Tubby Tots
Posted by realityrounds on April 8, 2009
American four year olds are fat. That’s the word on the street and on the slides. Playground pudgies. Preschool porkers. Toddler tubbies. Current research shows that 1 out of 5 four year olds are obese, and it’s no laughing matter. cnn
There is a vast disparity between ethnic groups, with Blacks, Hispanics, and Native Americans being most at risk for childhood obesity. The reasons for the disparities are complex. Socioeconomic and cultural norms may be a factor. Kids living in areas of high poverty and crime, may not have opportunities to play outside. Instead, they sit inside playing video games and watching TV. Access to fresh fruits and vegetables is also a deterrent. Many inner city neighborhoods do not have large grocery stores that carry such produce. It is often times cheaper and easier to buy high-caloric processed foods.
This research caused me to have an acid flash back of when I was in nursing grad school (that would be an acid-reflux flashback. I was never cool enough for the other kind of acid). During my graduate school training in the mid 90’s, I had a clinical rotation in a pediatric endocrinology clinic that served patients on public assistance. I knew then that there would be an epidemic of childhood obesity plaguing this nation. Almost every parent came into the clinic complaining that their child was over weight because of a “slow metabolism.” Almost every parent who came in with their overweight child, was also overweight.
I remember one little boy of about eight years old who was brought in with his mother. The child weighed close to 150 pounds. He was brought in by his mom not because of his weight, but because he was starting to have delusions, night terrors and to wet himself. The patient was unable to lift himself up on the the exam table, so we examined him while seated. During the history and physical, the boy admitted to drinking 6-12 cans of soda a day. The mom became very distressed and accusatory, stating she was a single parent, who did not have anyone to watch her son while she worked. He was a typical “latch-key kid.” The child was eventually diagnosed with diabetes (duh) and placed on insulin and diet therapy.
On one of my last days of rotation at the clinic, a parent came in with her 6 month old baby. She was referred to the clinic because her child was having excessive weight gain. The mom showed up to the clinic with her child attached to what looked like a bird feeder. There was a container of formula hanging from the top of the stroller. The bag of formula had a long straw-like tube leading from it to the babies mouth. When asked what this contraption was, the mom replied “oh, this is a hands-free feeder.”
Yes ladies and gentleman, there is an actual product out there that promotes not holding your child during feedings. The neglected infant can just suck on demand on the plastic tube, and receive as much nutrition as desired. The problem with this is, a child who is not held and cared for will substitute another pleasurable stimulus for the lack of cuddling. They will feed themselves fat.
We need to stop feeding our kids fat. It is a complex problem and I am not naive enough to think banning “hands-free feeders”, or telling kids to go outside and play will solve anything. But, something must be done, for the sake of our kids, and to save me from having more flashbacks.
RR
Jill said
A friend of mine is a pediatric RD in a large hospital. One woman came in with her 10 month old claiming she only ate a little bit of soup, fruit and vegetables. While she was there, the baby kicked off her blanket and a Twinkie fell out. Rapid weight gain solved!
o_O
realityrounds said
Hilarious! (and sad at the same time).
RN-ish said
There needs to be parental accountability. We can’t solve everyone’s problems. It is possible to have healthy foods in the house. You can buy in bulk and freeze fruits and veggies. How about given the latch-key kid a book to read. Or how about neighbors getting together and taking turns watching the kids, and they can play together. Enough excuses.
Eileen said
Parental accountability is key. I admit to being guilty of placing my toddler in front of the television with a snack (not always a healthy one at that) when I get home from work to buy some time to get out of my work clothes, wash my face, get into some comfy clothes, feed my infant, get dinner started, throw a load of laundry in, empty the dishwasher from the night before, etc., etc. Yet what I SHOULD do is get down on the floor and play with my toddler…no excuses, just do it.
Nurse Gloria said
Eileen,
It sounds like you are in a no win situation. When my children were young and I was working full time as an RN in critical care, I thought that I could determime what my priorities were. I breast fed my children until they were 9 to 12 months old. I had a baby food grinder and prepared baby food from the healthy foods I cooked for the family. I bought educational toys and books at garage sales. The weeds along the back fence were at the bottom of my list.
On my days off, I played in the sand pile with my boys with their Star Wars toys or John Deere toys for a couple of hours. I held my children and read to them. I rented movies about history and gave my older children a quarter for each correct answer to questions I asked about the movies. I had my own set of priorities.
But I couldn’t do everything that some Moms think is necessary. There were shoes and Hot Wheels on the floor around the house. Sometimes Cheerios were glued to the floor under the kitchen table. Big wheels trikes were left in the yard all night. Sometimes the lawn sprinklers were still on in the morning from the evening before.
My children were healthy and happy. I thought our family was our business.
Tiger said
It seems like the consensus is the same for kids as for adults. Eat right and exercise, and we won’t put on those extra pounds. Why can’t so many of us heed these two basic tenets? That seems like the core question. Is it out of convenience, or are humans just susceptible to taking the easy route? Is it all the advertising in our face all day long, or do we just have no will power? Sure, the TV can keep kids preoccupied for a spell, and in moderation, it’s OK. Same for adults. A little entertainment in a comfy chair is not a bad thing at the end of the day, but there are plenty of other things we can do with our spare time with our families and kids. We can’t play 8 straight hours with our kids every day, but an hour in the evening playing with the kids is time better spent than watching TV. Most if not all kids are just as happy in a room with a handful of books and toys as they are watching TV of a kids movie. Once we learn to get past 5 or 10 minutes of protest, the child finds something else to do like playing, drawing, or looking at a book and we’re just as happpy relaxing and watching them. We can all turn our TV’s off more often than not, move them to another room, and just say “no”. Kids love to play, and the activity is better for their bodies and mind. But, most of us just have no will power. It’s too bad, as our health and the health of our children can suffer. Everyone makes their own choices, and if an adult chooses eat bad foods and watch TV all night long – it’s their choice. For the child’s sake, we should all let them play more as opposed to camping in front of the TV, eat healthy foods as opposed to junk, and let their bodies and minds develop to their fullest potential in good health.
realityrounds said
We also need to remember, that it is the adults that buy the food and stock the refrigerator for the kids. I agree with Tiger that kids learn by example. If the parents eat junk, so will the kids. If the parents sit on the couch all day, so will the kids. Get outside and play people!
Random Nurse said
I also get so sick and tired of parents feeding their kids crap and then wondering why they are fat. To me it equates to a form of child abuse. There is no excuse for feeding your kids soda and chips. The kids are not doing the grocery shopping. Is there no personal responsibility left in America?
Mother of type 1 said
It’s hard enough to raise a child with type 1 diabetes without having to endure the censure of people who think you caused your child’s disease. You suggest that the mother of the unfortunate 8 year-old boy caused his diabetes by allowing him to gain excessive weight and drink soda all day. In fact, excessive weight and inactivity are implicated only in the development of type 2 diabetes. From your description of the child’s symptoms, he has type 1 diabetes, which has much more dramatic symptoms. Type 1 diabetics are always treated with insulin. Many type 2 diabetics do not “progress” to insulin for years after diagnosis. The kid drank so much soda because of his underlying type 1 diabetes and unquenchable thirst. He couldn’t climb onto the examining table because he was so weak. (Despite his weight, he was starving) He wet the bed because he was drinking so much liquid. He was having delusions because of uncontrolled high blood sugar. His weight and diet did not cause his type 1 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease, possibly triggered by a reaction to a virus.
realityrounds said
This case was many moons ago, but the child in the story did have type 2 diabetes.He was eventually taken off insulin. The reality is 1 out of 5 toddlers are overweight due to diet and inactivity, and this can lead to type 2 diabetes and a lot of other health issues. I am not into mom blaming. People tend to be real judgmental on how others parent. I can not imagine how hard it is to raise a child with diabetes and have people blame the parent’s for the disease. People who do that are just ignorant. You are to be commended for being such a caring and intelligent mom. But I will tell you it was extremely frustrating taking diet histories from the families and seeing what these kids ate and drank everyday. The child could not have drank that much soda if it wasn’t in the house. Like I mentioned, education and access to fresh foods is key.