Childhood obesity. Whose problem is it?
June 17th 2008 23:45
A quarter of Australian children aged 7-16 years are now either overweight or obese. As a result, the NSW government will be spending $6.5 million on anti obesity initiatives to teach preschool and primary school children simple ways to stay healthy.
The Living Well at School program is designed to teach children about exercise, and healthy eating. For more information, see Really Long Link
Clearly, some kind of intervention is needed, as generation Z, (those aged under 17 years) is the first generation to have a life expectancy shorter than that of their parent’s.
My question is whose responsibility is it to ensure our children stay healthy? The parents? Or the governments?
Most of us know that to stay healthy we need to eat fruit and vegetables, exercise regularly, and limit junk food, so why are we not teaching our children this?
Preschool and primary school children can only eat what their parents buy so if they are overweight it is the parents fault. If you do not want your child to eat junk food, then do not buy it. Parents on the other hand are likely to blame outside influences like TV advertising, or computer games. I have one question for these parents: Who is in charge in your household? Whose job is it to monitor TV time or time spent on the computer? Is it that hard to say no to children nowadays?
If you buy your children junk food, and do not send them outside to play sometimes, they will get fat end of story!
When I was at school, there was only one fat girl in our class, and she was constantly teased. Now it would seem that being overweight or obese is the norm.
Who do you think should be responsible for the obesity problems in our children?
The Living Well at School program is designed to teach children about exercise, and healthy eating. For more information, see Really Long Link
Clearly, some kind of intervention is needed, as generation Z, (those aged under 17 years) is the first generation to have a life expectancy shorter than that of their parent’s.
My question is whose responsibility is it to ensure our children stay healthy? The parents? Or the governments?
Most of us know that to stay healthy we need to eat fruit and vegetables, exercise regularly, and limit junk food, so why are we not teaching our children this?
Preschool and primary school children can only eat what their parents buy so if they are overweight it is the parents fault. If you do not want your child to eat junk food, then do not buy it. Parents on the other hand are likely to blame outside influences like TV advertising, or computer games. I have one question for these parents: Who is in charge in your household? Whose job is it to monitor TV time or time spent on the computer? Is it that hard to say no to children nowadays?
If you buy your children junk food, and do not send them outside to play sometimes, they will get fat end of story!
When I was at school, there was only one fat girl in our class, and she was constantly teased. Now it would seem that being overweight or obese is the norm.
Who do you think should be responsible for the obesity problems in our children?
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Comment by Aimzster
Health and Beauty
Reality TV
The Jeepney Stop
First Time Mum
Comment by Sara Dobson
My Turn
Thanks for stopping by. I think parents are totally responsible for their childrens eating habits and everything else.
I used to know an obese girl who ate a lot of junk and used to say you are so lucky you can eat anything. Same story as your friend really just a different takeaway.