Strollerderby : childhood obesity

They Say: Formula Not Necessarily Fattening. But!

Madeline Holler — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 17:22:00 GMT

Researchers studying the influences of body composition in early childhood found that, indeed, babies who were breastfed longer had a lower fat mass that could not be accounted for by genetic differences or height.

But the study isn't another "Breast is Best" pitch.

Just as influential, researchers found, was a child's weaning diet -- both those being weaned from the breast and those being weaned from formula.

Kids who had the better diet during weaning -- you know the drill, more fruits, veggies, whole grains and lean proteins -- also had greater lean mass by the time they were four years old.

At first blush, you kind of want to say, "duh. More veggies, less fat." However, (shout out to Hanna Rosin!) while the findings are evidence supporting some claims that breastfeeding reduces the risk of obesity in babies, they also show you can undo the breastfeeding bennies rather quickly by going from num-nums to three meals a day of chicken nuggets and Goldfish crackers.

And also, good nutrition is good nutrition, no matter what you ate in your first year of life.

This is the first study to look beyond ounce-for-ounce comparisons of milks and their influence on baby/toddler body fat. Instead of breast vs. bottle, it's fruit vs. Fruity Pebbles.

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They Say: Moms Don't Care if Boys Get Fat

Madeline Holler — Wed, 27 May 2009 19:01:00 GMT

A study that set out to determine whether restricting what and how much your child eats would eventually lead to obesity (it doesn't; more on that in a second) uncovered a dirty little secret:

Moms care more about keeping their daughters skinny than letting their sons get fat.

That actually came as no surprise to me and probably not you either. We've all witnessed something like this: people admiring a "growing boy" as he shovels it in at Thanksgiving, but eating in silence (or looking away) as the family's teen girl heads back for another round of desserts.

From eScienceNews:

"Our findings mirror those of other studies that have found that parents are much less likely to recognize or be concerned about the overweight status of sons compared to daughters," says [lead author Kyung E. Rhee, MD, MSc, a researcher with the Weight Control and Diabetes Research Center at The Miriam Hospital]. "These behaviors may represent a sensitivity to societal values that girls should be slim while boys have a physical or social advantage in being larger."

Anyway, the study, which appears in the journal Obesity, is good news for parents who never really bought into the idea that kids can exercise portion control when facing an open bag of cookies.

Instead, researchers learned that controlling what and how much your kids eat between the ages of 4 and 7 leads to a healthier BMI between 7 and 9 years old. (No word on whether these restrictions lead to eating disorders, but, hey! At least the kids aren't fat!)

Here's a summary of the study from the LA Times:

Researchers studied 789 boys and girls in nearly equal numbers, calculating changes in their body mass index between the ages of 4 and 7, and 7 and 9, to determine how their mothers' restrictive feeding affected how much weight they gained -- or didn't gain. The data were from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development's study of early child care and youth development.

Mothers were also asked, "Do you let your child eat what he/she feels like eating?" Answers were scored on a four-point scale, from "definitely no" to "mostly no," "mostly yes," and "definitely yes."

They found no correlation between a rise in mothers controlling their kids' eating in the early age range and weight gain in the later range. So it's OK to say, "no dessert tonight!" But spank yourself if you're telling your girl one thing and your boy another.

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You Can't Scare Your Kids Out of an Eating Disorder

JeanneSager — Fri, 15 May 2009 14:00:00 GMT

They seem like the perfect mix of over-the-top drama and real-life cautionary tales to scare your kids straight. But all those books out there warning about the dangerous world of eating disorders?

Could be helping your kids advance their disordered eating.

A look at some books written for teens that fall in the "children's lit" category over on the New York Times' Well Blog hit home for me especially because I WAS one of those teen girls who, pardon the pun, but ate up the stories of teenage bulimics. I wanted to read about someone I could identify with.

But even as I read the horrors of girls whose bodies had begun to grow excess hair to make up for the lack of fat to keep them warm, of girls who landed in hospitals weighing what they did as elementary schoolers, I wasn't consciously thinking "ooh, can't wait until I land in a clinic for the eating disordered, wonder if my parents' insurance will cover the costs." What I was thinking was "interesting, she eats a brightly colored food first so when she throws up, she'll know by the color in the toilet that she's gotten to the bottom of her stomach contents."

It's why today I'm loathe to tell my daughter horror stories to scare her straight on anything. Because before you reach the awful ending, there are always the details that fascinate, that often overwhelm kids with their one-track minds, that are entirely more enticing than the sobering after-thought of a consequence.

Although I'm wary of blaming a book for a child's struggle with an eating disorder (ninety nine times out of one hundred, the seeds for that have already been sewn), just as I scoff at the idea that a video game is solely to blame for a child's violent tendencies, any book, movie, game, what have you, that shares intimate details of how someone navigates a dangerous path is a potential how-to manual in the hands of our kids.

It's why I read this warning about eating disorder books as just another reason parents can't pass the buck off onto a book, a movie, a CD. If you're going to keep your kid from disordered eating, get wise to what it means to have an eating disorder, find out the warning signs and then TALK to your kids. Let them read books, sure, but read them yourselves so you know what's in them. Then talk about them.

Because if all you're doing is trying to scare your kids into being good, it isn't going to work.

Image: UniversityofWisconsin

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Boy Scouts Say Your Kid is Too Fat

JeanneSager — Mon, 11 May 2009 15:01:00 GMT

If your little boy is overweight, you better be prepared to break this news: he might not be allowed to join the Boy Scouts with his buddies.

The Scouts are adding height and weight standards for boys and their adult counterparts who take part in the "high adventure" or extreme events, the kind of activities that often take Scouts and their leaders off into the woods or other places that are far afield from medical assistance.

The Scouts say the new requirements are for the safety of participants. But parents and a lot of current Scouting participants say they're merely cutting more families out (and I say more because, of course, there's that whole "no gays allowed" thing already going on in the Scouts).

As one major scouting site points out - you can easily be physically fit and not fall within those height to weight guidelines. Besides, there are plenty of Scouting leaders who could stand to lose a few pounds - and we all know how easy it is to get parent volunteers these days (er, NOT).

Of course, the bigger concern here is what does this say to our kids? That fat kids have yet another barrier in front of them?

Let's face it - we all know that kids with weight issues also often face self-esteem trouble. A study found that problem increased significantly when kids hit the early teen years, just about the time that Scouts are allowed into the higher adventure activities. It's worth noting too, that this is when kids are at the heigh of puberty, and their bodies are changing significantly - including their heigh to weight ratio.

In other words - it's a risky and difficult time for kids, a time when they would most benefit from a group activity and the ability to participate. A group activity that may even get them off their butts, out from in front of their XBoxes and out climbing trees and hiking forests and . . . um, losing weight, gaining muscle, etc.?

Obviously, I was never a Boy Scout (although they do accept girls for certain events now - especially the adventure groups for teens), but the men I've known who truly enjoyed Scouts were not necessarily your classic buff, rough, tough athletic types. In fact one Eagle Scout I know has battled lifelong weight problems and was unable to play school athletics because he "wasn't good enough." He found his place in Scouts because he didn't have to be masterful at any one thing to succeed.

It might do the Scouts well to mold their programs to the kids rather than expecting kids to mold to their programs. After all, without little boys, there is no Boy Scouts of America.

Image: Boy Scouts via Chicago Tribune

When Your Kid's Report Card Says They're Fat

JeanneSager — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 18:01:00 GMT

The "B" on your kid's report card could soon stand for Body Mass Index.

The Massachusetts Public Health Council has OK'd a proposal that will have schools measuring students' weight and height and sending report cards home to parents that warn them when their kids are overweight.

It's actually just the latest in a string of states that measure kids' BMI (eighteen in total do so), and a growing number that are sending the results home to the parents. Dubbed Mass in Motion, the Massachusetts program is aimed at lowering rates of childhood obesity - and parents will have the chance to opt out if they want to.

I am already prepared for the response of some parents - BMI isn't not an accurate representation of whether or not someone is overweight. And they're right. But the breakdown can be helpful, especially for parents who see the pediatrician only once a year with their kids, when it's time for the well visit. Sudden spikes or drops in weight can be signs of illness in kids, signs of depression or drug abuse too. Catch the warning signs early, and you might prevent your kids from future harm.

Parents would also do well to know a little more about their child's health. Studies have shown that parents often fail to recognize that their kids are overweight - be it because they have problems with weight themselves, are in denial or simply don't notice a change because they see their kids every day (where a grandparent who sees them monthly might notice a big difference in that time span).

How would you feel if you got this kind of report? Would it bother you to have the school stepping in?

Image: Go Healthy Go Fit

It's NOT Baby Fat

JeanneSager — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 15:28:00 GMT

Think those chubby cheeks are sooo cute? Stop pinching and pull out the scale.

A new study says one in five American four-year-olds is obese. Not chunky. Not husky. Obese.

Sponsored by the National Center for Education Statistics, the study shows a drastically higher problem in minority groups, with thirty-one percent of American Indian children who were obese, twenty-two percent of Hispanics and twenty-one percent of blacks.

By comparison, sixteen percent of white kids were dangerously overweight, and thirteen percent of Asian children were obese. Based on an analysis of nationally representative height and weight data on more than eight thousand preschoolers born in 2001, the study took into account where a child falls on the percentile chart. Those who fell in the ninety-fifth percentile or higher qualified as obese.

Unfortunately, the statistics are not that surprising when you break down the higher numbers of low income families in minority groups - especially living on reservations. Low income families have a pre-disposition toward obesity because of the quality of food they can afford, food that is often carbohydrate rich but lacking in nutritional value. A recent study showed parents in low-income families were also more likely to pass on a habit of over-eating to their children because they look to food as a form of comfort.

It's hard for parents of any income level to distinguish whether or not their kids are overweight, but it's scarier still for parents to face a child as young as four with a weight problem. They're supposed to still have boundless energy at this age, to burn off their food just running like a banshee through the house! And how to tell when a kid is still working off the baby fat?

Just another reason to march them in for the well visit and load them up on the scale.

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For Goodness Sake, Leave Their Tonsils Alone

JeanneSager — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 16:29:00 GMT

Want another reason not to put your kids under the knife for a tonsillectomy?

Word has it, putting your kids in the hospital so a doctor can cut out those little chunks of lymphatic tissue at the back of the mouth could make them fat. And we're not talking about all that ice cream served up during recovery.

A Dutch study of almost four thousand kids determined that eight year olds who underwent a tonsillectomy when they were younger were at a heightened risk of obesity - regardless of whether doctors had also removed their adenoids. The doctors factored in kids who were already overweight when they were tots (pre-surgery) as a control, and they say they were able to determine the tonsillectomy prompted the obesity.

They're not calling for tonsil surgeries to stop - the numbers performed in the states have steadily decreased since the 1970s anyway. Instead, the researchers call for better nutrition management and education for kids who have had the surgery.

Considering I still have my tonsils, I guess that's one less chance I have to blame my big butt on someone else. Sigh. . . although, I could always blame it on the baby I had three years ago, right? Right?

Image: Kids Health

Is Shame the Answer to Childhood Obesity?

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 18:00:00 GMT

The creative geniuses behind the anti-childhood obseity ads featuring Barbie certainly seem to think so.

Perhaps the Active Life Movement, the (well-intentioned) organization behind the ads, could benefit from this Onion video--a roundtable discussion of the question, "Should We Be Shaming Obese Children More?"--which uncovers the pros and cons of teaching kids through negative reinforcement.

(Hint to the Active Life Movement: the Onion was kidding!)

Photo: New York Times

Barbie Teaches Kids About Obesity

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 20:30:00 GMT

A new ad campaign by an organization called the Active Life Movement is relying on the paragons of impossible beauty to teach kids about the perils of obesity. Since toys like Barbie really encourage healthy body images and lifestyles….

The goal of the Active Life Movement is laudable—to encourage kids to be active and healthy—but this ad campaign is certainly not serving that goal. As Jezebel points out, toys like Barbie and Superman hardly have body types that kids should be striving for. (Check out the superhero version of the ad here.)

And the ads’ tag line—“Keep obesity away from your child”—is unnecessarily harsh, making it sound as if being overweight is a contagious disease. Being healthy does not necessarily mean being thin, just as being thin does not necessarily mean being healthy. I would hope that the epidemic of eating disorders among increasingly young kids has taught us that by now.

This ad is the visual equivalent of shouting at kids, “Don’t be fat! Be beautiful! Or else everyone will hate you!” Active Life Movement, I suggest sending your creative directors back to the drawing board.

Photo: AdFreak.com

Dad Shackles Overweight Daughter to Bed to Stop Her Eating

JeanneSager — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 17:33:00 GMT

It started with chains and locks on the cabinet doors of the family home to keep his daughter away from the food. When Robert Blue found his fifteen-year-old was getting past them, police say he decided to chain the girl to her bed and beat her with a stick.

The problem? The teen was twenty pounds over the weight her father thought appropriate.

Theres's no excuse for it, but the extreme methodology to make a child lose weight may not be that uncommon.

Obese kids are often at risk of being treated poorly by their peers - and obese adults by other "skinnier" adults. Then throw in the stigma for parents of obese kids. Malnutrition and neglect are most often linked to the words "child abuse," but these days childhood obesity is earning parents the stinkeye - for being too permissive and putting their kids at significant health risks. Two years ago, a British mother was told to put her eight-year-old on a diet or she'd lose custody.

So what are parents doing? Mostly uneducated themselves about proper nutrition and weight loss (studies have also shown most obese kids have at least one obese parent), they go to extremes. They enforce strict diets and padlock the cabinets. They impart little knowledge of how to eat well, exercise and modify their lives, instead believing they can discipline away the fat - which, any of us who have ever lost weight know, doesn't work.

The methods described by Blue's local Nevada TV station are nothing short of criminal - and clearly abusive. But how many parents are just a few steps short of this themselves? Sadly, studies have actually proven child abuse can be a trigger FOR obesity into adulthood. Which points directly back to the Blue case. Child abusers break down a child's self-esteem, upping their chances of overeating. And what happens then? More abuse.

Image: Fox News Vegas

They Say: Mothers Overestimate Kids' Eating Habits, Activity

Amy Kuras — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 15:31:00 GMT

Think your kid is developing decent eating and exercise habits? Think again, according to a new study published in the journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior.

A team led by Dr. Hollie Raynor of the department of nutrition at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, surveyed the mothers of 174 children aged two to 12 about diet and activity in their free time. Heights and weights were obtained from the children's medical records.

Comparing what mothers reported to their children’s heights and weights showed that mothers tended to overestimate how well their children were eating and how much they were exercising, and that while mothers said preschool kids did better than elementary age kids, in fact there was not much difference.

Now, I have to say that if only heights and weights are looked at, that seems to be bad data. I know plenty of pudgebucket two-year-olds whose parents are really conscientious about food and TV and outside time (unless they are stuffing them full of McDonald’s and Dora when I am not looking, which I doubt). I know plenty more fat little toddlers who grew into lean, active kids. And conflating weight alone with poor diet is also a mistake – we all know people who are skinny by dint of great genes or by consuming few calories, but all they eat is crap.

Still, it’s fairly troubling that parents tend to think they are doing fine feeding their kids when in fact, they may not be. I’ve recently joined a very popular commercial weight loss program and the biggest key to success is tracking – you write down everything you eat and drink. Do that for a few days and lo and behold you realize why you ended up needing a weight loss program in the first place, and it keeps you on track and away from overeating. Maybe doing the same for our kids would not be the worst idea?

They Say: Schools Near Fast Food Makes Fat Kids

JeanneSager — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 13:09:00 GMT

Think your kids are OK as long as you keep them clear of Burger King and Taco ~~Hell~~ Bell? Guess again.

A new study says kids who attend schools within walking distance of a fast food restaurant are more likely to be obese. If they can see the golden arches, they can walk.

The study, which appears in the most recent issue of the American Journal of Public Health, looked at data from half a million kids in middle and high schools in California. It found students who attend schools near fast food restaurants eat fewer servings of vegetables and fruits, and drink far more soda than students at schools not located near fast food restaurants. By near, by the way, they mean within half a mile of the school. They cite the restaurants serve as hangouts for the kids – and with hanging out comes eating.

Before you start Google mapping the Mickey D's and Wendy's in your area to pick the best school, you might want to look at kids outside of California. The closest fast food restaurant is at least half an hour from the local school in my hometown. And we've got plenty of fat kids in my town. What we don't have much of? Sidewalks. Or kids who would have reason to walk past a fast food restaurant, or walk at all for that matter.

Living in the country might mean we're free of the fast food menace, but the need to drive everywhere and the lack of parks and playgrounds means we have a lot of sedentary children. But I dare not move - because this study shows I'm screwed either way.

The free order of fries goes to someone who can find me somewhere my kid WON'T be influenced by crappy foods

Image: FastFoodHealth.org

Source: Reuters

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New Food Pyramid Promises to Help Picky Eaters

JeanneSager — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 21:32:00 GMT

Is there anything your kid won't turn his nose up at? Help is on the way - via the federal government.

The new version of the USDA food pyramid breaks down the old one size fits all triangle, with a Website directed toward parents of the two-to-five set. MyPyramid for Preschoolers is being touted as the answer to all their nutrition needs.

The site launched this fall, with a customizable plan section that allows parents to input their child's age, gender, and amount of physical activity. When I tried inputting my daughter, however, I got a message saying the server was unavailable. So I can't say what comes next.

The site does, however, calm the nerves of parents of those picky eaters with reminders that kids who are growing normally are probably just fine (nice to hear something positive from the government), and tips on how to get them to eat something different - without hiding the food. We're talking ideas like give them new foods at the beginning of a meal, when they're so hungry they'll eat anything.

A lot of it is common sense, but for parents who have spent as much time as me worrying about their own weight vs. health issues, it's nice to have a little extra help. And it's nice to have something that we can relate to our pint-sized kids without having to account for their much-smaller sizes.

Image: MyPyramid.gov

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To Flavor Milk or Not to Flavor Milk?

Shannon LC Cate — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 21:10:00 GMT

Is it nobler to offer kids a sugary version of a healthful beverage to encourage calcium consumption, or to restrict their sugary options, no doubt pushing some of them into the welcoming arms of empty-caloried soft drinks?

That is the question for Chicago-area public schools.

While some say that offering chocolate, vanilla, or strawberry milk encourages kids to get more calcium at a time when nine out of ten girls and 7 out of ten boys are not getting their three calcium sources per day, others are worried about the roughly 75 extra calories from sugar in the flavored milks.

Though some elementary schools have stopped offering the flavored milks and do not offer soft drinks, high schools with open-campus policies fear students will leave campus for a Coke if there's no chocolate milk on offer in the cafeteria.

Is it just me or is this kind of a ridiculous thing to worry about? No one cares more about kids' nutrition than I do, but I kind of hesitate to assume that when teens leave campus for lunch, it's all because there was no chocolate milk at school.

Meanwhile, sure, knock out the flavors for the the little captives at the elementary schools. Maybe by forming their tastes healthily while they're young we can send them off to the health food deli for off-campus lunch when they get their drivers' licenses.

Do You Still Have Halloween Candy In Your House?

JeanneSager — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 18:02:00 GMT

I was one of those cranky parents who refused to buy Halloween candy this year. I stocked up on the foodless treats instead - the plastic teeth and rubber bangle bracelets that I left for my husband to hand out to the sugared-up masses. So why do I still have a closet full of miniature candy bars and orange one-serving baggies of cookies? Thanksgiving is a week away people.

Still think I'm a crank for not stocking up before the goblins made their rounds? I thought I was conservative even with our tromping around on Halloween night. We treated just enough doorbells with incessant ringing before my three-year-old elephant and her companions the kitty cat, cop and UPS deliveryman tired of walking and started begging to be carried. I wasn't knocking down the neighborhood for a plastic pumpkin's worth of candy.

And I didn't hold out on her either. I let her skip dinner for just one night in favor of a gut stuffed chock full of chocolate. I've let her have a piece after dinner or slipped in the lunchbox for weeks.

But still it sits, the orange globe with its blacked out eyes and teeth staring me down every time I open the cabinet door. My willpower is wavering. What's one mini KitKat or three, a mini Three Musketeers or two, just one bag of Teddy Grahams? No, I can't. I won't. I have to leave room for the pumpkin pie.

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They Say: Fast-Food Ads Contribute to Child Obesity

Kate Tuttle — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 17:31:00 GMT

A new study published in the Journal of Law and Economics links obesity rates to the amount of fast-food ads kids see when watching television. Unlike other studies, which have suggested a connection between time spent watching TV and obesity, the new research looks solely at the fast-food advertising and its effect on kids' weight problems. Despite criticism from business spokespeople that the study used old data from the 1990s, before McDonalds and Burger King changed their advertising practices, the study's authors are pushing for a reduction in the tax-deduction status of such marketing messages.

From the New York Times article:

Kelly Brownell, director of Yale University's Rudd Center for Food Policy, said reliable estimates of television’s impact on childhood obesity are hard to calculate because of the many assumptions statisticians must make. "That said, food marketing is a blight on the landscape of our children and has been shown time and again to have a negative impact," he added.

It's hard to argue with that, though I wonder whether we're putting too much emphasis on what's on the TV rather than the choice to use it at all. As a second Times article points out in reporting on another study, the chief difference in how happy people spend their time versus unhappy people (as self-reported by study participants) is that they watch less television. I'm as guilty as the next mother of occasionally turning to the electronic babysitter, but it's a good reminder that turning off the tube has myriad benefits for our kids' mental health, not just their weight.

They Say: Fat-Eating Pregos Make for Fat-Loving Kids

JeanneSager — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:39:00 GMT

Tired of hearing your mom comment on the size of your butt? Tell her it's her fault. A new study published in the Journal of Neuroscience says women who indulge in fat-laden foods during pregnancy are setting the stage for parenting a child who will constantly struggle with his or her weight.

Researchers say the developing fetus' brain is essentially being hard-wired to crave fatty foods as their moms eat for two . . . or four. The study was performed on rats rather than humans, but it makes good sense. What are kids eating when they're inside us? Exactly what we're eating. So wouldn't it make sense that they'd develop a taste for those foods?

My father used to joke that he considered leaving my mother if she served one more plate of spinach during her pregnancy (she had to get that iron somehow), and wouldn't you know it - one of my favorite foods is a nice big chunk of spinach pie oozing with feta and wrapped in delicate phyllo dough.

Although my propensity to pop M&Ms would point to plenty of desserts served after those spinach-rich dinners . . .

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They Say: Text Messaging Can Fight Childhood Obesity

JeanneSager — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 20:49:00 GMT

So they have a permanent squint from staring at that little screen and they speak in text-message-ese (or is that only in corny wireless commercials?). Texting can be good for your kids. According to a study in this month's issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, obese kids get the same benefits from texting that they would from traditional food diaries.

Researchers at the University of North Carolina broke families into three groups - one with kids reporting back to parents via text message, one with kids filling out paper diaries and a third not monitoring their intake at all. Parents of the texting and paper diary kids were given a series of questions to ask daily: what was the number on your pedometer today?; how many sugar-sweetened beverages did you drink today?; and how many minutes of screen time did you have today? Before letting them loose, researchers led the families in an educational program to help kids learn better eating behaviors. They were encouraged to reduce their sweets and increase their activity levels.

The kids who answered via their cell phone were more than twice as likely as the paper diary keepers to make the effort to answer the questions. Less than half fell back into their poor eating habits. Perhaps playing a role in the results were the positive feedback messages generated when kids sent in their text messages. A little bit of sugar goes a long way - especially for kids on a diet.

There's a certain amount of irony in the researchers' suggestion that kids limit their "screen time," before putting them in front of a tiny screen to monitor their weight. But a little screen they can take anywhere can take them off the couch and out into the fresh air. Turns out kids can walk, talk, chew bubblegum AND text. And maybe, lose weight?

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JeanneSager — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 20:35:00 GMT

Either kids are getting sicker or doctors are pill happy. A study published in a recent issue of the Journal of Pediatrics says prescriptions for kids with chronic health problems jumped by more than one hundred percent over a three-year period.

Kids aged five through nineteen who suffer from type two diabetes (so-called adult onset diabetes) took one hundred three percent more medications in 2005 than they did in 2002. Prescriptions for kids in the same agre group went up by forty-six and a half percent for kids with asthma, forty percent for ADD and ADHD and fifteen percent for cholesterol treatments. Although the latter number isn't nearly as high as that of the diabetes jump, both stand out for their mere presence in the younger population. Until childhood obesity became buzzwords in pediatric circles, type two diabetes and cholesterol issues were highly regarded as "adult" issues.

The study's author says behavior modifications can have a major impact on most of the chronic diseases studied, but whether doctors are counseling their patients on making the changes - and whether kids are listening - will make the difference in kids' health. Do you feel like your pediatrician's become a drug pusher? Or are kids just getting diagnosed better?

Source: Los Angeles Times

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Happy Birthday Cookie Monster: C is Still For Cookie Thirty-Nine Years Later

JeanneSager — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 16:00:00 GMT

He's not exactly svelte, but Cookie Monster celebrates his birthday today without a crag in the face or wrinkle in the fur. It's got to be the cookies.

Everyone's favorite junk food junkie has been at it since 1969, voiced for the first three decades by Frank Oz, the same muppeteer who gave life to those bosom buddies, Bert and Ernie. He's undergone some major changes over the years - they yanked his pipe in the late '80s to steer clear of any "smoking as muppet habit" controversy. More recently, with childhood obesity the hot topic in pediatrics, his chocolate chip munching has received less and less air time. If you hadn't noticed, Cookie Monster's gone a little fruity.

He told Stephen Colbert in an appearance on Comedy Central earlier this year, "Me not abandon cookies, me love cookies, but one cannot live on cookies alone . . . Cookie is sometimes food," he told Colbert.

"Right," the Colbert Report host answered, "because sometimes you have to pause to open the next sleeve of Oreos." We knew that guy was someone we could hang out with. Although we'd have to share our cookies . . . which you don't actually have to do with cookie monster. The monster mumbles a big game (in somewhat broken English), but have you seen him eat a cookie lately? When Oz was still the man behind the muppet, Cookie Monster chewed and swallowed - you even saw a bump in the throat as the cookie went down (classic example, his first meeting with the Count back in 1972, when that totaling Transylvanian tried his best to count the cookies before they were gone). Not anymore. Muppeteer David Rudman chucks 'em over his shoulder while our kids aren't looking or shreds them with his cookie "fist" and just keeps making the classic "awwww, numm, nummm, numm, numm, num" noises for the fake out.

But my second-favorite blue monster (Hello everybodeeee, who doesn't love cute, lovable Grover the best? He's the cute, furry little monster and super to boot!) is still holding strong as the host of the Letter of the Day, and still keeping prissy Prairie Dawn on her toes. So he might be staring 40 in the face, so cookies don't go down the way they used to. He's still got his googly eyes fixed on years of eating and cracking up our kids.

Celebrate Cookie Monster's birthday with a host of videos, some classic and some brand new, over at the new Sesame Street site. It share his birthday (today), his likes, and, of course, his favorite food. Any guesses?

Image: Muppet Wiki

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They Say: Kids Like To Eat Vegetables. I Still Don't Believe Them

JeanneSager — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 18:51:00 GMT

Kids like vegetables. They like them better than candy. OK, I didn't believe it either. But the results of a survey of California four- and five-year-old kids claims if peas and a Tootsie Pop had a fight, peas would knock 'em out of sight.

What bothers me about these kinds of studies is not only the size (there were just 100 kids involved) but the fact that interviews with kids are conducted the way they would be with adults. Chatting with four- and five-year-olds in English and Spanish over a period four days really tells us nothing about kids' eating habits. It tells us that a bunch of pre-schoolers, whose attitudes toward food are generally as fickle as they are toward their toys, gave some adults the answers they wanted to hear.

What would be more telling would be a process that tracked what kids actually ate when presented with options. Give them a plate of peas and a Tootsie Pop and see what they reach for first. Do they ignore the Tootsie Pop? Do they opt to eat it last? Or do they go glutton and find out just how many licks it takes to get to that chocolate goodness?

As an adult, my tastes are pretty well formed. I'm not going to decide tomorrow that I've given up on dark chocolate M&Ms for taste reasons (size of my butt reasons, maybe). My three-year-old will tell you tomorrow that the same cauliflower she devoured for dinner is "yucky." Last night, she announced that she wouldn't eat the ziti I'd made because, "I don't like sauce." It was the first I was hearing of it after almost three years of dishing out extra helpings of "red stuff" for her ravioli. By the same token, convincing her to eat just four green beans to satisfy the "green quotient" in a meal can take intense amounts of cajoling. But on an "all about me" poster she made for nursery school, listed right under "favorite food" are the words "green beans." Huh? Apparently that's what she told her teacher, and the unwitting teacher wrote it down.

Sure, she likes some vegetables. She even likes some she pretends to hate (and gobbles down while we're not looking). But give her peas or that Tootsie Pop, and I know where her loyalties lie.

Image: PBS Kids

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Shannon LC Cate — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 20:30:00 GMT

The new focus in our culture on childhood obesity has led to some interesting shifts in childhood itself, the most recent of which is club memberships for kids. The Chicago Tribune reports that:

"Fitness club memberships for youths age 6 to 17 have more than doubled in the past two decades, rising from 1.3 million in 1987 to 3.9 million in 2007. More than 1.3 million of those memberships were for children 6 to 11, according to the International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association."

One might think new concerns about sedentary kids would hurt the video game industry. Not so! They are on the edge of the professional kid fitness trend themselves, with products like Wii Fit, Nintendo's interactive exercise program and Gamercize, that makes video games work only when the player is moving.

The Tribune suggests that:

"Outdoor games such as hopscotch and tag that kept Baby Boomers fit when they were kids have largely fallen by the wayside. With busy family schedules and concerns about neighborhood safety weighing on parents' minds, many youths are more likely to play video games inside than ride a bike outside."

But I'm not 100% convinced. At $69-$125 per month for membership to a youth gym, I have to wonder how many parents can afford to budget the expense these days when there are perfectly good, free and reasonably safe playgrounds in most neighborhoods (certainly in neighborhoods in which residents can afford to contemplate kiddie gym memberships). I also have a hard time reconciling this "trend" with what we are told is another trend in bike-riding in times of expensive gasoline and concern about global warming.

What do you think? Does your kid go to a youth health club? Would you consider such a membership for a young child? What other (better?) ways do you get your kids moving?

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They Say: Parents Don't Know Kids are Too Fat or Too Thin

JeanneSager — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 16:56:00 GMT

Think your kid has a weight problem? You might want to check with their doctor. A Melbourne University study of more than 2100 families found almost half the parents of overweight kids thought they were "healthy." The numbers weren't much better for parents of underweight kids.

The Australian study found 49 percent of parents with a child who is overweight thought they were of an average weight. For kids who are underweight, 43 percent of parents thought they were just fine.

It's no wonder - I walk around and where I see overweight children, I often see an overweight parent. If Mom or Dad has trouble identifying a healthy weight and healthy eating habits themselves, how are they going to do it for their kids? With childhood obesity so rampant, they can't even guage a child's health against his or her classmates - because "normal" has shifted. Add in the differences in bone structure, body type and America's melting pot of ethnicities with their own traits for weight, and it's hard to tell what qualifies as "overweight" without a doctor sitting down to evaluate height against weight against muscle mass against . . .

And in a society that researchers found has a "social bias toward thinness" (really, they had to do a study to figure that out?), complaining that a child is "underweight" is a sticky wicket. As parents, for the last several years, we've had the words "childhood obesity" drilled so heavily into our heads our ears are bleeding. Underweight isn't something most parents focus on - the National Eating Disorder Association estimates 5 percent of the American population at any given time is living with an undiagnosed eating disorder. That includes adults - often adults whose parents don't see them as having a problem. But eating disorders have been diagnosed in kids as young as 7 or 8.

A recovering bulimic, I struggle daily to ensure I'm keeping my daughter on track toward a healthy weight. I have vowed not to make food an issue in our house, denying her little but presenting as many healthy options as possible. Still, I hold my breath at each well visit with the pediatrician, waiting to hear the magic words, "your daughter is doing just fine."

Image: Mebby

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Does Anyone Let Their Kids Eat Candy On Halloween Anymore?

Amy S.F. Lutz — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 18:09:00 GMT

I know that childhood obesity is a huge problem, with almost a third of kids age 2-19 qualifying as overweight or obese. But I still can't help but cringe at all the ideas I've read recently about how to separate children from their Halloween candy. To me, Halloween is all about excess and overindulgence, and getting a thimble-sized jar of playdo in my bag just wouldn't do it for me.

I don't know - maybe kids today are just as pleased with stickers as they are with lollipops. And maybe they're excited to sell their candy back to their parents for cold, hard cash, or trade it in for a toy - strategies some parents use to convince their kids to give up their treats. But my kids get toys on birthdays and Hannukkah; they get money from the tooth fairy. Halloween is their favorite holiday because of all its sweet, sticky, manic, deliciousness - so my plan for that night is to just let them wallow in it.

Of course, no kid can eat all his or her Halloween candy in one night. What to do afterwards? We usually ration it out for a week or two, until all the best candy is gone. Then, when even the kids themselves are sick of sugar, the last few tootsie rolls and packs of smarties might disappear.

What's your philosophy about Halloween candy?

Keep Kids From Getting Fat - Get a Dog

JeanneSager — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:32:00 GMT

Want to keep your kids from falling victim to the obesity crisis? Australian researchers say get a dog.

The study of more than 1,100 kids ages 5 to 12 showed kids with a friendly Fido in the house were in better shape - even if they weren't walking the pooch on a regular basis. If the dogs were anything like mine, it might have more to do with the amount the dog's stealing from their plate. Just saying - my dog gained 11 pounds in the year after my daughter started solids.

On a more serious note, pets have long been touted as good for kids, boosting self esteem, helping kids learn discipline and responsibility and even lowering kids risk of developing allergies down the line. Put each of those benefits together, and it would make sense that kids who have a four-legged friend have a healthier outlook on life - which usually translates to overall health. Then add in the exercise of chasing the dog to rescue all that stolen food, and that's one canine who's earning his keep.

Image: Pet Door Decor

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