over twice as cheap) and you have the same meal, nutritionally, for a whole lot less.

but is a chicken sandwich really going to fill you up as a full dinner?

 

[krooton]

but is a chicken sandwich really going to fill you up as a full dinner?

A chicken sandwich vs a pie, not a full dinner.

Add a small glass of water with the sandwich (given water is one of the largest components of the cheap pie, and essentially free), and your stomach will be pretty much on par.

 

[Dave M]

but is a chicken sandwich really going to fill you up as a full dinner?

put the slice of chicken on the plate, put a suitable portion chips on it too, some peas, and 2 rounds of white bread and you're not far off a typical meal growing up.

In fact replace the chicken for an egg and you're a lot closer.

 

[One]

Not ideal but better than nothing, a few years ago I'd have thought nothing of buying a pork pie or a packet of pork scratchings - I'd never actually looked how many calories each had (it's quite a lot btw).

I also note macdonalds has started displaying calories on everything, it's a real shame things like this can't be legally enforced but obviously it'd be a nightmare for anyone selling food from abroad or small cafe's where the menu isn't mass produced.

The 'per serving' thing really has to go though, if there's 2500kcal of fat in something, tell me, don't say there's 50 kcal per serving (of one chip).

As far as I'm aware nutritional information does have to be displayed on all food. I don't mind per serving as long as they stick a number to that serving or tell me how many servings I get per item at least then you can work it out mathematically by what their serving is in relation to the packet. It makes me mad though when a serving turns out to be 1 teaspoon; well how many damn teaspoons are in this tub?

 

[godinman]

I reckon they do it to keep em safe from peados.

 

[Haggisman]

A chicken sandwich vs a pie, not a full dinner.

Add a small glass of water with the sandwich (given water is one of the largest components of the cheap pie, and essentially free), and your stomach will be pretty much on par.

put the slice of chicken on the plate, put a suitable portion chips on it too, some peas, and 2 rounds of white bread and you're not far off a typical meal growing up.

In fact replace the chicken for an egg and you're a lot closer.

If I'd sat down to dinner to be greeted with a sandwich and a glass of water, or a single slice of wafer thin chicken and a couple of chips when I was a kid, I'd have laughed and asked my mum what was actually for dinner

 

[djshauny1]

Little fattys

 

[UncleRuckus]

I reckon they do it to keep em safe from peados.

What about chubby chasers!

 

[krooton]

If I'd sat down to dinner to be greeted with a sandwich and a glass of water, or a single slice of wafer thin chicken and a couple of chips when I was a kid, I'd have laughed and asked my mum what was actually for dinner

Nutritionally it is roughly equal to those cheap pies, and cheaper too.

Eating healthy does not have to be expensive, but it does require people to get over their sugar/fat cravings and actually plan some meals.

 

[bhavv]

When I was four years old, I used to eat a mars bar. Then I'd say to either parent 'I've only had one mars bar today, wheres my second?'. So then I'd get my second. Then later on I'd say 'I've only had 2 mars bars today, wheres my third?'. And they would simply hand me a third mars bar without complaining.

Whenever we visited family members, the first thing they would pull out was the tim of quality streets or roses, or even better just skip the cheap nasty hors d'oeuvre and go straight onto the main course of biscuits, cookies and / or cakes.

And then after all that, the mothers would still buy apples / oranges / bananas etc, and do nothing but whine and complain when their sugar spoilt kids wouldnt even touch them.

True story, though I lost all the kiddie fat I built up after I took up karate lessons from age 11. I hated being the fat kid that was always picked last in sports because I was useless at everything