WTF is up with all the obese kids in DC?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was a single mom for 10 years before I remarried. I lived in DC with my son (5 yrs old when we moved) in a small apt for 5 years before meeting my second DH. We cooked at home, walked everywhere, learned to love the metro, used a cart for groceries and made it fun. I dont buy the single mom excuse card at all. Kids mimick you when you eat or cook so why is it that now being single or living on a smaller wage is an excuse to teach them things that will inevitably harm their health? I know we all do the best we can do but we also need to prioritize better. I have a hard time believing that a single mom who excuses herself from modeling good nutrition for her kids would change her ways once she was no longer single or living with a larger salary. I know dual income families that feed their kids crap and they dont have a problem with resources - so to me, this is not a marital status or income issue. This is a complacency issue.

What's your level of formal education? No snark, just curious.

FWIW, I have a doctorate but I earned less than 50K when I was single with my son. We lived in a small apt and were very very frugal. I am a musician so having a degree means literally nothing for your income. I am educated certainly but only in music as I went to a conservatory so I have high school education plus the conservatory education which is very tunnel visioned. Besides the limited income I was making as a musician doing my best with local gigs and teaching out of the home, I would have had to think about waitressing or minimum wage if I wanted to earn more money because I had no training in anything else at the time. I couldnt do that and take care of my son. So we had very little. We still managed. Some years I made less than others - anywhere between 30-50. It was challenging at times but honestly, I dont look back on it as a tough time. We were very bonded and we laughed a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This has to be the only country in the world where we make a relationship between economic and social hardship and gluttony.

It is not about glutony and personally, I don't think it is about economics and social hardship in a strict sense either. However, I do thinks that mostly it has to do with ignorance. The more well educated people are, odds are they are more aware of the importance of nutritious meals, modeling and shaping their children's food habits since a young age, reading labels, etc.

Usually, the level of education of a person is directly correlated with their wealth but you can have people that are very rich but really ignorant about food and nutrition and the opposite as well. People that are very well educated and informed but for a variety of reasons don't make much money or even live in poverty - they are still likely to make better food choices.

OK, but the ONLY thing that you need to KNOW if you are obese is to eat LESS. How hard is that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This thread is insanely depressing. I like to pretend there are not people as ignorant and cold hearted as some of you clearly are.

It has been said that "fat" is the last bastion of prejudice. It's still acceptable to be hateful to fat people, under the guise of being concerned about their health.

Have you noticed that all the science (i.e. metabolic disorder, differing levels of satiety, the affect of leptin, etc) is being ignored here?

[Anonymous]

bingo!

And you were comparing yourself to - let's say - a mother of 15 yo who is illiterate in her own native language, working around the clock in two low-level jobs to make ends meet? (I know several students who fit this scenario.)

Which PP said apples and oranges???

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was a single mom for 10 years before I remarried. I lived in DC with my son (5 yrs old when we moved) in a small apt for 5 years before meeting my second DH. We cooked at home, walked everywhere, learned to love the metro, used a cart for groceries and made it fun. I dont buy the single mom excuse card at all. Kids mimick you when you eat or cook so why is it that now being single or living on a smaller wage is an excuse to teach them things that will inevitably harm their health? I know we all do the best we can do but we also need to prioritize better. I have a hard time believing that a single mom who excuses herself from modeling good nutrition for her kids would change her ways once she was no longer single or living with a larger salary. I know dual income families that feed their kids crap and they dont have a problem with resources - so to me, this is not a marital status or income issue. This is a complacency issue.

What's your level of formal education? No snark, just curious.

FWIW, I have a doctorate but I earned less than 50K when I was single with my son. We lived in a small apt and were very very frugal. I am a musician so having a degree means literally nothing for your income. I am educated certainly but only in music as I went to a conservatory so I have high school education plus the conservatory education which is very tunnel visioned. Besides the limited income I was making as a musician doing my best with local gigs and teaching out of the home, I would have had to think about waitressing or minimum wage if I wanted to earn more money because I had no training in anything else at the time. I couldnt do that and take care of my son. So we had very little. We still managed. Some years I made less than others - anywhere between 30-50. It was challenging at times but honestly, I dont look back on it as a tough time. We were very bonded and we laughed a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
It is not about glutony and personally, I don't think it is about economics and social hardship in a strict sense either. However, I do thinks that mostly it has to do with ignorance. The more well educated people are, odds are they are more aware of the importance of nutritious meals, modeling and shaping their children's food habits since a young age, reading labels, etc.

Usually, the level of education of a person is directly correlated with their wealth but you can have people that are very rich but really ignorant about food and nutrition and the opposite as well. People that are very well educated and informed but for a variety of reasons don't make much money or even live in poverty - they are still likely to make better food choices.

I find that to be completely untrue.

I'm a nurse, and I know SO many overweight/obese physicians. DH is an engineer, and works with some educated people who are also overweight. I see lots of overweight attorneys.

It's just another excuse to say ignorance = obesity.

It's almost like saying that fat people are fat because they're stupid. I don't think that's true. People often know what the right choice is, but choose not to make it, for whatever reason.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is insanely depressing. I like to pretend there are not people as ignorant and cold hearted as some of you clearly are.

It has been said that "fat" is the last bastion of prejudice. It's still acceptable to be hateful to fat people, under the guise of being concerned about their health.

Have you noticed that all the science (i.e. metabolic disorder, differing levels of satiety, the affect of leptin, etc) is being ignored here?

I don't find most of the posts in the this thread prejudiced.

If you're overweight and healthy, that's great. But, it's ridiculous to ignore the health issues that can come up if you ARE overweight.

How is it hateful to say that overweight poor people should be taught how to eat better?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is insanely depressing. I like to pretend there are not people as ignorant and cold hearted as some of you clearly are.

It has been said that "fat" is the last bastion of prejudice. It's still acceptable to be hateful to fat people, under the guise of being concerned about their health.

Have you noticed that all the science (i.e. metabolic disorder, differing levels of satiety, the affect of leptin, etc) is being ignored here?

I don't find most of the posts in the this thread prejudiced.

If you're overweight and healthy, that's great. But, it's ridiculous to ignore the health issues that can come up if you ARE overweight.

How is it hateful to say that overweight poor people should be taught how to eat better?

And I quote: "They look like bowling balls on their children are sucking on bottles of red liquid." How is this anything but hateful?

[Anonymous]

Excuse me... AND not ON

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is insanely depressing. I like to pretend there are not people as ignorant and cold hearted as some of you clearly are.

It has been said that "fat" is the last bastion of prejudice. It's still acceptable to be hateful to fat people, under the guise of being concerned about their health.

Have you noticed that all the science (i.e. metabolic disorder, differing levels of satiety, the affect of leptin, etc) is being ignored here?

So, what is your answer to OP's question then?

Is it okay that there is a higher rate of obesity in children now then there was 50 years ago? Do you feel that is not a problem? Or, would you like to label all these kids as having a 'metabolic disorder'? Don't you think there might actually be something going on in our daily habits that is making kids more likely to be obese now?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

And I quote: "They look like bowling balls on their children are sucking on bottles of red liquid." How is this anything but hateful?

I'm not the PP you quoted, but you're right. Calling someone a 'bowling ball' is mean and hateful.

But, I completely agree that it drives me nuts to see kids walking around sucking down sodas or 'fruit' juice. I see kids in my neighborhood, who can't be older than 3, walking around with a large, full-sized bag of chips. In what universe is that appropriate?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:bingo!

And you were comparing yourself to - let's say - a mother of 15 yo who is illiterate in her own native language, working around the clock in two low-level jobs to make ends meet? (I know several students who fit this scenario.)

Which PP said apples and oranges???


I wasnt comparing myself to anyone. You are a kind of a shit stirrer but whatever What I said was that I had a hard time believing that a single mom who doesnt model good nutrition would change their ways if their lifestyle changed because I know people who make great livings who serve their kids crap. You have to care enough about nutrition to put in the effort and some people DONT, money or no money. Also, how is me working my butt off doing random gigs and teaching most evenings including weekends not working two jobs at a low wage especially on the years when I was earning more like 30 in my lower end of the range I gave? We arent THAT different income wise. I was doing something I love so maybe I was happier but even when I have had very unhappy times ( abuse, divorce, cancer and death of a parent in my care...) I fed my kid healthy food because I care about it. I can read and write, yes. I can speak the language and network to better my situation, yes. But are you then insinuating that all single mothers are as you described? Obviously if you are destitute and living day to day and barely surviving, using your crock pot to make your kid a healthy soup is the last thing on your mind. When did the thread get to be about that? My point is that people of all backgrounds and incomes are feeding their kids crap because they are lazy about this subject - that is why I used the word complacent. And so no, I still dont think you can pull the "I am a single mom" card and get off the hook for not caring about what goes into the mouth of your kids. Maybe you can pull the desperate, destitute and living day to day barely surviving card.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was a single mom for 10 years before I remarried. I lived in DC with my son (5 yrs old when we moved) in a small apt for 5 years before meeting my second DH. We cooked at home, walked everywhere, learned to love the metro, used a cart for groceries and made it fun. I dont buy the single mom excuse card at all. Kids mimick you when you eat or cook so why is it that now being single or living on a smaller wage is an excuse to teach them things that will inevitably harm their health? I know we all do the best we can do but we also need to prioritize better. I have a hard time believing that a single mom who excuses herself from modeling good nutrition for her kids would change her ways once she was no longer single or living with a larger salary. I know dual income families that feed their kids crap and they dont have a problem with resources - so to me, this is not a marital status or income issue. This is a complacency issue.

What's your level of formal education? No snark, just curious.

FWIW, I have a doctorate but I earned less than 50K when I was single with my son. We lived in a small apt and were very very frugal. I am a musician so having a degree means literally nothing for your income. I am educated certainly but only in music as I went to a conservatory so I have high school education plus the conservatory education which is very tunnel visioned. Besides the limited income I was making as a musician doing my best with local gigs and teaching out of the home, I would have had to think about waitressing or minimum wage if I wanted to earn more money because I had no training in anything else at the time. I couldnt do that and take care of my son. So we had very little. We still managed. Some years I made less than others - anywhere between 30-50. It was challenging at times but honestly, I dont look back on it as a tough time. We were very bonded and we laughed a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
It is not about glutony and personally, I don't think it is about economics and social hardship in a strict sense either. However, I do thinks that mostly it has to do with ignorance. The more well educated people are, odds are they are more aware of the importance of nutritious meals, modeling and shaping their children's food habits since a young age, reading labels, etc.

Usually, the level of education of a person is directly correlated with their wealth but you can have people that are very rich but really ignorant about food and nutrition and the opposite as well. People that are very well educated and informed but for a variety of reasons don't make much money or even live in poverty - they are still likely to make better food choices.

I find that to be completely untrue.

I'm a nurse, and I know SO many overweight/obese physicians. DH is an engineer, and works with some educated people who are also overweight. I see lots of overweight attorneys.

It's just another excuse to say ignorance = obesity.

It's almost like saying that fat people are fat because they're stupid. I don't think that's true. People often know what the right choice is, but choose not to make it, for whatever reason.

ITA! Some people, regardless of income or lifestyle do NOT prioritize this in their life and they are overweight and a lt of times so are their kids. They arent stupid. Their priorities are different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:bingo!

And you were comparing yourself to - let's say - a mother of 15 yo who is illiterate in her own native language, working around the clock in two low-level jobs to make ends meet? (I know several students who fit this scenario.)

Which PP said apples and oranges???


I wasnt comparing myself to anyone. You are a kind of a shit stirrer but whatever What I said was that I had a hard time believing that a single mom who doesnt model good nutrition would change their ways if their lifestyle changed because I know people who make great livings who serve their kids crap. You have to care enough about nutrition to put in the effort and some people DONT, money or no money. Also, how is me working my butt off doing random gigs and teaching most evenings including weekends not working two jobs at a low wage especially on the years when I was earning more like 30 in my lower end of the range I gave? We arent THAT different income wise. I was doing something I love so maybe I was happier but even when I have had very unhappy times ( abuse, divorce, cancer and death of a parent in my care...) I fed my kid healthy food because I care about it. I can read and write, yes. I can speak the language and network to better my situation, yes. But are you then insinuating that all single mothers are as you described? Obviously if you are destitute and living day to day and barely surviving, using your crock pot to make your kid a healthy soup is the last thing on your mind. When did the thread get to be about that? My point is that people of all backgrounds and incomes are feeding their kids crap because they are lazy about this subject - that is why I used the word complacent. And so no, I still dont think you can pull the "I am a single mom" card and get off the hook for not caring about what goes into the mouth of your kids. Maybe you can pull the desperate, destitute and living day to day barely surviving card.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was a single mom for 10 years before I remarried. I lived in DC with my son (5 yrs old when we moved) in a small apt for 5 years before meeting my second DH. We cooked at home, walked everywhere, learned to love the metro, used a cart for groceries and made it fun. I dont buy the single mom excuse card at all. Kids mimick you when you eat or cook so why is it that now being single or living on a smaller wage is an excuse to teach them things that will inevitably harm their health? I know we all do the best we can do but we also need to prioritize better. I have a hard time believing that a single mom who excuses herself from modeling good nutrition for her kids would change her ways once she was no longer single or living with a larger salary. I know dual income families that feed their kids crap and they dont have a problem with resources - so to me, this is not a marital status or income issue. This is a complacency issue.

What's your level of formal education? No snark, just curious.

FWIW, I have a doctorate but I earned less than 50K when I was single with my son. We lived in a small apt and were very very frugal. I am a musician so having a degree means literally nothing for your income. I am educated certainly but only in music as I went to a conservatory so I have high school education plus the conservatory education which is very tunnel visioned. Besides the limited income I was making as a musician doing my best with local gigs and teaching out of the home, I would have had to think about waitressing or minimum wage if I wanted to earn more money because I had no training in anything else at the time. I couldnt do that and take care of my son. So we had very little. We still managed. Some years I made less than others - anywhere between 30-50. It was challenging at times but honestly, I dont look back on it as a tough time. We were very bonded and we laughed a lot.

Not to minimize your situation, but you had a few things going for you vs. the low income mother. You made somewhere under 50K, which is 2x the poverty level. You probably didn't have SE as your shopping area. And you probably worked one job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

ITA! Some people, regardless of income or lifestyle do NOT prioritize this in their life and they are overweight and a lt of times so are their kids. They arent stupid. Their priorities are different.

I think this is key. We need to figure out how to make good nutrition and exercise a priority for ALL Americans.

We've made vaccines a public health issue and are able to get tons of kids, even poor kids, vaccinated. Why can't we get ALL parents to understand that they're doing their kids a disservice by not addressing obesity.

I struggle with this with respect to exercise. We eat well, but I haven't made exercise a priority. Definitely a problem that I need to fix. It's not because I'm stupid. I know the benefits of exercising. I just make excuses like 'I'm busy' or 'I'm tired'. Bottom line, I need to make it a priority for myself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

OP, It is because of POVERTY. SOMEHOW when you are POOR you get too much food, if they had MORE money, they would be able to shop at Whole Foods and buy LESS food and eat less. Also, they would magically not choose to buy the potato chips at WF, just the Gala apples.

Or is it ??????????

Article in today's NYTimes makes the opposite case.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/25/opinion/sunday/is-junk-food-really-cheaper.html?_r=1

Is Junk Food Really Cheaper?
By MARK BITTMAN
Published: September 24, 2011

THE “fact” that junk food is cheaper than real food has become a reflexive part of how we explain why so many Americans are overweight, particularly those with lower incomes. I frequently read confident statements like, “when a bag of chips is cheaper than a head of broccoli ...” or “it’s more affordable to feed a family of four at McDonald’s than to cook a healthy meal for them at home.”

This is just plain wrong. In fact it isn’t cheaper to eat highly processed food: a typical order for a family of four — for example, two Big Macs, a cheeseburger, six chicken McNuggets, two medium and two small fries, and two medium and two small sodas — costs, at the McDonald’s a hundred steps from where I write, about $28. (Judicious ordering of “Happy Meals” can reduce that to about $23 — and you get a few apple slices in addition to the fries!)

In general, despite extensive government subsidies, hyperprocessed food remains more expensive than food cooked at home. You can serve a roasted chicken with vegetables along with a simple salad and milk for about $14, and feed four or even six people.

Bittman also talks about needing to have access to a grocery store, not a dusty bodega. Much less the skill to cook. But you don't address that in your post.

The Washington Green Grocer delivers. I buy nearly everything I need for the week from then, to feed a family of 4, and it costs about $82.00. This is not just produce but also bread, meat, eggs, and dairy. I do pick up other things during the week but it rarely adds up to more than $25. I think that's a pretty good deal and it keeps us from eating out all the time because I am forced to use everything before it goes bad. The soups I make are about the easiest things and last for a couple of days.