"The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary." ~ H.L. Mencken
Obese Children Outgrowing Kids' Clothing And Furniture
I've been wearing neighbor children's hand-me-downs for years now, marveling at how big these kids are nowadays. I'm thinking it has got to be chemical foods and too much sitting around. Mine eat whole foods -- we cook and bake -- and are pretty active. They eat sweets and stuff, too. I don't have to impose limits on those types of foods because they are nutritionally aware and limit themselves by choice. They may have a few cookies, but choose fresh fruits and vegetables or sandwiches for snacking later on. Or, no sweets during the day, but bake a cake for dessert. They see the evidence all around them of what that processed, high fructose corn syrup laden food does, as well as not getting out into the fresh air to do things.They make good choices all on their own. It's just not an issue for us. They are all just perfect with their weight, and very healthy. They are not sickly and allergic like so many kids are today.
But, we got here through education and conversation. From the time each were toddlers, I talked to them about the various nutrients, what foods contain them, what they do for the body and mind. I include them in meal planning and have taught them how to cook. And, more importantly, why to cook. We talked about economics, too, from the earliest times. If we have this much money to spend, how can we maximize our nutritional value? They know what foods have the most nutritional bang for the buck. For example, the darker the color -- think about the difference in color between butternut squash and summer squash, ice berg lettuce and romaine lettuce -- the higher the concentration of nutrients. It doesn't have to be a battle, or a matter of draconian limits. And, I believe that this wave of seriously overweight children is a failure on the part of their parents, whether due to a lack of knowledge or effort. It is not because of poverty, as so many claim, because I've always been what America officially defines as poor (laughable definition, because we always have plenty). Knowledge and life skills is what makes the difference.
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