Now we're not supposed to tell fat kids that they're fat?

[Nanuk]

Group claims that it's harmful to tell fat kids that they are indeed fat.

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=209&sid=2366077

So how are we supposed to get these kids slimmed down if we can't tell them that it's wrong to be fat?

[LFE]

By ingnoring the request made by this group?


Group claims that it's harmful to tell fat kids that they are indeed fat.

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=209&sid=2366077

So how are we supposed to get these kids slimmed down if we can't tell them that it's wrong to be fat?

[lar]

I couldn't open the link. But, what I will say, my two youngest kids are a prime example, because of their body type they are a little chunky at the 8 to 11 age range, but those who know my middle daughter who is now twelve, she has sprouted up and thinned out and is looking gorgeous. You don't tell kids they are fat, you suggest they eat differently which falls on deaf ears with kids, but don't kill their self esteem, instead help them with their eating habits and exercise.

[Nanuk]

...instead help them with their eating habits and exercise.

And that's the ideal solution. Sadly, looking at the kids getting off the buses every day and waddling straight to their parents' waiting cars, many WV parents aren't interested in making their kids exercise. I see plenty of little fat kids riding around on ATVs but very, very few kids actually walking or riding bikes. Whatever happened to making your kid play outside? And "playing" should not involve actual physical activity, not riding on vehicles powered by gasoline engines.

[LFE]

I see plenty of little fat kids riding around on ATVs but very, very few kids actually walking or riding bikes. Whatever happened to making your kid play outside? And "playing" should not involve actual physical activity, not riding on vehicles powered by gasoline engines.

This brings up a great point I was going to start a new thread on.
If leaving a kid home alone is considered endangering the life of a minor... why does it seem OK around here to just let young kids go ride ATV's where ever they want to on their own?

[lar]

There is no where for kids over age 12 to go for childcare around here (I say this loosely) I know of a few things but they are cost and transportation prohibitive for me and probably many others. Tax deductions for childcare stop when kids turn 13. So pretty much we are told that kids at 13 are able to stay alone, yet this of course, is up to individual interpretation.

[kkrapf]

So how are we supposed to get these kids slimmed down if we can't tell them that it's wrong to be fat?

Change a system that often only requires one credit of physical education in four years of high school education? Provide better school lunches? More education on healthy eating? Prevention of obesity is the key. Those who are already obese and have grown up with bad eating and exercise habits will no doubt struggle with it for life. I still am. But I keep my pets healthy and active and I will do the same for my children as they grow up. THEY will learn what I was not taught. And I will try my very hardest to be a positive example for them to follow.

[Nanuk]

Change a system that often only requires one credit of physical education in four years of high school education? Provide better school lunches? More education on healthy eating? Prevention of obesity is the key. Those who are already obese and have grown up with bad eating and exercise habits will no doubt struggle with it for life.

Excellent assessment. So how do we get the schools to do their part? And what do we do about the parents who refuse to limit their kids' diets or make them exercise? Arizona is looking to knock $50 a month off of the welfare checks of obese welfare recipients who refuse to follow a doctor's instructions on how to slim down. Could that work here?

[Tony]

I agree that unless there's a proven cure for obesity that doesn't include dieting then it does no good to stigmatize. Some people are just much more efficient at storing calories than others; a clear advantage for most of mankind's history. Just because we now live in a society that can afford to no longer need this survival trait is no reason to look down on those that are best at it.

[Chutney Daftcraft]

I agree that unless there's a proven cure for obesity that doesn't include dieting then it does no good to stigmatize. Some people are just much more efficient at storing calories than others; a clear advantage for most of mankind's history. Just because we now live in a society that can afford to no longer need this survival trait is no reason to look down on those that are best at it.

What an amazing response. That is all.

[Nanuk]

I agree that unless there's a proven cure for obesity that doesn't include dieting then it does no good to stigmatize. Some people are just much more efficient at storing calories than others...

Oh, BS.

Fat comes from eating food high in calories, eating too much of that food, and not burning it off through exercise. Kids today are fat because they eat large amounts of processed foods and sit in front of a TV or game console all day. I wouldn't call it an evolutionary benefit seeing as how it leads to diabetes, heart disease and the decreased ability to fight and flee if need be.

Parents could knock most of this problem out by giving their kids smaller, nutritional meals and making them exercise. Fat comes from sloth and gluttony and eating crap food. That's a major reason why fat kids are derided; they're almost always sissies who can't keep up in gym and the other kids find this to be rather contemptuous. And sadly our schools have catered to the parents of these kids and just dropped the requirement for gym class because it hurts the fat kids' feelings when they get laughed at for not being able to do push-ups or climb a rope. In reality, those kids need to be kept after school for MORE gym class, and only fed healthy food in the school lunch line.

[lar]

I recently learned that in High School here they are only required one gym class, so that's true. Jefferson County has dramatically changed their lunch menus for the better which is bad for school lunches because everything tastes like wheat cardboard but they did make the changes.

[Chutney Daftcraft]

Fat comes from sloth and gluttony and eating crap food.

It's funny that you just cited 2 of the seven cardinal sins as a blame for obesity, considering that it takes two more to overcome it: pride/vanity and envy.

Oh, and I'd also like to point out that you are deriding fat kids and seemingly siding with bullies.

[MoeMoe]

there also are hereditary issues that go along with this subject...no?

[Chutney Daftcraft]

I think chemical additives to processed foods and corn syrup have a lot to do with it.

There seems to be a direct timeline coincidence between processed foods and obesity.

It's hard to expect a KID to be able to eat less of foods that were literally engineered to make them eat MORE.

[lar]

Yes I believe heredity plays into it.

[derricksonb]

If the US military and US Government can set up and establish standards on BMI and ideal weight based on height, then it would seem to me that the same standard would also apply to children to determine if a child is overweight regardless of heredity or health issues. Once an absolute standard has been established then there is no more room for excuses. If your kid is x years old, y inches tall and weighs z+1 then your child is overweight for his/her age and height.

[KatherineA]

I think chemical additives to processed foods and corn syrup have a lot to do with it.

There seems to be a direct timeline coincidence between processed foods and obesity.

It's hard to expect a KID to be able to eat less of foods that were literally engineered to make them eat MORE.

I really think this is a huge part of it too.

[grafxgirl]

there also are hereditary issues that go along with this subject...no?

And health reasons for some people being fat like thyroid disease... although I do have to agree pretty much with what Nanuk is saying. Much of the responsibility lies with the parents.

[grafxgirl]

If the US military and US Government can set up and establish standards on BMI and ideal weight based on height, then it would seem to me that the same standard would also apply to children to determine if a child is overweight regardless of heredity or health issues. Once an absolute standard has been established then there is no more room for excuses. If your kid is x years old, y inches tall and weighs z+1 then your child is overweight for his/her age and height.

There are growth and weight charts in place. You can find them here:
http://www.cdc.gov/growthcharts/

Our son is at the 50th percentile for weight, the 75th percentile for height, our daughter is at the 50th percentile for weight and 90th percentile for height. I guess that means we're doing okay in the nutritional department.

[Chutney Daftcraft]

It's a proven fact that humiliation is NOT a behavioral motivator. ESPECIALLY when it comes to child development. It only compounds the problem.

[derricksonb]

There are growth and weight charts in place. You can find them here:
http://www.cdc.gov/growthcharts/

So you're telling us that the CDC already has guidelines that set the standards for childhood obesity and seemingly back up what is on the billboards in GA? I'm shocked that the federal government would call those lazy little round tubs-of-goo fat.... Oh wait, no I'm not.

[derricksonb]

It's a proven fact that humiliation is NOT a behavioral motivator. ESPECIALLY when it comes to child development. It only compounds the problem.

Seems to be a pretty good motivational tool in Boot Camp. You know what else is a good motivational tool in Boot Camp? Doing 100 push ups or running 5 miles with a 150lb sack on your back.... Something these chubby pint-sized pudding packs could use.

[lar]

Mine were equally off the charts for both height and weight so I guess they were proportionate. Been a long time since I have been to the pediatrician for the growth charting I can't remember my kids exactly.

[kemeigen]

whenever these threads about obesity and being overweight come up I am always amazed at what must be the lack of mirrors in Shannondale.

[Pat_13]

Seems to be a pretty good motivational tool in Boot Camp. You know what else is a good motivational tool in Boot Camp? Doing 100 push ups or running 5 miles with a 150lb sack on your back.... Something these chubby pint-sized pudding packs could use.

What, something about black and kettle???

[lar]

IKR Kemegen, I don't know anyone who is a 36-24-36 so to speak. Everyone is conformationally different. Big butts, long legs, whatever....

[derricksonb]

What, something about black and kettle???

Do as I say, not as I do......

[Nanuk]

Well there's "normal", which is everything within a range of height/weight proportional, and then there are all of these Stay-Puft people walking around who weigh considerably more than anyone should. That's the difference. And sadly, we're seeing a real upward trend of fat KIDS like we've never seen before, and most of it can be traced back to crappy diets involving too much processed food and lack of exercise. And far worse than hurting their fragile little feelings, obesity in kids brings on all sorts of health problems and medical issues down the road and diminishes their ability to actually enjoy life. Call me extreme, but I think that letting a kid get all fat and lazy is child abuse. Parents have a responsibility to raise healthy kids since the kids can't do it on their own.

[lar]

Try one time to look a child in the face and tell them they are fat and see the look they get on their face. If they are fat they know it already but don't know what to do about it, that's why its up to the parents. And, most parents don't know how to do it either. I think its one of the hardest things to do, lose weight, that is.

[grafxgirl]

It's a proven fact that humiliation is NOT a behavioral motivator. ESPECIALLY when it comes to child development. It only compounds the problem.

I never said I agreed with the humiliation part, but I do agree with the part about parents needing to take responsibility for the health of their children. I also think if a child is overweight that the truth should not be hidden from them, but don't humiliate them in the choice of words used. The words should be chosen carefully. Someone should explain the facts to them, and let them know why being overweight is unhealthy, and teach them what they can do to become healthy.

[grafxgirl]

whenever these threads about obesity and being overweight come up I am always amazed at what must be the lack of mirrors in Shannondale.

I know I am within normal weight and BMI range for my height and age because I was at my endocrinologist 2 weeks ago to make sure my thyroid was still functioning normally after being on my prescription for 3 years and being on the same dosage the last year. Turns out I've managed to drop 20 lbs since January. Am I gloating? You bet! I was more than thrilled to hear I am finally back to "normal" with my thyroid and weight so to speak.

[grafxgirl]

According to the CDC estimated 16.9% of children and adolescents aged 2–19 years are obese.

http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/obesity_child_07_08/obesity_child_07_08.pdf

[derricksonb]

Try one time to look a child in the face and tell them they are fat and see the look they get on their face. If they are fat they know it already but don't know what to do about it, that's why its up to the parents. And, most parents don't know how to do it either. I think its one of the hardest things to do, lose weight, that is.

LAR I agree with you 100% that most of the blame for the increase in childhood obesity lies with the parents. It's really not that hard to get a kid to eat better or exercise more in fact it's quite simple. Stop buying snack foods that are high in fat or that contain a shitload of chemicals in their ingredients list and instead buy fresh fruits an veggies for them to shack on. Our kids would both rather have grapes, apples or bananas than chips or other packaged snack foods. As far as exercise is concerned walk in their rooms or wherever they veg in front of the tv or computer, turn it off and send them outside.

[Chutney Daftcraft]

LAR I agree with you 100% that most of the blame for the increase in childhood obesity lies with the parents.

Even after the umbilical cord is cut?


As far as exercise is concerned walk in their rooms or wherever they veg in front of the tv or computer, turn it off and send them outside.

Getting bit by a snake or something else in the yard is a GREAT way to shed some unwanted fat. And some unwanted skin. And some unwanted muscle. And some unwanted tissue. And some unwanted money.

[derricksonb]

Even after the umbilical cord is cut?

Yes. Because parents need to be, well, parents and stop trying to be their childs buddy. It's the parents responsibility to encourage the child t b physically active or to provide the child with the proper nutrition.



Getting bit by a snake or something else in the yard is a GREAT way to shed some unwanted fat. And some unwanted skin. And some unwanted muscle. And some unwanted tissue. And some unwanted money.

Soooooo on the remote chance that one of your kids would get bite by a snake or some other ferocious wild animal you'd prefer to keep your kids inside and safely planted on the sofa??? That's about as ridiculous as those SAHMafia members who refuse to let their kids ride the bus to school on the remote chance that it could be involved in a vehicle accident.... probably with another SAHMafia member who is rushing to get her kids to the same school...

[Chutney Daftcraft]

Yes. Because parents need to be, well, parents and stop trying to be their childs buddy. It's the parents responsibility to encourage the child t b physically active or to provide the child with the proper nutrition.

The law actually states that all you need to do is provide access to food. That varies based on the needs of the child, but all you have to do is make sure the child has food, and 'food' is not specified by any nutritional definition.

The best way to 'be a good parent' and route your child's interest away from the horrible foods is to cut them off of the television. The commercials for the crap food are designed to implant an overwhelming desire in children for those foods. Then the foods are engineered to make them eat more, because in order to increase sales in the food industry, you have to increase either consumption or waste. The consequences of increasing waste are far worse than increasing waists. Nobody will buy food that goes bad too quickly more than once, and public opinion seems to shift the blame to the individuals who are fat, so the industry gets off the hook with that approach.

To say that all it takes is to 'just be a good parent' is kinda overlooking many things. It's David VS Goliath when it comes to the food industry vs. one parent. They know how to make your children want 'fun foods' much more than a parent knows how to make them want carrots and apples.



Soooooo on the remote chance that one of your kids would get bite by a snake or some other ferocious wild animal you'd prefer to keep your kids inside and safely planted on the sofa??? I never said they should be planted on the sofa. I think they should remain on a mattress on a floor in a carpeted bedroom because that is where they are safest. Can't fall down to the floor if you're already on it... Besides, some people have children with sun sensitivity, so maybe being svelte isn't worth the melanoma.


That's about as ridiculous as those SAHMafia members who refuse to let their kids ride the bus to school on the remote chance that it could be involved in a vehicle accident.... probably with another SAHMafia member who is rushing to get her kids to the same school...School buses are a dangerous place for children to be. They are also the kitchen sponge of the transportation world. Not to mention that you can't control your child once they are on the bus, and may wind up eating a twinkie from someone's lunch bag and get fat.

[grafxgirl]

To say that all it takes is to 'just be a good parent' is kinda overlooking many things. It's David VS Goliath when it comes to the food industry vs. one parent. They know how to make your children want 'fun foods' much more than a parent knows how to make them want carrots and apples.

I'm assuming that David is the one parent and Goliath is the giant food industry? Remember David won that battle against the giant.

[Nanuk]

LAR I agree with you 100% that most of the blame for the increase in childhood obesity lies with the parents. It's really not that hard to get a kid to eat better or exercise more in fact it's quite simple.

Great timing. I was meeting someone for lunch today in a place that has, among other things, a buffet table.

In came what looked like three generations of the same family, all morbidly obese, right on down to the pre-teen girl. There was a young man in his 20's who was so fat that... Aw hell--he was disgusting. All of them were blob-shaped. And they hit that buffet tale like a swarm of locusts and stacked their plates heaping high with as much of the high-carb crap as they could pile on. When they went back and sat down, I kid you not, there was probably more food on their table than there was left on the buffet table. We were in awe watching them, and I'm sure that the restaurant owners were in the back crying, because there's no way that they didn't lose money on that family.

THAT is how kids get to be fat-bodies...they're brought up like that and allowed to shovel as much crap down their throats as they want to. As we were leaving, the little girl was at the dessert bar, piling ice cream with chocolate syrup on a dinner plate.

I'm thinking that maybe to get into a fast-food place, a buffet or an ice cream shop, customers should have to step on a scale that lights up and flashes their weight as they come in...and maybe it should even have a buzzer for the really heavy ones.

[Dan Baltzell]

I think you are fat.

[Dan Baltzell]

I think I'll go to work for homeland security and arrest fat people.

[derricksonb]

I think in many cases poor diet and nutrition are based on socioeconomic disparity. most processed food in this country, which is of course is the "bad high-fat, high-calorie, high-sugar gastronomic wonderland," is what is priced within the budgetary means of many lower income Americans. To make things worse these items are often bought by large store chins in bulk, placed on sale and often accompanied by coupons which make them even more attractive. If the government or American farmers/distributors wanted to make a real difference in the quality of American health they'd find a way to offer better sales or coupons for fresh fruit and produce.

[Chutney Daftcraft]

I think in many cases poor diet and nutrition are based on socioeconomic disparity. most processed food in this country, which is of course is the "bad high-fat, high-calorie, high-sugar gastronomic wonderland," is what is priced within the budgetary means of many lower income Americans. To make things worse these items are often bought by large store chins in bulk, placed on sale and often accompanied by coupons which make them even more attractive. If the government or American farmers/distributors wanted to make a real difference in the quality of American health they'd find a way to offer better sales or coupons for fresh fruit and produce.

^ This.

The cheaper foods are the ones that are the worst for you. Instead of giving coupons for produce - or maybe on top of giving coupons for produce - they really should stop using so much crap in the packaged foods, ESPECIALLY if they are frozen.

[Kensey]

The cheaper foods are the ones that are the worst for you. Instead of giving coupons for produce - or maybe on top of giving coupons for produce - they really should stop using so much crap in the packaged foods, ESPECIALLY if they are frozen.

The problem is if you take "all the crap" out of packaged, processed food, it looks and tastes a lot like the box it comes in. They're not putting artificial color and flavor in to make it "better" as much as they are to make it edible.

[Tony]

Right. Any human on the planet would prefer these processed foods to cardboard if given half a chance to have it. Again, it's an evolutionary biological thing, not a choice.

And the idea that a parent can starve a kid into dieting is absurd. People have been found trying to do this - chaining kids to beds, etc., but it always results in serious charges.

[derricksonb]

What makes you think that most of the fat and other harmful aspects of packaged foods are in the flavor packets?

[Kensey]

What makes you think that most of the fat and other harmful aspects of packaged foods are in the flavor packets?

It's not the artificial flavors and colors (although (http://abcnews.go.com/Health/food-dyes-hyperactivity/story?id=13221478)...), it's the sugar and salt processed food get loaded up with that do the most damage. (Check out the sodium content in a bowl of "healthy" Grape-Nuts, you'll feel your heart exploding just looking at it.)

[Tony]

(Check out the sodium content in a bowl of "healthy" Grape-Nuts, you'll feel your heart exploding just looking at it.) I see 354mg/.5 cup, not a lot for one meal. It's only 15% of the RDA of 2300mg.

[Kensey]

I see 354mg/.5 cup, not a lot for one meal. It's only 15% of the RDA of 2300mg.

The website says 290 mg -- but note that's a serving size of half a cup. A typical cereal bowl holds 3-4 times that much depending on how full you fill it. So figure for a realistic serving size you're getting at least a cup of cereal, or almost 600 mg of sodium (and realistically more like 1000 mg) plus however much is in the milk.

Now compare that to an "unhealthy" cereal: Frosted Shredded Wheat. Zero sodium, slightly more sugar but actually less total carbs than Grape-Nuts, and still a pretty decent vitamin and mineral profile.

Give me the Frosted Shredded Wheat any day.

[Dan Baltzell]

I see 354mg/.5 cup, not a lot for one meal. It's only 15% of the RDA of 2300mg.

Why you all think the government is interested in your health is beyond me, especially since multimillion dollar food corporations lobby to get what they want. That's why we have health problems. MSG controls the brain into eating something you wouldn't normally eat, it's not a flavor enhancer, it's a neurotoxin, making people stupid by forcing the synaptic junction into an excessive sodium firing and burning it out, just like a hangover. But people will eat a whole bag of crap and go back and ask for more. It's a trillion dollar a year business and they have no ones health in mind, nothing personal, just money. It's skyrocketing health care costs, but the pharm corps love it. You can stuff yourself and get fat from overloading fructose/glucose and never get sufficient nutrients, increasing diabetes, heart, autoimmune deficiency and deadly bacteria contagions, not to mention joints, breathing, sleep disorders, and energy levels. It's the one thing in our immediate control, every time we eat, yet we americans consistently refuse because of a belief pattern evolved through media bombarding us with flashing emotional colors and sounds of subliminal neural activity. STOP watching TV. EAT more vegetation, not corporate food. 30% of overweight people think they are normal. 1 in 3 are obese, probably over 80% are overweight. Look at people in the old 50's films and compare yourself to them. LOOK IN THE MIRROR AND STOP TALKING ABOUT IT AND DO SOMETHING, just start eating food closest in the food chain to the sun, and quit rationalizing and projecting.

[Chutney Daftcraft]

Why you all think the government is interested in your health is beyond me, especially since multimillion dollar food corporations lobby to get what they want. That's why we have health problems. MSG controls the brain into eating something you wouldn't normally eat, it's not a flavor enhancer, it's a neurotoxin, making people stupid by forcing the synaptic junction into an excessive sodium firing and burning it out, just like a hangover. But people will eat a whole bag of crap and go back and ask for more. It's a trillion dollar a year business and they have no ones health in mind, nothing personal, just money. It's skyrocketing health care costs, but the pharm corps love it. You can stuff yourself and get fat from overloading fructose/glucose and never get sufficient nutrients, increasing diabetes, heart, autoimmune deficiency and deadly bacteria contagions, not to mention joints, breathing, sleep disorders, and energy levels. It's the one thing in our immediate control, every time we eat, yet we americans consistently refuse because of a belief pattern evolved through media bombarding us with flashing emotional colors and sounds of subliminal neural activity. STOP watching TV. EAT more vegetation, not corporate food. 30% of overweight people think they are normal. 1 in 3 are obese, probably over 80% are overweight. Look at people in the old 50's films and compare yourself to them. LOOK IN THE MIRROR AND STOP TALKING ABOUT IT AND DO SOMETHING, just start eating food closest in the food chain to the sun, and quit rationalizing and projecting.

:applause:

[longleaf]

Just last week at Torlones, DB and I had a cheeseburger eating contest, and he couldn't even finish the third and blamed it on the beer and fries.

Winning!

:D

[Nanuk]

just start eating food closest in the food chain to the sun....

What? Birds?
Well I loves me some duck, pheasant, quail, goose and turkey, so I guess I do ok.

Seriously, you can consume as many calories as you like if you just burn them off. Little thing called "exercise", otherwise known as "physical activity". Even Michelle Obama gets it and pushes it, and for that. I give her much credit.

Yes, you read that correctly.

[longleaf]

Even Michelle Obama gets it and pushes it, and for that. I give her much credit.

Yes, you read that correctly.I know, right?

Lately, Matt Drudge has shamelessly shown her as just 'dancing'.

Props to you.

[AAT53]

Genetics plays a huge part.

I have a niece that has never had an ounce of extra fat on her, heck I'm not sure there is any fat in her body. The day she delivered her first daughter she was wearing the largest size pants she had ever worn..a size 3. Her father was the same way. He could eat whatever he wanted and never gained any extra weight. My niece has always forgotten to eat..seriously, she can go two or three days just drinking water and milk and completely forget to eat.

Her twin was always pudgy as a kid. They both ate the same meals, played outside together (though the pudgy one actually ran around more), etc. She took after my sister. She has to watch what she eats, exercise, etc. to stay at her goal weight.

One of my brothers has 3 kids. They all ate the same meals, didn't have junk food in the house, weren't allowed to drink soda, etc. One was thin growing up and the other two were pudgy (when I say pudgy they were not obese, just above their "ideal weight" for their ages). As adults, the two that were pudgy are now thin and the one who was thin has to watch what she eats or she gets pudgy quickly.

Of course, food choices make a difference. My point is that some of these kids that people may call pudgy or obese may not be eating a bunch of junk. I'm not even sure what the medical requirements are for someone to be medically labeled obese. How many pounds over their "ideal weight" do they have to be?

[grafxgirl]

Genetics plays a huge part.

I have a niece that has never had an ounce of extra fat on her, heck I'm not sure there is any fat in her body. The day she delivered her first daughter she was wearing the largest size pants she had ever worn..a size 3. Her father was the same way. He could eat whatever he wanted and never gained any extra weight. My niece has always forgotten to eat..seriously, she can go two or three days just drinking water and milk and completely forget to eat.

Her twin was always pudgy as a kid. They both ate the same meals, played outside together (though the pudgy one actually ran around more), etc. She took after my sister. She has to watch what she eats, exercise, etc. to stay at her goal weight.

One of my brothers has 3 kids. They all ate the same meals, didn't have junk food in the house, weren't allowed to drink soda, etc. One was thin growing up and the other two were pudgy (when I say pudgy they were not obese, just above their "ideal weight" for their ages). As adults, the two that were pudgy are now thin and the one who was thin has to watch what she eats or she gets pudgy quickly.

Of course, food choices make a difference. My point is that some of these kids that people may call pudgy or obese may not be eating a bunch of junk. I'm not even sure what the medical requirements are for someone to be medically labeled obese. How many pounds over their "ideal weight" do they have to be?

Diet and exercise is what makes the difference. Are the twins identical? Identical twins have the same DNA so that is not a factor in the weight difference. What is a factor is what they eat. Did you know that the food nutrients one twin receives from the placenta can be more or less than what the other twin receives from the placenta? That can cause a difference in weight before they are even born.

[derricksonb]

Just last week at Torlones, DB and I had a cheeseburger eating contest, and he couldn't even finish the third and blamed it on the beer and fries.

Winning!

:D

That's because you were drinking light beer.... which we all know is better for you.

[lar]

Genetics plays a huge part.

I have a niece that has never had an ounce of extra fat on her, heck I'm not sure there is any fat in her body. The day she delivered her first daughter she was wearing the largest size pants she had ever worn..a size 3. Her father was the same way. He could eat whatever he wanted and never gained any extra weight. My niece has always forgotten to eat..seriously, she can go two or three days just drinking water and milk and completely forget to eat.

Her twin was always pudgy as a kid. They both ate the same meals, played outside together (though the pudgy one actually ran around more), etc. She took after my sister. She has to watch what she eats, exercise, etc. to stay at her goal weight.

One of my brothers has 3 kids. They all ate the same meals, didn't have junk food in the house, weren't allowed to drink soda, etc. One was thin growing up and the other two were pudgy (when I say pudgy they were not obese, just above their "ideal weight" for their ages). As adults, the two that were pudgy are now thin and the one who was thin has to watch what she eats or she gets pudgy quickly.

Of course, food choices make a difference. My point is that some of these kids that people may call pudgy or obese may not be eating a bunch of junk. I'm not even sure what the medical requirements are for someone to be medically labeled obese. How many pounds over their "ideal weight" do they have to be?

What you said. I see this in my own house.

[lar]

No matter what you all say, your kids are going to turn out looking just like their parents unless the woman stepped out with the milkman. You aren't a specimen of the person now that you were back in your youth and I believe 100% heredity plays into it. I used to not be able to see resemblances and now that's all I see when I look at people.

[Jenniffer]

We've got a skinny parent and a fat parent over here. We've got a kid who eats ravenously and doesn't appear to move unless prodded vigorously who is long and lean like his dad. We've got a very active little pudgy guy and another guy in the middle wrt eating habits and exercise and body type. I don't know how it's all going to turn out, but we don't talk to any of the kids about the number on the scale and we don't tell the little guy that he's fat. We keep healthy food in the house, offer healthy choices at meals, turn them outside between lessons, and go hiking/play at the park as often as the weather and circumstances allow. I don't see how telling a child that s(he) is fat is going to improve outcomes. I can definitely see how telling a child that they're fat can make things much, much worse.

[lar]

My littlest has developed a tape worm. She is hungry ALL THE TIME! She's eight and she is probably going through a growth spurt. I get a little upset with her sometimes because it seems constant but she follows my middle daughter's physical characteristics and eating patterns at the same age. And, like I said that one has grown upward and thinned out tremendously.

[LFE]

Seemed like the right place to post this...

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/krispy-kreme-profit-doubles-2011-05-23