So close! And yet....
3 Aug 2011 15:54![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
nwhikerHorrifying new product alert - body fat scales for children.
It's a blog post by Dr Yoni Freedhoff. Dr Freedhoff is, imo, not much into HAES, however from his blogging, I'd say he is one of the more reasonable people out there, aware that being fat isn't quite as simple as some people like to claim. He is also not a victim of the moral panic about obesity. His concern feels, at least to me, like genuine concern, not the prurient, gawk at the fat-lady-at-the-circus, faux concern that attempts to mask fat hatred that many others display (yes, Michelle Obama, I'm looking at you and your despicable campaign.).
This post? He misses the point. Or perhaps, he misses the opportunity to make two very good points. It's even more annoying because he is about 9/10s of the way there.
First I want to say is... what the fish do we expect? We're say over and over that OMG! FAT KIDS!!!! GONNA DIE!!! NOW! DIABETES! FAT FAT FAT! We make it clear to parents that it is THEIR FAULT (mothers, really, who don't stay home to prepare healthy dinners every night, but for the sake of not going into that argument, I'll just say parents here.), that they and their children are moral failures. We imply that parents of fat kids are stupid in that they don't "realise" that their kid is fat. In bullying cases, we blame the victim ("If he'd just lose some weight, the other kids wouldn't pick on him as much"). I could go on, but I think I've given enough examples of what society does: we pretty much hate on fat kids and their parents ALL THE FREAKING TIME.
So NO DUH marketers are going to exploit that and use this climate! Hello? They're out to make money, and here they can make money on parents. Both the parents of fat kids, who are desperate to help, and the parents of normalweight kids, who FEAR TEH FAT more than they do Type I diabetes.
So don't be disingenuous, Dr Freedhoff, and say this is a horrifying product: you have -through genuine concern, granted- contributed to the climate in which making sure a 5 year old has an appropriate body fat percentage is something that parents might actually go for.
The next point. Dr Freedhoff writes an awesome list of suggestions, bolds mine:
Sigh. That really is great, isn't it? And he's right. That's an awesome way to look at raising and feeding kids.
But what he misses, and I think this is crucial: this is not going to result in no fat kids. Even if you do all these things from day 1, you might still have a fat kid. And if you have a fat kid already? This is (in all probability) not make them thin.
So I do this, my kid is still fat, or doesn't lose weight, we've failed, may as well go back to our old ways?
We still haven't, short of cutting out a perfectly good stomach, found a way to permanently make fat people thin. More and more researchers are realising that eat-less-exercise-more model is simplistic and that calories-in-calories-out doesn't provide a full picture (spend an afternoon reading posts at Dr Sharma's blog if you dont' beleive me). Fat kids? We don't understand why some kids end up fatter than others.
So while Dr Freedhoff suggestions truly are excellent, I'm sorry he didn't go all the way to say something like,
It's a blog post by Dr Yoni Freedhoff. Dr Freedhoff is, imo, not much into HAES, however from his blogging, I'd say he is one of the more reasonable people out there, aware that being fat isn't quite as simple as some people like to claim. He is also not a victim of the moral panic about obesity. His concern feels, at least to me, like genuine concern, not the prurient, gawk at the fat-lady-at-the-circus, faux concern that attempts to mask fat hatred that many others display (yes, Michelle Obama, I'm looking at you and your despicable campaign.).
This post? He misses the point. Or perhaps, he misses the opportunity to make two very good points. It's even more annoying because he is about 9/10s of the way there.
First I want to say is... what the fish do we expect? We're say over and over that OMG! FAT KIDS!!!! GONNA DIE!!! NOW! DIABETES! FAT FAT FAT! We make it clear to parents that it is THEIR FAULT (mothers, really, who don't stay home to prepare healthy dinners every night, but for the sake of not going into that argument, I'll just say parents here.), that they and their children are moral failures. We imply that parents of fat kids are stupid in that they don't "realise" that their kid is fat. In bullying cases, we blame the victim ("If he'd just lose some weight, the other kids wouldn't pick on him as much"). I could go on, but I think I've given enough examples of what society does: we pretty much hate on fat kids and their parents ALL THE FREAKING TIME.
So NO DUH marketers are going to exploit that and use this climate! Hello? They're out to make money, and here they can make money on parents. Both the parents of fat kids, who are desperate to help, and the parents of normalweight kids, who FEAR TEH FAT more than they do Type I diabetes.
So don't be disingenuous, Dr Freedhoff, and say this is a horrifying product: you have -through genuine concern, granted- contributed to the climate in which making sure a 5 year old has an appropriate body fat percentage is something that parents might actually go for.
The next point. Dr Freedhoff writes an awesome list of suggestions, bolds mine:
5 year olds don't need to have their body-fat or their weights measured, they need healthy food and parental role modeling.
So instead of punishing your child by buying them a body-fat percentage scale, may I suggest that if you're not already doing so you:
- Cook healthy meals from whole ingredients for each and every meal.
- Have sit down family dinners each and every night (remembering they don't need to be gourmet - kids do love peanut butter sandwiches).
- Involve your children in meal (and school lunch) preparation.
- Track the added sugars in your childrens' diets and try to limit to no more than 45 grams daily (remembering that some days should be exceptions too - sugar's part of childhood, it just needn't be a daily part).
- Ensure that the only fruit they eat is actual fruit - no juices, rollups, chews, or mashes.
- Make their milk white and skim, not brown and sugary.
- Ensure your children eat protein with every meal and snack, and that they start their days off with a wholesome, protein inclusive, breakfast.
- Make restaurant meals and take out (including supermarket prepared takeout meals) exceedingly rare events.
- Engage your family in family based physical activity - weekend hikes, nightly walks, signing up for community races, landscaping, home improvement projects, push lawnmowers, snow shoveling, etc.
[...]
If you want your kids to change the way they're living, you're going to have to change the way your whole family's living - and frankly it isn't about weight. All of those behaviours up above? Doesn't matter if your kids are heavy or thin, those strategies will benefit each and every family, though the likelihood is, if weight's an issue in your family, those changes will help far more than any scale ever could.
Sigh. That really is great, isn't it? And he's right. That's an awesome way to look at raising and feeding kids.
But what he misses, and I think this is crucial: this is not going to result in no fat kids. Even if you do all these things from day 1, you might still have a fat kid. And if you have a fat kid already? This is (in all probability) not make them thin.
So I do this, my kid is still fat, or doesn't lose weight, we've failed, may as well go back to our old ways?
We still haven't, short of cutting out a perfectly good stomach, found a way to permanently make fat people thin. More and more researchers are realising that eat-less-exercise-more model is simplistic and that calories-in-calories-out doesn't provide a full picture (spend an afternoon reading posts at Dr Sharma's blog if you dont' beleive me). Fat kids? We don't understand why some kids end up fatter than others.
So while Dr Freedhoff suggestions truly are excellent, I'm sorry he didn't go all the way to say something like,
This may not make your fat kid lose any weight, or even prevent your kid from being fat, but your whole family, irrespective of body weight, will be healthier, and will have learned to enjoy eating fresh food that is good for you, and moving your bodies in a way that will bring you much joy in your life.
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Date: 8 Aug 2011 02:09 (UTC)Lastly you've got to remember - if you're worried about your kid's weights, don't put it on them. It's not their problem, it's yours, and if you think you're going to fix it by yelling at them, weighing them, shaming them, food policing them, etc. - you're going to be disappointed, and your kid is going to be miserable.
I suppose the "it's your [problem]" could be interpreted in the way you mention, but I understood it to mean that the *worry* is the parent's concern and they don't need to spread that to their child. Not necessarily that the actual weight is the parent's problem. I'm having a hard time making my point here! And I suppose I should read more of his blog to know if he has that perspective or not.