Agreed, a plump kid looks cute. But the problem begins when parents refuse to accept that their child is no more just chubby. Experts discuss the adverse effects and growing trend of child obesity.
Luxurious lifestyle is fattening
The usual suspects here are television, technology, change in lifestyle, junk foods etc. But look closely and you’ll find that they have evolved from smaller factors.
Cartoon channels meant that the couch in front of TV became the play area for children. Malls and supermarkets stand guilty too. They display succulent, foreign-made chocolate in the lower racks, within easy reach of children. Harassed parents face two options — buy them or face tantrums.
Schools in the last 10 years have undergone a sea change. Some have elevators for students, AC classrooms, small or no playgrounds and study load eating into a students’ free time. Schools are trying hard to maintain international standards that in turn affect children adversely. The canteens have food that your science teachers talks against. In all, schools are catering to wrong demands.
“But the fat refuses to go. My son can cook very well, unlike his sister who can’t tell vinegar from water. Unlike his sister, he can tell when I go easy on oil, cheese or butter. His sandwiches border on outrageous like that of Dagwood. He nibbles on cheese cubes and insists I pick up different types from the market. He drains cola bottles kept in the fridge for unannounced guests.
The ice cream in the freezer seems untouched until you lift it. He prises open a non-suspecting corner only to finish it without getting caught. The event goes unreported until I take it out for guests only to find it gone. He eats parathas without counting and insists on fried things for breakfast. If I refuse he simply goes into the kitchen and whips up some sinful concoction.
While I don’t mind him in the kitchen, I do get bothered when he eats indiscriminately. He then proceeds to sit with a laden plate in front of the television.
Each time I scold him, he’s all jokes and promises. But these promises are forgotten soon enough. It is not like there is less to eat in the house, but his constant demand for fatty foods trouble me.”
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