HEALTH

Stealth Health For Kids

Forget banning junk. Try 'X-ray vision carrots.'

By Sarah Kliff | NEWSWEEK
Published Mar 28, 2009
From the magazine issue dated Apr 6, 2009

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  • Posted By: Aditya Mookerjee @ 05/06/2009 6:12:00 AM

    I have seen websites, who help children in distress through monetary donations. How can a person easily help children, through donations in kind, also? Is this possible?

  • Posted By: Suziq1591 @ 04/06/2009 5:53:19 PM

    Its not about asking the children or teenagers do they want fruit, make sure that the food that is being offered is not junk food, pizza, tacos, etc. that the school district has shipped in. What happened to good old fashioned food that we used to have before the kids started whining for junk food. Its not about what the children want, its whats good for them, and for the parents to set limits on their food intake. When little Suzi wants second helpings , just say no, who's the boss anyway the parent or the child, lets get real here lay the law down with the children and just say no, you cant have a second helping, because I dont want you to be fat, and then have other kids make fun of you. I love my kids and I am going to make sure they eat right.

    • Posted By: ScratchingWolf @ 04/22/2009 6:43:48 AM

      You refuse a kid second helpings of healthy dinner? Stupid. My kid used to grow one to three ! inches in a single night. After not growing for like six months (nice with the clothing). So whenever a "bout" was coming up, she wanted second and even third helpings, and got them.

    • Posted By: ekimnaj @ 04/06/2009 9:45:13 PM

      This is very much like what my mother did, and boy did it work--just the opposite of what they wanted. We didn't have desserts in my house much at all, and we almost never ate out. As soon as I had my own money (lunch money in junior high), I spent almost all of it on sweets. This was in the early '60s.
      I have spent the rest of my life trying to like sweets less, vegetables and fruits more. I have succeeded only to an extent, only recently, and I am 60 years old. I have been highly interested in nutrition all my adult life, and still have had huge difficulty changing.
      I was forced to eat fruits and vegetables when they made me gag. Many of them still do Your idea sounds good, it is my instinct too (I didn't have kids), but I don't think it is wise.

    • Posted By: ekimnaj @ 04/06/2009 9:43:45 PM

      This is very much like what my mother did, and boy did it work--just the opposite of what they wanted. We didn't have desserts in my house much at all, and we almost never ate out. As soon as I had my own money (lunch money in junior high), I spent almost all of it on sweets. This was in the early '60s.
      I have spent the rest of my life trying to like sweets less, vegetables and fruits more. I have succeeded only to an extent, only recently, and I am 60 years old. I have been highly interested in nutrition all my adult life, and still have had huge difficulty changing.
      I was forced to eat fruits and vegetables when they made me gag. Many of them still do Your idea sounds good, it is my instinct too (I didn't have kids), but I don't think it is wise.

  • Posted By: Shawn K @ 04/03/2009 1:00:59 PM

    Yes, we can set a good example - but a very large reason kids are still fat is that they get no exercise! School across the nation have cut PE time to make room for more math and reading, and over 40% of schools across the nation have completely cut out any recess. Not only has this helped to increase the number of overweight children, the number of students being suspended for unruly behavior has increased AND gotten younger!

    • Posted By: ScratchingWolf @ 04/22/2009 6:40:23 AM

      AND gotten more drugged by Big Pharma drugs which sets them up for a lifetime of trouble, just because they wanted to do what childhood is for: explore the possibilities of your body and your environment = play.

  • Posted By: WarhammerThree @ 04/03/2009 4:11:43 PM

    Shawn K nailed it! it's all about exercise. When I hit my teens, I'd go to BK, woof down two whoppers, two large orders of fries and a large coke. At home, I'd easily tear through a family bag of chips in one sitting. My dad loved cakehe was constantly baking them so we had a never ending supply. Yet I was thin as a rail. It did set me up for some lousy eating habits as I got older. When my metabolism ground to a halt in my late 20's, I packed on the pounds but I've since changed my habits to fix that. The point is, I had a REALLY unhealthy diet when I was a kid. And I ate a TON of it.Never gained a pound.

    You know what the difference is though? Whne I was growing up, I had 13 TV channles. When I graduated High chool, we only had 30 channels offered by our cable company. There was no such thing as the internet. And yeah, i had Nintendo, but it was relegated to when it got too dark out or when it rained. My friends and I were OUTSIDE playing all sorts of games in the woods on the outskirts of our town. Didn't matter what season. I remember playing two hand touch football in the snow during Superbowl Sunday, Manhunt in the fall in partially filled in strip mines behind my house. And sometimes we played outside even if it was raining. We'd take bike rides for miles to go visit friends in neighboring towns.

    Kids don't seem to do this nowadays. Heck, most kids only play together through pre-arranged "play dates" where mom drives them to a friends house. They don't even bike or walk there. Kids need to get outside and use their imaginations and bodies, and that, dear friends, will eliminate childhood obesiety faster than the banning of any food product.

    • Posted By: ScratchingWolf @ 04/22/2009 6:36:17 AM

      So darn right. Something like three years back there was a lot of publicity around here about child abduction and murder. I think governments usually get the developments they want. So, they wanted moms to go work too, and dump their kids with the care system. They got it. My daughter is only 22. She remarks on the difference in kids playing outside:" You hardly ever see kids playing outside any more. When you do, they don't know how to play the games we used to play. They scream and screech and destroy things is all they know how to do".

  • Posted By: ScratchingWolf @ 04/22/2009 6:27:25 AM

    Overthere: I think this is the link you are looking for:

    http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1820600

  • Posted By: ScratchingWolf @ 04/22/2009 6:04:10 AM

    I have that rule too, try a new thring three times (a little of it) before deciding against it.

  • Posted By: ScratchingWolf @ 04/22/2009 5:58:51 AM

    I have raised my daughter to not get any sweets but plenty of healthy and creative treats. Even the teachers were relieved to be offered something different at birthdays (a dime a dozen in primary schools, generally two every day).

    When I got sick, the person deliberately stressed her out, then gave her home-made plateful of sugar-sweets each day. She gained 40 kilo's in my eight week hospital stay. However, she lost 20 of those in the first month after my return and is still losing steadily by eating what I offer. She does not like sweet things much, like me. We do not believe in diet-soda, just being sensible. Rightly so, it turns out. ANYTHING YOU HAVE TOO MUCH OF IS TOO MUCH.PERIOD. Variation is the key, and not going along with fads. Let something prove to be harmless for at least 20 years (the time it takes the new genera\tion to grow up on a fad) then adopt it maybe

  • Posted By: Overthere441 @ 04/18/2009 11:26:08 AM

    Does anyone know the name/author/date of the Yale study? I'm writing a paper on this topic (focusing on soda consumption), and the specific information would be very useful.

    Thanks,
    Paula

  • Posted By: becka22624 @ 04/09/2009 6:08:41 AM

    I can honestly say that I have not had to change the names of items to get my son to eat heathly. He is now 11 years old and rarely eats candy or other junk food. When he is thirsty he grabs either water or milk and will not drink soda's. I have offered him sodas as well as his friends when he is at their house but he says that sods awill not build strong muscles or bones. I think it is a matter of teaching them while they are young to try different things. We do have a rule in the house that when trying new food items, try it at least 3 different times before deciding on whether or not you like it. I now have twin 2 year old girls and when they want something to snack on, they will ask for the veggies or fruits. I told my son when he went trick or treating that I did not understand why we did it. He would get so excited to fill up his bag but he never would eat any of it. I ended up taking it into work and letting everyone there eat it.

  • Posted By: jawshoeaw @ 04/08/2009 3:34:12 PM

    I don't want my kids eating X ray vision carrots. What does that even mean? It spreads the myth that vitamin A gives you good vision. It's also harkens back to a time when X rays were some sort of novelty or emblem of scientific progress. X Rays are progress in medicine but I'd rather not have them associated with food

    I do like the idea of word play to encourage children to eat healthier but economics I think trumps it - junk food is simply cheaper. White bread is a dollar a loaf. Brownies cost pennies to make.

  • Posted By: DontGetIt @ 04/07/2009 10:24:22 AM

    Yeah - what kind of salmonella can we get from carrots? nice try - not eating any vegetables...

  • Posted By: EuroTrash @ 04/07/2009 4:58:16 AM

    I don't have kids, but whenever I do, and they get old enough to waste days on end in front of the TV, I'm going to rig exercise bikes to the TV. They want to watch TV, play playstation, or surf the web for days on end? No problem! Just peddle while you waste your life in front of the boob tube.

    On second though, my kids will probably hate me. I guess as long as they aren't fatties, I'm OK with that.

  • Posted By: Suziq1591 @ 04/06/2009 5:53:56 PM

    OH, and dont forget to make the children eat less and exercise more that is the only answer.

  • Posted By: choctawqueen @ 04/03/2009 3:06:07 PM

    My Eleven yearold son wanted to leant to cook, so I told him I would teach him, but that all good cooks ate the foods they prepared and when he prepared a family meal it had to include all the food groups for a balanced meal. As a result he has begun to eat healthier because he loves cooking with me in the kitchen.

  • Posted By: choctawqueen @ 04/03/2009 3:00:13 PM

    My Eleven yearold son wanted to leant to cook, so I told him I would teach him, but that all good cooks ate the foods they prepared and when he prepared a family meal it had to include all the food groups for a balanced meal. As a result he has begun to eat healthier because he loves cooking with me in the kitchen.

  • Posted By: DrDavidR02740 @ 03/31/2009 11:26:54 AM

    "The twig doen't fall far from the tree"...I fully agree, Parents set an example, good or bad, nutritionally, and, in every other aspect of activities of daily living, Dr.DavidRobinson4Health.com

  • Posted By: TheLunatic @ 03/31/2009 8:18:33 AM

    The best thing you can do is set a good example. Don't eat junk food, and your kids are less likely to do the same. We were on spring break last week, and stayed at a hotel with a breakfast buffet. I couldn't believe all the overweight parents who loaded their plates up with eight or ten sausages - and the kids were all doing the same. We mostly ate fruit, and so did our kids - even though the other stuff was right there in front of them.

    Here's a great movie everyone should watch: http://www.MuffinManTheMovie.com

  • Posted By: khalifeh @ 03/31/2009 5:03:52 AM

    When my daughter was a young toddler she refused to drink tomato juice. That changed when I renamed the tomato juice Bloody Mary.

    Well Cornell researcher, that was almost forty years ago.

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