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Original poster

To be shocked at how many overweight kids there are here?

956 replies

glasgowsfinest · 29/08/2017 18:18

Have got my fireproof hat in place, here goes...! I'm currently at a Butlin's-type holiday park on the south coast. As you can imagine, it's jammed full of kids of all ages. I'm genuinely shocked at how many of them, from pre-schoolers to older teens, are significantly overweight. I don't think puppy fat can be used as an excuse for all of them. Thinking back to my childhood, overweight kids were the exception, not the rule, but now it seems the opposite. I have two children who by no means have a perfect diet, and eat more chocolate and watch more TV than I thought I'd allow, but they're active too and don't seen to have any fat on them at all! Maybe they're just "lucky", I don't know. But the sheer numbers of chunky kids made me feel quite sad.

OP posts:
Mysteriouscurle · 29/08/2017 22:16

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Timefortea99 · 29/08/2017 22:17

All those comments about fat shaming - should nobody talk about it? Obesity is a problem in this country. Started with adults, now those people are parents, and their kids are now the same size. Not every case - a small percentage are medical cases, or will grow out of it naturally.

There should be some shame felt for those obese parents who have allowed their kids to become obese too. They would be shamed if they starved their kids so why wouldn't the reverse of the coin be the same? Isn't is right that you want the best for your child - and that would include being a healthy weight.

A few posters who were fat as a child and who have remained fat have shown that kids are not being done any favours by letting them eat too much.

There has never been such an information accessible time - plenty of info about nutrition and healthy eating online. Not all healthy food is expensive.

AccrualIntentions · 29/08/2017 22:18

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wannabestressfree · 29/08/2017 22:19

@SongforSal I have the same issue with ds13. He is on medication for anxiety, onset of severe mental health problems and crohns. He has ballooned sadly and doesn't want to go out- then cries that he is lonely. My heart breaks for him. His 'treat' are icepoles (home made).

LockedOutOfMN · 29/08/2017 22:19

I live abroad and have been shocked several times by the number of overweight children in the U.K. Of course, our experience is limited as we only visit certain places, a few times each year, but we do notice the difference. I work in a school so I'm used to seeing children in the country where we live day in day out. Their British counterparts are, on the whole, significantly bigger. Children's clothing sizes also tend to be larger in Britain, in my experience.

HelenaDove · 29/08/2017 22:25

Accrual But when someone tackles their obesity and loses weight they are STILL persecuted.

There are plenty of comments on the skin removal thread saying the DD should take responsibility for her own actions and these comments are being made WHEN SHE HAS ALREADY DONE SO by losing 11 stone. So shes basically being fat shamed by posters on here (behind her back) after shes lost the weight.

Ummmmgogo · 29/08/2017 22:28

shapely it sounds like nursery are making her overweight. they may have won awards for their food but if they are giving seconds she would be overweight. how big is the garden? do they fo much active play? do you have a car? are you giving milk to drink? does she have an iPad? im not a doctor but I would imagine that they would want to rule out all of these things before investigating illness.

I hope you get some answers soon xxx

Alexkate2468 · 29/08/2017 22:28

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DameDoom · 29/08/2017 22:29

I can't see the situation improving when you look at the state of the typical high street. At the end of my road there is a new pulled pork place, a Dominoes, a Papa John's, Gregg's, a kebab shop, chippie, Chinese, Indian and a Subway - not to mention the cheap as chips pub that has a permanent carvery. Temptation abound.

HelenaDove · 29/08/2017 22:34

At the top of my road (and im not in the town centre AND im in a small market town is a Dominos a Pizza Hut and a chippy.

KERALA1 · 29/08/2017 22:35

The phase "spoil your dinner" brings back memories used a lot when I was a child not so much now in our snack snack snack culture.

HelenaDove · 29/08/2017 22:38

Oh and theres a kebab shop as well i forgot about them.

Eggsellent · 29/08/2017 22:42

I've noticed this recently too. I think that in general people are less active than previous generations, certainly the noticeably overweight kids at my dc's school are all driven to and from school rather than walking, I have no idea what they eat but I can't judge on that at all as my (healthy weight) dc's eat a fair amount of crap. I was overweight as a child but I lost the weight in my teens and apart from the odd fluctuation have kept it off so I don't despair too much at the sight of these kids. I was driven around a lot when I could have walked, both parents worked and had to pick up and drop off to childcare en route to work which I think is the case with a lot of parents today, high living costs mean that 2 incomes are necessary to survive, less time for meal planning and cooking, less time for family activities, more eating on the go rather than sitting together as a family has all taken its toll imo.

MiddlingMum · 29/08/2017 22:44

"Spoiling your dinner" was almost a crime in my 1960s childhood. You just didn't get a snack regularly. We drunk water routinely, and orange juice was a huge treat occasionally at a relative's house.

We would go out for the afternoon without a bag of snacks and there was no suggestion that we would be bought any, although the occasional ice cream on holiday was a possibility. It was expected that we would eat breakfast, dinner and tea and that was it.

Cheap food laden with fat and sugar and on prominent display in the supermarkets isn't helpful. I noticed six doughnuts for a pound yesterday Shock

AccrualIntentions · 29/08/2017 22:46

There are plenty of comments on the skin removal thread saying the DD should take responsibility for her own actions and these comments are being made WHEN SHE HAS ALREADY DONE SO by losing 11 stone. So shes basically being fat shamed by posters on here (behind her back) after shes lost the weight.

I read the first few pages of that thread this morning and the vast majority of posts were saying that the mother should pay because she bore a lot of the responsibility, so it must have taken a really significant turn in later posts.

I've only known people who've lost weight to be celebrated for their achievement in doing so (except on occasion from other overweight people who want to drag them down).

QuimReaper · 29/08/2017 22:46

I was looking at some pictures a friend uploaded of her family on holiday this afternoon and I was surprised to see her eldest child is looking quite chubby. I think it can happen comparatively easily with small children - it's a question of a few pounds, and if parents aren't militant about it I can see how easily they find themselves with an overweight teenager.

DameDoom · 29/08/2017 22:49

The staffroom at break is out of control - cake central and bacon butties the size of your head. Some members of staff literally chuck kids on to the playground so they can get their first - there seems to be competitive eating going on. When did all this start? In days of yore, people were embarrassed about being thought of as greedy but that has all changed. A colleague was thrilled to have treated her children to an eating Man v Food style competition where her DH was triumphant.

busyboysmum · 29/08/2017 23:03

I've also read that in childhood you lay down how many fat cells you will have for life. So by allowing a child to become obese you are storing up a lifetime of weight struggles for them. They will always have more fat cells than leaner children and so will always be predisposed to put on weight.

WorraLiberty · 29/08/2017 23:05

I often think that Dame

Greed used to be something people were ashamed of.

Now it's something a lot of people are actually proud of, and actively try to 'out-greed' each other.

You only have to read some of the competitive eating threads on MN to see people patting each other on the back, for eating a whole box of doughnuts/tin of family chocolates/their kid's Easter eggs etc. Posting things like 'respect!' because someone has posted a 'hilarious' binge eating story, that's out-done the previous poster's.

There's been a big change in attitude/culture somewhere along the line and I really don't think it's helping the obesity epidemic.

OhWifey · 29/08/2017 23:11

I understand that there is an obesity epidemic and it is incredibly sad. But please don't jump to conclusions over every obese child you see. I have an exceptionally, dangerously obese child caused by a medical condition. It makes me so sad when I see people looking at her and then at me, when I spend so much of my life working to give her minimal calories and maximum exercise (she also has a mobility disorder).

Just my little tuppence worth.

MumIsRunningAMarathon · 29/08/2017 23:11

I'm surprised by this thread

I thought it would all kick off, be derailed and op would have her arse handed to her on a plate

But no, not really

Back earlier this year their was a similiar thread which ended up deleted. Most of mumsnet were in denial or saying it's not something they see etc etc

Now it's summer, swimming pool and beach weather..... seems like we have no choice but to accept it. The truth is staring us all in the face. So sad

MumIsRunningAMarathon · 29/08/2017 23:13

middlingmum that is so true! I remember....1976 and mum was pregnant with my brother. She cut an apple in half for us to share mid afternoon..... I was so surprised! I remember it so clearly..... snacks as we know them were unheard of

QuimReaper · 29/08/2017 23:19

Worra isn't all that "respect" business often reserved for slim people though? Obviously not relevant to Mumsnet posters who can't be seen, but there seems to be a huge culture among bloggers and instagrammers for very slim young women purporting to eat enormous portions. I get the feeling if they were very overweight and posted photographs of huge doughnuts or pizzas or burgers, the response would be very different.

I do know exactly what you mean though, outside of the context of the instagram culture.

Ylvamoon · 29/08/2017 23:20

We took one of DS (7) school friends for afternoon play to the park... he came complete with a red bag: 2x fruit shoot, several crisps packets, chocolate bar and large pack jelly fruits. The poor kid had it all (no sharing) plus the chocolate bar I gave them.
This child is so used to snacking, that he had to put something into his mouth every 10-15 min. He didn't really play with DS as he run off so often that he lost interest. When the food run out, he asked (!) for ice cream from the shop... because he was hungry.
I am shocked - this poor boy is conditioned to having something (sweet) in his mouth at all times. By the time he is a teen he will be severely overweight and lonely.
Parents do have a responsibility to their children's wellbeing!!!

DameDoom · 29/08/2017 23:21

I used to do an end of term buffet for my class and it wasn't in any way healthy - was meant to be a treat. I happily paid for it out of my own pocket but had to stop when too many children were literally shovelling down plates of crap shortly after lunch.
I don't even have a treat box nowadays - it's a shame but moderation has gone out of the window and I don't want to be part of the problem.