to be angry with those parents who have let down their overweight dc

[frumplump]

Overweight parents who allow their own issues to destroy their own dc's good health, what are they thinking?

I overheard a heartbreaking conversation in a shop where an awkwardly fat teenage shop assistant was dispairing at how she was wasting the best years of her life because she had not learned to eat healthily from her parents.

She was saying she had low self esteem and wanted to lose weight desperately. Teenage girls have a difficult time at the best of times, it's just plain cruelty for her parents to have allowed her to become so unhealthily big. She found walking difficult ffs! They say parents will outlive their children. What's going on? How can parents be so cruel?

re food technology: dd makes proper pizzas (all right, self raising flour not yeast), scones etc at school- no assembling there (and presumably they will then be moving onto other non-bread foods)

re portion size- agree this is the big problem; my brother who started having big portions as a child (against my parents will but he got very agitated about it) is now the only adult I know who can come from his own lunch and sit down and eat another lunch straight afterwards if we happen to be eating

sounds odd to me, I could never do that

but I suppose he's been in training for a long time

and because he eats home-cooked food he can't see what's wrong with his diet

I never forget going to the States either, when there were fast food outlets everywhere you looked day and night, they gave you literally a bucket of coke to drink, steaks as big as a brick, a pizza for one was as big as the table itself and a soup was so thick with processed cream and cheese that the spoon stood up in it.

It is so sad because the factory farms that produce alot for fast food outlooks are miserable and unhealthy places for the animals and it's no wonder children brought up on this are going to be very disadvantaged healthwise.

In fact you cannot help but pile on the pounds there, it's expected and the advertising and child friendly facilities make them the only choice for the majority.

These places have already taken hold of children's imaginations in the uk.

Sidge - it's difficult though with portion sizes - I have 2 skinny boys - who genuinely eat more than I do! If I don't give them a big portion then they want to snack later (well they do anyhow - but giving them a larger portion keeps the snacking down to a managable level).

DS3 has a biggish appetite (when he's in the mood ) - but nothing like his older brothers were at the same age (although having said that he suddenly seems to have picked up the pace in the last month or so).

I'm sure many would be HORRIFIED at the portions I dish up for my 8 and 5yr old - but they ARE still hungry if they don't eat that amount - and they've been huge eaters since the day they were weaned

I think they must follow after my brother who was skinny as a teenager and used to eat 3 times as much as everyone else, and who now in his mid 30's is still a healthy weight (and fit too - he runs marathons and does rock climbing frequently too, as well as cycling everywhere) and eats 3 times more than anyone else I know LOL.

My dc are very active too and have big appetites but if they are hungry before mealtimes they have got in the habit (since toddlerhood) of having a piece of fruit or slices of cucumber/carrot which will not ruin their appetite. I was a bit slack with my youngest though.
I found I had a bit of a battle to start with with my ds as he would prefer crisps etc but I persevered and now he asks for an apple or tangerine etc (just because the crisps were banished from the house for a while to give the new routine a chance)giving my toddler even a bag of crisps would seriously take away his appetite for dinner etc so he only gets them as a reward now and then. certainly not a staple of his diet.

LIdl and Aldi are good places to get cheap fruit/veg as we get through a lot of it. 10p for a kiwi sometimes!

gosh yes. Even in Ireland, we feed dd aged 3 off our plates, usually some spud and veg. She usually isn't that interested in eating when we're out , usually wants to run around, play with cousins etc. my nieces all 3 are very overweight at least 21 Ibs each of them (they are aged 2, 5, 6 years). My sister makes them eat up everything, including rich sauces, starter and pudding.She likes to get value for money see . I caught my sister trying to give my dd Black Forest Gateau when she was 6 months, ffs.

agree portion sozes are to blame

you dont need to eat everything on your plate

and also what makes me laugh is when in mcds or any fast food joint (yes mr blondes eats junk food, and is very slim) is that people ask for extra large chips, double cheeseburger etc and then ask for a diet coke

seriously though eat less and exercise more and weight will go down - it may take time, but remember a loss of 1 lb a week = 52 lbs a year=just under 4stone (56lbs)

frump - I'm talking about children who can have a proper snack an hour before a meal time (bread, sandwich, crisps, fruit - anything) and still eat more than me .

"you dont need to eat everything on your plate"
That sounds very profligate to someone brought up in the post-war days of 'waste not, want not', before the throw-away society.

sh - that is part of the problem I think. Those of us brought up by parents who had been through the war have real trouble with not eating everything we are given. Even when I was little in the 60s, food was seen as a precious resource by my parents. Which it is, let's face it! But the answer isn't to eat it all regardless but 1. put less on the plate, 2. recognise that eating food that isn't needed/wanted is also a waste but instead of dumping it in the bin you are dumping it in fat stores round your body. I am trying my hardest to break DH of this habit - he even finishes up the DCs food for them.

My parents were fanatical about not wasting a single morsel of food, their parents too, all because of post war austerity/expense of it.

We don't waste a single morsel of food in our house either (we give it to the chickens) or make use of leftovers next day.

I visited Japan and left some rice in my bowl, they were horrified. I thought plain rice was boring. Anyway, I had to 'relearn' what food should taste like and it took 1 year to appreciate a simple bowl of rice (without pouring soya sauce over it, another shock horror for the Japanese)

I was careful to only take enough so that I'd not waste a single grain of rice and because I ate with chopsticks, every morsel could be savoured and enjoyed slowly. I must say, I can easily taste the varieties of rice now whereas before I could not (nor care)

Then I added fish, pickled veg etc or other protein in small quantities (like chicken or pork in fine threads) and learnt to appreciate and savour those tastes and smaller quantities.

Less is more sometimes, especially when it comes to really delicious food. In the US it seems bigger is better even if the food is bland or tasteless (like those enormous red apples)

I really have to thank the Japanese because I went there, learnt some good habits and having gone there after the US it stopped me becoming a 'wolfing piglet' ifswim.

People might ask for a diet Coke because they prefer the taste.
I do, though I don't make my meals large but on the rare occasions when I order fast food, I'll have a diet drink because the regular tastes sickly sweet to me.

FAQ oh I agree about portion sizes in that some children can eat loads and stay slim - especially if they are active. My 10 year old DD1 has about the same amount of food I do but is really skinny. I think portion sizes only really become an issue if the child is overweight or becoming so.

On TV one day, I was watching Paul McKenna. He would ask his parents when he was younger, "What use is it for starving children in 3rd World countries that I become overweight?"

Good point, n'est ce pas? Hopefully, more and more children will have the courage to question their parent's motives with regards to portion sizes and even the type of food they are being made to eat. My niece and nephew are definitely more aware than I was at their age. Mainly because their friends are more knowledgeable about healthy eating habits than I am, even now.

Blondes, I enjoy the odd MaccyD and whilst I will have something like chicken select and fries, etc....I will always have wat0er, because I prefer it over coke (more thirst quenching....etc...)...so, it doesn't seem that odd that people may supersize, but have diet coke...and tbh....I suppose it saves at least a few calories