Did anyone watch that 14 stone eight year old documentary?

[EmsTomot]

Just wondered what everyone thought about childhood obesity and whether they agree that it can amount to a form of child abuse.
I thought that the family should have been doing more to encourage a healthier life style, but can understand how easy it is for children to be over weight now a days - perhaps the mom should have been given more help earlier on.
We try to have healthy and fresh foods in the house - but since we have been doing this (conscious effort from first weaning) our shopping bills have gone through the roof. I wouldn't want to plough our boy with junk when he is older, but I wondered if there is a relation between earnings and eating badly...or is this not an excuse?

I felt sorry for the little boy, but I don't think having a low income is a good reason for having a high-fat, unbalanced diet.
I don't think that making the mother into a criminal or whatever is going to help that situation. Perhaps a little more support and education might help, but introduced earlier than when the child weighs 14 stones.
I saw the mum talking on the news yesterday and was relieved to see that she didn't make the excuse of low-income preventing the purchase of fruit and veg.
I only work part-time and my partner is finishing a Phd without funding, but we and our child eat very healthily. We probably eat less meat that many households because of the cost, but I see that as a benefit for us, because we use more vegetables, pulses etc... instead.
I thought the mum looked pretty unhealthy - I think this is a culture of lack of cooking skills and lack of education about nutrition (or education full stop).
It might help if mums weren't so pressurised to 'feed-up' their babies and to worry about their weight and size from their birth. Food becomes a very emotive issue and sometimes it might seem better to give unsuitable food to a child that you know the child will actually eat.

My friend out right blames the mother. I agree with your point on education, but wondered if childhood obsesity is more connected with money/education/opportunities in life - is it a class thing? Or is it down to the parents.
There really isn't an excuse to let your child get that heavy, especially with the health implications.
However, I do sympathise that if you have very little money, it is harder to keep the cupboards stocked healthily. I work part time and my husband full time, our outgoings leave us little but we make sure we prioritise to feed the family properly - something we never did before our baby arrived!
Some people might only get benefits and might need things like cigarettes etc - especially as in this case the woman was suffering from depression.
To be honest the programme appalled me, but I was trying to find a sympathetic level.

'Some people might .... need things like cigarettes' - err, I don't think so. Save a bloody fortune and get healthier if she gave up. Doesn't have to be cold turkey, and there's loads of support available if she needed it.

Cansleep - I agree, your children come first - don't smoke myself and never will, I just felt that the mother should have been helped a lot sooner - she has an illness - how can she possibly look after a young child with severe depression when she could hardly get out of bed?
The boy was missing school as well - If she were just a lazy cow doing nothing all day and not caring, I might not be discussing it like this, I would just say put the boy with someone who cares, but I felt there was a lot more to it.
It was obvious the Grandma cared for him so much, but it begs the question - why not put a lock on the crisp cupboard - in fact, why have crisps in the house in the first place?The point I was trying to make without sounding like I believe there is a definate class system, is that in some circumstances, in some backgrounds, it is the norm to eat crap and smoke and drink your life away - I wanted to know if childhood obsesity was linked with this lifestyle.

I feel really really sorry for the young lad. He has been on the news, radio news, ITV 8pm Trevor McDonald thing etc. He was seen wearing no top, showing all his rolls of flesh.

Well, if he didn't get bullied at school before, he certainly will now... poor lad. The media has a lot to answer for in pushing a subject just to get the nation involved to start yet another debate about bad parenting etc.

Can't give any in depth comment on the programme really, as I was MNing whilst watching, so didn't pay a huge amount of attention .

I can see your point about childhood obesity being linked with such a lifestyle as you describe, but it's common in other 'classes' too. My parents loved butter and cream, and I vividly remember having cream cakes for supper as a child (my brother is diabetic and had to have some supper, so I was given the same) - unsuprisingly I've been obese pretty much most of my life (though not to the extent of the boy on the programme).

I think finding the balance is so difficult -the thing that shocked me the most was the fact this little boy had no exercise - apart from jumping around on the trampoline, and I think gravity played its part once he took the first leap - its not really challenging.
Larger children don't offend me, I think you can be heavier and bigger but still be healthy - what shocked me is the intake of awful food and the amount that this EIGHT year old was taking in - I wondered at which point his body would cave - also I wondered at which point as a mommy, I would have said, enough is enough, he is getting too big.
It angered me that everyone in that little boys life, his mother, his teachers, his family, doctors etc - have let him get so heavy.
I would be scared to death about his health. I didn't want to blame the mom outright without asking questions about background, money etc...but the more I think about it the more it upsets me.
As you get older, you have the choice of your lifestyle and that is totally up to the individual, but children need guidance don't they - how can that little boy ever make another choice away from what he has unless he is shown an alternative?

I agree. His mum clearly was not the brightest and I want to know where the HV / School Nurse was in all this. However I've never understood the price argument - having spent 6 years at uni on a grant I learnt that pasta, rice, lentils, fresh veg etc gave me far more money for fags and booze than buying processed food would have!! I also agree that poor lad is going to be tormented now,and as if he wasn't before. A very sad tale.

Maybe I am shopping at completely the wrong super markets! - I have found this healthy, balanced diet with fresh things very expensive - apart from pasta, that isn't but you can't live on that every day!

Ems,I really don't understand what you are saying about fresh food being expensive.
It is sadi a lot by others too.
What are you buying that costs so much??

If you breakfasted on say,porridge,you can buy a huge bag for next to nothing.

Sandwiches for lunch.

Hot meal at night.Pasta,rice,frittata or so on.

Fruit and veg in season.

I agree Ems. By feeding a family of 4 the five portions of fruit and veg per day it adds upto a huge bill. Yes, the pasta, grains etc is cheap and cutting down on meat is good, but I find I am buying 28 bananas per week for a start, then there's other fruit and green veg, salad items etc etc etc. A huge bill.

You each eat a banana a day?? Don't you get bored? What about a glass of fruit juice, porridge and dried fruit, Clementimes at 2 bags for £2, blitzing a few courgettes into the pasta sauce, a mixed vegetable crumble, macaroni cheese with sliced tomato and salad blah blah blah. I haven't weaned my little one so maybe I'm talking out of my arse but that is the kind of stuff we eat and am expecting him to join into.

Yes a banana each day, sometimes as is, sometimes in a smoothie. I always give my ds and dd fruit as snacks, and puddings (fruit salad for example). Fruit replaces crisps, cakes, biscuits etc etc...

Last week bought 2 bags of grapes (1 red, 1 green) and they lasted 4 days! They cost £5.00 for grapes alone!

Perhaps we're overdoing the fruit...

Didn't want to turn this into a "food police" debate though.

I suppose 1 piece of fruit is cheaper than 1 chocolate bar.

Twoisplenty - You sound like a great parent, I am certainly not criticizing. As I say, I might be talking out of my arse. But, fruit, veg, pulses and carbs funded me through a rather unhealthy phase of my life when I really didn't care about the long term health consequences. I bet your kiddies are glowing with health rather than weighing 4 times what they should though aren't they? Keep those bananas up then!!

ummm, plus grapes are yum yum. Who can blame them

I agree that fruit particularly, can be quite pricey and especially during Winter, there isn't that much choice. I only buy oranges, apples and bananas, oh and grapes (but only for DS - I don't like 'em).
However, veggies are still pretty good value and pulses. That's what I lived on as a student with a £15 per week food budget.
I save by only buying the budget version of everything 20 tins of tomatoes at 14p a tin, fruit juice from Lidl (giant cartons) giant boxes of bran flakes and big bags of sultanas, porridge etc...
It is definately lots cheaper than buying ready meals and that type of thing.
A good veggie cookbook is great, for ideas that you can reheat the next day and take the night off (very large saucepan required).
Sorry getting off the topic here.

Sorry, had to dash last night to a teething distraught baby! I have read your comments though, and slightly off the original subject, found them really helpful.
I am going to reorganise the shopping and look for the better buys instead of filling up the trolley. I am trying so hard to give my son a good diet and thought I would start early - I will be looking at a good veggie cookbook for ideas - I think what has happened, all the baby recipes have such obscure bloody ingredients in them - once you have them in the cupboard you are okay, but we have had to stock up which has made the bills go up. I might try out some cheaper supermarkets too - anyone got any good recipes, I would really appreciate them!

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That is very true Giddy, I think it has been slightly mishandled myself, but feel that if childhood obsesity is on the increase, propert investigation and documentary should be made.
I ended up with more questions after the programme I saw than before I started watching it and felt that the programme - Tonight I think it was, was all about trying to aportion blame to the family.
It was not educational at all and I felt it should have been - why couldn't they have first, like you say found out if there was a medical reason and secondly get in dieticians and exercise mentors to help the mother battle - what I think can be classed as an illness in her son.
It made me take stock (as you have probably read) of our eating habits - my baby is a fair weight - he is a tall lad, very active and does not look at all fat, but he is a big baby and this has been commented on - every time I have him weighed, because of the emphasis on weight in this age, I hope he hasn't lost anything - it seems to me to be the wrong focus really - within reason.
Surely if he is eating healthily, regularly and is active, his weight shouldn't be this scrutinized, am I being conditioned into over feeding my baby?
I can only aportion some of the blame to the mother because of this and really felt that there was a bit of a witch hunt - as soon as the word abuse was mentioned actually.

giddy1 - i also thought of Prada-willi syndrome when isaw him and heard him speak , but that could have been the product of being brought up by a clearly very depressed mother, interestingly his grandmothers house was clean and uncluttered did wonder why granny did have the boy live with ehr for a while ?

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