Maybe I'm doing something wrong, but the link didn't send me to a childhood obesity article... However, I will throw my two cents in on the topic. I think parents have a responsibility to provide healthy foods for their children, to whatever extent they are able (understanding that not everyone can shop at Whole Foods, its too darn expensive). I grew up really poor and my mom never cooked out of a box. We had a garden and fresh fruits and veggies, which I later realized was to save $$! She canned veggies, fruits and made home-made jams and pickles. We ate pretty well considering how little money we had. My mom did work outside the home, too by the way. Come to think of it, my mom is pretty amazing. Granted, we were lucky to live in the country where we could have a garden, but I think even in city spaces, you could have a window box of tomatoes or something... just a thought. There are also farmer's markets where you can get great deals on fresh produce...
I also personally think that parents have a responsibility to model healthy living - whether its going for daily walks, hitting the gym, whatever. If finances are a constraint, there are free things people could do on their front stoop or in the neighborhood (jump rope, walking, going to the park and doing old school exercises like situps, pullups and pushups etc.) I think one of the biggest problems is that people are just really uneducated about how much the things that go into our bodies and lack of exercise affects their health and lifespan. They might not understand how much what they are doing is affecting their children. I'm not sure how to change that... I think mass media shows like the Biggest Loser can help... and we have some local "get moving" organizations here that are also working to change the obesity epidemic. All that said, I don't think that jailing parents who have morbidly obese children is the answer. I would rather see that money go to an education program for the parents and children, to break the cycle and teach them how to eat and exercise. Just my opinion.
Maybe I'm doing something wrong, but the link didn't send me to a childhood obesity article... However, I will throw my two cents in on the topic. I think parents have a responsibility to provide healthy foods for their children, to whatever extent they are able (understanding that not everyone can shop at Whole Foods, its too darn expensive). I grew up really poor and my mom never cooked out of a box. We had a garden and fresh fruits and veggies, which I later realized was to save $$! She canned veggies, fruits and made home-made jams and pickles. We ate pretty well considering how little money we had. My mom did work outside the home, too by the way. Come to think of it, my mom is pretty amazing. Granted, we were lucky to live in the country where we could have a garden, but I think even in city spaces, you could have a window box of tomatoes or something... just a thought. There are also farmer's markets where you can get great deals on fresh produce...
I also personally think that parents have a responsibility to model healthy living - whether its going for daily walks, hitting the gym, whatever. If finances are a constraint, there are free things people could do on their front stoop or in the neighborhood (jump rope, walking, going to the park and doing old school exercises like situps, pullups and pushups etc.) I think one of the biggest problems is that people are just really uneducated about how much the things that go into our bodies and lack of exercise affects their health and lifespan. They might not understand how much what they are doing is affecting their children. I'm not sure how to change that... I think mass media shows like the Biggest Loser can help... and we have some local "get moving" organizations here that are also working to change the obesity epidemic. All that said, I don't think that jailing parents who have morbidly obese children is the answer. I would rather see that money go to an education program for the parents and children, to break the cycle and teach them how to eat and exercise. Just my opinion.
I agree with everything you said. And that link IS wonky. Oh well.
Re: Op-ed piece on obesity as a form of child abuse
Maybe I'm doing something wrong, but the link didn't send me to a childhood obesity article... However, I will throw my two cents in on the topic. I think parents have a responsibility to provide healthy foods for their children, to whatever extent they are able (understanding that not everyone can shop at Whole Foods, its too darn expensive). I grew up really poor and my mom never cooked out of a box. We had a garden and fresh fruits and veggies, which I later realized was to save $$! She canned veggies, fruits and made home-made jams and pickles. We ate pretty well considering how little money we had. My mom did work outside the home, too by the way. Come to think of it, my mom is pretty amazing. Granted, we were lucky to live in the country where we could have a garden, but I think even in city spaces, you could have a window box of tomatoes or something... just a thought. There are also farmer's markets where you can get great deals on fresh produce...
I also personally think that parents have a responsibility to model healthy living - whether its going for daily walks, hitting the gym, whatever. If finances are a constraint, there are free things people could do on their front stoop or in the neighborhood (jump rope, walking, going to the park and doing old school exercises like situps, pullups and pushups etc.) I think one of the biggest problems is that people are just really uneducated about how much the things that go into our bodies and lack of exercise affects their health and lifespan. They might not understand how much what they are doing is affecting their children. I'm not sure how to change that... I think mass media shows like the Biggest Loser can help... and we have some local "get moving" organizations here that are also working to change the obesity epidemic. All that said, I don't think that jailing parents who have morbidly obese children is the answer. I would rather see that money go to an education program for the parents and children, to break the cycle and teach them how to eat and exercise. Just my opinion.
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