Re: Honey, We're Killing the Kids

~patches~ wrote:

Pete C. wrote:

Nancy Young wrote:

I swear to you this is true. I just now saw this commercial
on tv for a show with that name. TLC (the learning channel)
Script went:

Well, he only eats ice cream and sugar and he
won't exercise, but what can I do about it?

That's the mother explaining to the cashier all the crap
she's buying and her overweight son is gobbling donuts
before they're even paid for.

They say the show will show parents what their kid
will look like at 40, age enhanced whatever.

Can you *believe* the timing? Premiere's April 10th.

nancy


Lard-ass parents will nearly always end up raising lard-ass kids since
they typically have no concept of nutrition and set terrible examples.

Non lard-ass parents will often end up with lard-ass children either
because the parents are thin and don't think about weight, or because
the parents are simply uninvolved as is so often the case these days.

Would you regard us as non lard-ass parents? We did not allow white
sugar, processed meats, fast foods or candies but the kids could eat all
the fruits and veggies they wanted *without* asking. We served healthy,
nutritious, home-cooked meals. Our kids are now adults. None developed
sweet tooths and none eat the foods mentioned above.

I would say that qualifies you as food-nazis. Whether or not your kids
developed sweet tooth's or eat processed foods has little to do with
them being lard-assed. Moderation and exercise are the keys, without
exercise even your "healthy, nutritious, home-cooked meals" can create
lard-asses.

White sugar most certainly has nothing to do with becoming lard-assed
either. Your evil white sugar is chemically identical to brown sugar
with the exception of the molasses being centrifuged out. This is simple
mechanical separation, not some evil artificial chemical process. Take
white sugar, mix in an appropriate amount of molasses and you have brown
sugar exactly.

Processed meats are also not the evil you seem to think they are. Where
do you draw the line for "processing"? Is bacon "processed meat"? Ham?
Sausage? All of these have been around long before we became a nation of
lard-asses, the difference is the massive decline in exercise.


Parents who are food-nazis, restricting sweets and whatnot will often
end up with lard-ass kids because once they are past say 10 years old,
they will get the junk food they want elsewhere.


I disagree. You give your child healthy choices and let them make the
decision. Certain foods do not have to be offered and there doesn't
need to be any explanation. I can't recall every explaining why I
didn't serve certain things.

Unless you are trying to raise a brainwashed, isolated, home schooled
child, the foods you have available need to bear some resemblance to
what they will find in the real world. To exclude candy or hot dogs (and
there plenty of high quality healthy hot dogs available) when they will
find these readily in any interaction with the real world is counter
productive.


Parents who insure a wide range of foods are available, including a
modest amount of sweets and whatnot, are involved in their children's
lives and most importantly do activities with their children that do not
involve watching TV or going to a fast food place, have the greatest
chance of raising healthy non lard-ass children.

Agreed to some degree. Nothing says the sweets must be candy or white
sugar. Other than that, I agree with you.

Not sure what your fixation with white sugar is, certainly white sugar
is no worse than any other form of sugar. As noted above, it simply has
the molasses centrifuged out, it's not some artificial chemical thing.


I'm a pretty average weight, though I need more exercise due to my job
sitting in front of a computer all day. My parents were not food-nazis
and I had and still have very diverse tastes. In the summer I was just
as likely to grab a glass of V8 vs. a glass of soda though both were
available. A salad was not uncommon as a snack vs. Dorito's though both
were available.

I would likely be a silent food-nazis as you put it. Certain foods were
just not served in the house and for very valid reasons IMO.

I'd be interested in your reasoning on white sugar since I know of no
valid reason for that.

They still
aren't served in my home and if eating elsewhere we still don't eat
them. I'm not sure this makes me a food-nazis or not. I'm certainly
not vocal about it but everyone knows I do a lot of canning and am into
nature so some make the assumption I'm a health food nut too. Maybe I
am but I'm not sure about that either. Labels are just so hard to fit into.

Nothing wrong with canning, though I think it's largely a waste of time
these days. Canning was very practical in the days before refrigeration,
these days I see little reason to go to the effort of canning when
nearly everything can be frozen with far less work.

As a single person who likes to cook and with the impracticality of
cooking most things in single serving portions, I very often cook large
batches, then portion and freeze. One evening making stew or day BBQing
pulled pork and brisket and I can freeze a dozen meals ready to heat and
eat.


If there is anything that should be clear about the parenting process is
that any time you try to exert pressure in a particular way, such as
being a food-nazi, it will almost surely backfire.

Well it didn't in our case.

An exception to every rule, but the rule is still valid overall.


The biggest problem with lard-ass kids these days is not food, the food
is really more of a symptom where they eat out of boredom. The real
problem is simply lack of exercise. Too many kids are cooped up with
little to do but watch TV and play video games.

Many kids live in overcrowded areas that don't provide opportunities for
play and exercise (I had a few acres of woods and a stream to play in).
In many cases, particularly in cities kids have fewer outdoor
opportunities these days due to gangs and general street crime.

Some folks will say you need to get the kids involved in sports, but
that is not the answer. We need to provide more opportunities for kids
to get exercise at an individual or small group of friends level.
Competitive sports are not a substitute for this type of activity. Kids
used to be able to hop on bikes with a few friends and ride to a lake or
pond to go swimming, or an area to go hiking. These opportunities are
evaporating with concerns over safety and suburban sprawl reducing
available areas for such activities.

There is a problem with food with regards to getting kids exposed to a
variety of foods during the important early years. When you have parents
who have a very limited diet, they generally won't be exposing their
kids to the vast array of foods available. When I see young kids brought
to a sushi place and eating sushi I know they will likely grow up to
have diverse tastes and likely not become lard-ass twinkie guzzling
wastes.

Unfortunately parenting skills generally seem to be declining with each
generation and I'm not sure how we can reverse the trend.

Pete C.

No comments on the lack of exercise? This is the real reason for the
"obesity epidemic".

Pete C.
.

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