MPs voice childhood obesity fears

Tinky · 25-01-2007, 09:23

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6294577.stm

**Hugh** · 25-01-2007, 09:31

Loved this statement in the article
"There was also criticism of the failure to engage parents in tackling the causes of obesity. "

That'll be that difficult to understand concept of "eating too much".

Delta Whiskey · 25-01-2007, 09:48

What we really need is a Government initiative to educate the parents to enable them to create a balanced diet for their children.

DW

Greyrider · 25-01-2007, 12:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by Delta Whiskey

What we really need is a Government initiative to educate the parents to enable them to create a balanced diet for their children.

DW

Maybe a little more exercise might help. These are the same Ministers who sold off the playing fields and pressured schools into banning sports as competitiveness is evil - hey, life is competitive.

And, God save us from any more intiatives from this 'initiative an hour' government.

orangebird · 25-01-2007, 12:54

Seriously, I'm not all about Labour at all, but why is it down to the government to educate parents that chicken nuggets, turkey twizzlers, fizzy pop and sitting down infront of a PC/console all day does not a healthy child produce??! Kids are obese these days because parents are bloody lazy and/or too stupid to be breeding. Like the parents of the child that weighs 14 stone (on gmtv this morning) - at seven years old!!! He should be taken into care imo.

**Hugh** · 25-01-2007, 14:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by orangebird

Seriously, I'm not all about Labour at all, but why is it down to the government to educate parents that chicken nuggets, turkey twizzlers, fizzy pop and sitting down infront of a PC/console all day does not a healthy child produce??! Kids are obese these days because parents are bloody lazy and/or too stupid to be breeding. Like the parents of the child that weighs 14 stone (on gmtv this morning) - at seven years old!!! He should be taken into care imo.

orangebird for PM

Amazing how it is always "someone else's fault" - eat a lot, get fatter; how hard can it be?

**Maggy J** · 25-01-2007, 15:13

Well I'm fed up with being nagged about everything.Time everyone stopped wagging the finger at everyone else.Time we stopped sticking our noses into everyone's business.

I can see with my own eyes in school that the majority of the kids are not obese.It is still a minority of the school population so why do we have to keep nagging the kids overall.The majority are doing ok and I don't want them being given a phobia about eating whch is a very real likelihood if the media keep on about it.Bulima and anorexia are as much killers as obesity and just as expensive to treat on the NHS.

Yes let it be part of the syllabus but let's not go overboard.Yes lets get kids a healthier option in school meals but let's not make the eating of food an ordeal for youngsters.

**Rob** · 25-01-2007, 15:16

Education and publicity will help, reducing the advertising that creates demand from kids for the wrong foods will help, but the real issues are the changes in lifestyle meaning that kids, as are most of the population, are far more sedentry than in years gone by.

Yes schools don't do PE type stuff as well as they used to. But where has all the basic excercise gone. The average school now has queues of cars round it at start and finish times. In the 70s and even 80s that was unheard of, kids used to walk, and thus get excercise. Computer games have them sitting in front of a TV. We would have been out and about on our bikes, or kicking a ball around in the park.

It will take a very dim person to not be aware that they or someone in their family is overwieght. It shouldn't need a letter from school to tell that. Weighing programs are more for government statistics to play lip service to a problem.

Our increasing weight problems are about the wrong types, and wrong amounts of foods, but also about activity. Until somebody wants to really get a grip on the overall lifestyle issue and re-educate the problem isn't going to have a chance of going away.

Angua · 25-01-2007, 15:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by Incognitas

Well I'm fed up with being nagged about everything.Time everyone stopped wagging the finger at everyone else.Time we stopped sticking our noses into everyone's business.

I can see with my own eyes in school that the majority of the kids are not obese.It is still a minority of the school population so why do we have to keep nagging the kids overall.The majority are doing ok and I don't want them being given a phobia about eating whch is a very real likelihood if the media keep on about it.Bulima and anorexia are as much killers as obesity and just as expensive to treat on the NHS.

Yes let it be part of the syllabus but let's not go overboard.Yes lets get kids a healthier option in school meals but let's not make the eating of food an ordeal for youngsters.

Pressure for parents to work and the convenience of ready made food and home deliveries are not helping the art of cooking. If you know how to cook, something home made can be turned out in the same time as convenience food. Sadly too few people know how to cook these days

Taf · 25-01-2007, 16:52

Let them all out to run around the housing estate that was built on their sports ground....