reducing obesity in children ..

[clumsymum]

By teaching them all to cook. Will it work, or should they look at turning back the clock, getting all the school playing fields back, and getting them more active again.

reallytired, that sounds like good stufff

Did anyone watch that Jamie Oliver programme the other night - was on about 11pm. Had about 20 people on it who were getting advise on their diets and stuff. A large number of them didn't look "obese" - but in actual fact were - was quite scary really!

Leading a healthy lifestyle - looking at what you eat, how to cook, taking exercise, participating in sport etc is, I agree with other posters, a parents responsiblity.

This latest initiative is typical of this government, ill thought through, probably not funded properly and frankly they are just, as usual, trying to grab headlines.

Unfortunately however I think that generally we have to admit that there are many parents out there who can't or won't take any responsiblity for their children and therefore we have to decide if society in general is going to try and tackle it through schools. Personally I think that we do need to do this, however I don't think cookery classes alone will do it. If children can experience how good it feels to exercise and how much better they feel when they eat good nutritious food then they will understand and want to learn more and live a healthier life.

Hmm, exercising kids for free in parks...

Son's version: run around like mad thing for five minutes. Find large stick. Find other small boy with large stick. Start war. Refuse to go home.

Daughter's version: sit stolidly on swing, making ineffectual wibbling motions. Sit stolidly on twirly thing asking to be pushed. Complain about mud. Moan that it's cold. Plead to go home.

Aaargghhhhhh!

FAQ I hear what you are saying but there is always time for things if you make time. And IMHO you need to make time for swimming.

Couldn't you go for swim with baby in the day sometime (sorry if you are not off work atm) and then take the older 2 later on, maybe when DH gets home? (or is that bonkers)

I'll tell you what is bonkers, that ruling by your pool. Our pool will let you take 4 under 8s into the toddler pool, as long as only one is under 4 IIRC. If 2 under 4 then you can take 3. TBH I have been superfluous in the baby pool for a long long while (my 3 are 8, 6, 4). And I have taken them all swimming from tiny. When DS1 was 4 he could stand on the bottom and splash about really well. If you hold on to the baby then you can easily keep an eye on (and a hand on) a 4yo if you reall yneed to. If we go into the big pool (where DS2 is still out of his depth) then I can take I think 2 under 8s or maybe 3 if over 4?

Anyway. How about finding out about other pools? I don't know where you live but we have quite a choice. Is there for eg a secondary school with a pool? And would it be worth you getting a pass or some kind of discount card - well worth it for the council pools here?

Sorry, trying to be helpful not start an argument.

Football - I pay £3 each/week for a 90-min session for both DSs, which I think is not bad at all (they love it so much esp DS2). There are other options round here but this is at the local secondary school. Mind you I see that even this is too much money if you don't have it IYSWIM.

In Scotland I think all children get cookery in S1 and S2 (first and second year at high school), I thought this happened everywhere guess I was wrong.

I never really understood what they meant by obesity problem as I live in London and hardly ever see any obese children. Then I went up to North of England in November and my God they are all obese up there. It was really difficult to find anything healthy to eat though and A LOT of chip shops I must say.

I live in London too FM and I agree- it is quite rare to see an obese child

All Northern Kids are not obese! The chippy's are great still have one every time I visit home. Surely its parents responsibility to feed the kids healthy food from the start so they wont want to be eating crap all the time. Also its not that hard to take kids for a walk bike ride etc. wherever you live. I live in a town with busy roads but DS coming up 3 years rides his bike everywhere. I am sure his ass is attached to it permanently.

Just wanted to add that it is also forbidden in swimming pools in our area to take three children under the age of 7 swimming on your own - doesn't there have to be one adult per child under 8? Also in our swimming pool it is almost impossible to go swimming during the week as after school finishes the swimming lessons start so the pool is closed for public use. It opens again for public swimming at 7pm but my daughter goes to bed at 7.30 as she has to be up for school the next day! Ridiculous. The government need to provide more swimming pools, playgrounds, sports fields and places where children can run around outside, I think. However, my daughter is quite happy playing out on her scooter (cost under £20 from Woolworths) in the garden or on the driveway etc or riding her bike in the garden, skipping etc. and we try to go to the playground near school after school when it isn't raining, if only for half an hour. We always walk to and from school, but are lucky to be within walking distance, I know not everyone is. But as a nation we could walk more than we do, parents have a tendency to dash around in the car, but just putting the kids coats on and taking them for a walk around the village/block/town is some exercise, and every bit helps.

I must say I wonder WTH is going on, I see the local fried chicken shop chock full of kids after school every day. Surely even beans on toast is better than that crap?

Yes, seb1, they've never stopped having cookery lessons - Home Ecomonics - here in Scotland, and a fat lot of good it's done them.

Obesity is as bad as anywhere. The kids know the theory but don't want to put it into practice by giving up chips etc.

wilchil that's very poor about your pools.

We are lucky in that we are in a fairly big town (well city really) with two council run pool complexes, one in town so a bus ride away for all, and it has three pools so always one open for public swims IYSWIM.

I check the other day when we were there and I almost got it right; in toddler pool this is (about up to my waist; most 3 yo and all 4yo could stand in it) you can have 4 under 8 as long as only one is under 5; or if 2 under 5 then only 3 under 8s in total.

I think that's fair enough - I am honestly not needed with DD (6) and if anyone insisted I had to race round the pool after her to keep her safe I would laugh. (I love going swimming with her, of course, but I'm hardly there to make sure she doesn't sink)