.jpg)
British schools ban the word "obese"
Categories: Kids 5-7, Kids 8-11, Health & Safety, Eating & Nutrition, Development, Weird But True, Environment, Education, Mealtime, Resources
Officials in the UK have chosen to ban the word "obese" from letters being sent to parents about their children's weight. Instead the parents of these children will receive a letter saying such children are "very overweight." The move is being called both "prissy" and "namby pamby" by Tam Fry, a member of Board of the National Obesity Forum. Namby pamby? Regardless of what you call it, Fry feels a better approach is to just come clean with parents.
In the United States, we've tried to ban the word "fat" and have replaced it with the word "obese." This may or may not be having much of an impact on our nation or our youth as our waistlines continue to get bigger (while our wallets become smaller!). One person I know quite well, however, was in denial about his weight as a teenager until he saw a doctor write the word "obese" on his report during the physical he was required to get before he left for college. That person, at that exact point, took charge of his weight and his life.
As for the UK, Primary Care Trusts, or PCTs, are being guided to measure children's height and weight at ages five and eleven. Parents can choose not to participate, and so can their children. In the event that both do choose to participate, the measurements will be sent by letter to the parents and not the children. Naturally, a good portion of the obese children are not participating in the measurements, thereby negating the attempt to correct the situation. Children as little as seven years of age are being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, which was unheard of in the UK a decade ago.
What do you think? Should we go back to calling people fat? Should we call them obese? Should we only be telling their parents? Is there a good approach to any of this? I'd have to go with a quote from Aaron Neville on this one: Tell it like it is.
Pic by bethography - melting mama.
Recent Posts
- Reviews: What's New This Week (11/06/2009)
- Jim Carrey's "A Christmas Carol" Creepy in a Good Way (11/06/2009)
- Twitter Follow Friday on ParentDish! (11/06/2009)
- Babies Pick Up Mothers' Accents In The Womb (11/06/2009)
- Recall: Adventure Playsets (11/06/2009)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 5)
Sabrina 8-05-2008 @ 3:20PM
If you are fat (or obese if you'd rather), even if you are a child, you KNOW already. Your parents know, your friends know, strangers on the street know. People say things to you, usually not nice things either. It's not something you can hide or even deny, it is a part of your life whether it is something you cause, something stemming from a medical problem, or just simply "the way things are". I can't see any reason to humiliate children and foster even more obsessive behavior with unhealthy eating in order to cause weight loss. These kids and their parents are well aware of the issue at hand, and it's their right to either change their habits or not to change them.
Yeah, we've seen an increase in childhood obesity and diabetes and all kinds of things stemming from the fact that most of us aren't eating as healthily as we could and not exercising enough, if at all. However we're also blaming every thing and everyone but the person who has decided not to eat properly and exercise and teach healthy habits to their kids. Despite what anyone might say, if you are obese because of bad habits it is a CHOICE. Albeit not one that's hard to come back from, weight loss is very difficult. If you are obese from a medical problem, then you should be working darn close with your doctor about it. I will reiterate, there is no reason for children to be weighed like cattle and reported on back to their parents who are already painfully aware of the situation!
Reply
Sabrina 8-05-2008 @ 4:47PM
I means "Albeit one that's hard to come back from, weight loss is very difficult." Not NOT hard to come back from. Typos....
Mama30 8-07-2008 @ 11:08PM
If notifying the parents is done with professionalism and GENUINE concern, I don't see how that would humiliate the child. However, having the child present during the parent/teacher discussion about his/her weight would be humiliating.
Parents ARE responsible for the well being of their children. This includes what they eat, whether it is at daycare or at a playdate. It is the responsibility of the parent to monitor this. You cannot assume everyone shares your values about nutrition and your child.
I believe that some parents are too lazy to be on top of their children's diet, getting them out daily for exercise, and limiting the amount of mindless television and video games that they are allowed to play.
Someone should intervene on behalf of the obese child. My heart aches a few times a day whenever I see obese children in public. Their little organs are swimming in fat and their bodies work so much harder than they would if they fell into the normal weight ranges.
i have struggled with my weight in my adult life and I have a 19 month old. Rest assured she will never hear her mother call herself "fat" or know what a "diet" is. We exercise daily, eat lots of fruits and vegetables and read instead of watching hours of TV. Monkey see, Monkey Do.
annoyed 8-08-2008 @ 12:02AM
Seems to me that if children(and adults) get up off their butts, out from in front of the video games(or tvs) and actually DO something, obesity, fatness, being grossly overweight, whatever you want to call it, would diminish greatly.
When I was a teenager, I ate the standard teenage fair, pizza, chips, pop and candy, never got over a size 2, I'm well over 40 now, and still wear a size 6. I eat chips, or candy, or pasta, or whatever I feel like eating, although, I did give up pop for coffee....oh!!! and I sit 8 hours a day at work!!! What's my secret? Shhhhh, don't tell anybody....I DON'T spend hours playing video games or watching tv. When I'm home, I get my housework done, play with the grandkids, and oh yeah, STILL do stupid things like hoolahoop, and dance around my living room!!
ame s 8-05-2008 @ 3:31PM
I was going to post, but Sabrina said it so well, and without the swear words I would have been tempted to use.
Me: 10 years old, 5'2" 150 pounds. I KNEW, there was no reason to be sending a note home.
Reply
Melissa 8-06-2008 @ 7:54AM
ok first of all its not all that hard to lose weight... I did it, and it wasn't all that hard it just requires committment.... all you have to do is cut back on the junk, eat healthy foods and not the pre-packaged stuff. pay attention to what a serving size actually is ( i.e. if you must have fast food, for an adult a happy meal from McDonalds actually is a surving size for an entire meal probably more but you get my point) and get off your but and move. you won't see results immediately, that takes time but its definetly something worth waiting for.
Reply
owenskayo 8-08-2008 @ 12:07AM
First of all your battle with weight does not explain or belittle someone else's struggle. If it were that easy to loose weight then there would be no fat people. Overeating is an addiction and if you do not share someone's addiction, then you wouldn't understand. I think I am more of an expert on the situation being that I have lost 157 pounds and it is life changing and an awakening to know that people treat you differently and that you don't think you have a problem until you can't eat. Then you are depressed until you find your way. I have much more sympathy now for people that are bigger than i was because now I know their struggle.
Theresa 8-06-2008 @ 9:28AM
While I believe it is not right to humiliate families or children about their weight, I do see where open and honest discussion of the issues would help families. Perhaps a letter is not the solution but an actual face to face meeting with parents, expressing concern for the child's health would be better. It would come out then if the child has a medical condition, if the family is low income and unable to afford healthy foods, or if there are other issues involved.
There are some parents who are very overweight themselves who might push their lifestyle on children. I am also very overweight myself, but I know not to pass it on. Many parents don't know that, and making them aware of concerns for their child/children would be beneficial.
I also know that it is harder to afford decent vegetables and fruit here in the US than fattening, pre-packaged food at Aldi's. I have a friend who often looks at somebody who is poor and says they're eating enough. I tend to tell him t hat it's not the amount their eating but the kind of foods the person has to choose with his/her income. There really need to be avenues for parents who can't afford healthier foods or even proper medical care for their children.
Reply
S.W. 8-07-2008 @ 10:31AM
And again, this argument from unhealthy eaters that it's too expensive to eat healthy. Um, not the last time I checked! Eating healthy foods does not mean you have to fill your kitchen with exotic fruits and spices purchased from Whole Foods. Eating healthy can be as simple as purchasing a big tub of oats for oatmeal. This is an incredibly cheap, healthy, and quick breakfast. I repeat- not expensive. Are you telling me a bunch of bananas, a big bag of potatoes or carrots, a loaf of brown sandwich bread and canned tuna is going to break the bank? Please. Excuses, excuses. The terms lazy and greedy come to mind. I blame the parents.
We need to bring the basics back to schools- how to grocery shop, how to prepare a healthy meal, etc... CLEARLY, we can not rely on the parents to do this. In short, they are killing their own children, slowly but surely.
lylydd 8-06-2008 @ 1:07PM
It is just not true that junk food is cheaper than fruit and vegetables and other healthy *unproccessed* foods. The people that are fat, who have fat kids, are the way they are because they are too lazy to do the work to prepare the healthier foods. Yes, it takes more time to prepare and cook and serve a healthy meal that to throw a "happy meal" of crap down your chunky kids whining maw, but it's your JOB as a parent. Don't telll me you're too busy working three minimum wage jobs to cook, either; the vast majority of people using this excuse are welfare bums. Laziness is the real epidemic in this country; obesity is just one of the symptoms.
Theresa 8-06-2008 @ 1:14PM
lylydd,
I guess you never had to try to feed a family on Food Stamps or on a lower income. While stores like Aldi's have fruits and vegetables available sometimes, they usually don't last as long, aren't as fresh, and aren't there as often. It would be easier for somebody to afford a couple cans of 50 cent soup than buy all the ingredients to make soup. It's cheaper for a person who buy a can of tuna fish in oil at Aldi's than to buy fresh fish at a market. It's cheaper for one to buy frozen veggies at a discount store than fresh produce in a grocery store. It's cheaper to buy a TV dinner at Aldi's than to buy all the ingredients that go into making a healthy dinner. It's also cheaper to buy cheap, fatty meats at Aldi's or even WalMart than to buy leaner cuts of meat at another grocery store.
I remember once working with families who were low income, and I wondered how in the world they could be overweight. Then I walked through an Aldi store and clearly saw why. Maybe if you could look past your hate and self-righteousness, you will see there is more to obesity than just laziness. Granted, you might be too lazy to do any real research on the matter so are relying solely on your ignorant prejudices.
Katrina 8-06-2008 @ 6:03PM
Why does the school feel they are even responsible to say anything to the children or the parents. Yes the parents and children and everyone else already realizes they are overweight. It is up to the families to do something about it and getting a letter from the school most likely isn't going to change thier habits.
These families have doctors and thats what doctors are for not the school. If the school wants to have input on the issue make sure the kids are getting plenty of exercise during the school day be it PE or recess, make lunches healthier and ban softdrinks, candy and other junk foods.
I stopped in my sons school during PE one day and was absolutely astounded by what I saw. All the kids sitting in a circle bouncing a balloon to the person next to them. This went on for 20 minutes. The kids seemed bored and they never once got up off thier rumps. If the schools think this is the appropriate amount of exercise for 6 & 7 year olds it is no wonder we have obese kids. Thankfully I know my son gets plenty of exercise outside of school and he eats healthy most days.
Reply
jamie 8-06-2008 @ 12:30PM
I believe ame is the kid she is discussing. What a cruel thing to say to a ten year old.
As far as "Losing weight is easy, I know because I did it" goes, everyone's body, mind, and life is different. Research has shown that many obese people experience the same chemical reactions in their brains when dealing with food that drug addicts do when dealing with their preferred drug; for all intents and purposes, they are addicted to food. This doesn't happen to everyone, so for some, it will still be hard, but not as hard as it is for someone else who may have this problem or has very different reasons for why they haven't lost weight yet. You don't know what it's like to be in another person's situation, even if you think you've been in a similar one yourself.
Reply
J9 8-06-2008 @ 1:33PM
I understand what you are saying Sabrina, but you must understand that it becomes everyone's business when your choices impact the rest of us. Health costs are out of control in part because of the rampant diabetes, emphysema, cancer etc., caused by the individual's poor choices.
Reply
Jamie S 8-06-2008 @ 2:04PM
First of all, it is not "fat" people putting a strain on the medical system. Overweight individuals live longer than underweight individuals. Overweight individuals aren't as frail as underweight ones. So, you tell me, what's worse?
I'm just barely on the wrong side of "obese" if you go by weight and I can probably out run, out lift, and out perform 99% of the people on this thread. It's time that we stop passing judgements based on a label and start looking at people as a whole.
Reply
j9 8-06-2008 @ 2:54PM
I'm sorry, but I cannot agree that "fat" people are not straining the medical system. When an obese 7 year old has diabetes -- come on.... I do know very fit "big" people, but also very unfit obese people, with multiple incipient diseases which are costly, long term, and a true drain on the system.
Reply
L 8-07-2008 @ 11:46PM
As for diabetes affecting "fat" kids, you obviously have only looked at the overweight kids who were diagnosed. A friend of mine recently had her 8 year old diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. No, this child is not fat, in fact just the opposite applies. She is skinny as a rail.
Diabetes is a hereditary condition. Overweight kids do run a risk of getting diabetes, but so do skinny kids who have a relative somewhere in the gene pool that had it.
make farmer 8-07-2008 @ 1:25AM
I loved teasing the fat kids untill they cried all the way home,,,, Oh those we're great times
Reply
Judy Robinson 8-06-2008 @ 4:03PM
So do we also tell people they are ugly? This world is made up of different types. Maybe some can lose weight, but it is not as easy as the skinny ones think. And if it wasn't for fat people, you thin ones would have no one to feel better than.
Reply
Jennifer 8-06-2008 @ 4:53PM
I think we've been tiptoeing around this issue for too long now.. "Fat", "obese", whatever you want to call it, is an unfortunate epidemic, and it is NOT okay. We're killing our youth by babying them to a point that they are now soft, fat, coddled brats. Education is key here, and is the only way to put an end to this epidemic. McDonald's is NOT the way to go, mass quantities of food is NOT the way to go. EDUCATION on the correct, healthy choices is the way to go. Acknowledging the problem is the first step, not burying our heads in the sand.
Reply