Tuesday 26 May 2009

Chilhood obesity

The number one issue for fat fighters is to preserve their bankrupt credo at all costs. As this is so far from the way things really are, this brings them down many dead ends. Only the ridiculous deference they've acquired manages to preserve their blushes.

Having failed with adults, because the dieting ain't it, there is a disturbing tendency for that force to re-direct itself to the innocent, children.

This is as much about our views of children as the hope of the future as it is about likelihood of success. Under the guise of early prevention-the idea that if you restrict eating and increase exercise early enough, you'll stop them becoming fat in the first place, or reverse it.

It might be more convincing if not for the fact that many of us adult fatties started off as fat children, who sought to lose weight. Through this, a few even developed disordered eating, because they they were almost permanently on a diet, those minority prone to this also developed eating disorders for similar reasons.

It is often ignored that some develop depression because of what I used to call "hibernation syndrome" or when the body adapts to repeated reduction by conserving its energy. The effects vary widely, we know for some, it can led to some sense of uplift, but for some, it's as if the brain seems to be cheated out of energy and one becomes fatigued overall including mentally.

The latter is unexpected and unexplored.

I don't want to be negative, I think children should not be discouraged from physical development. I say that as opposed to encouraged because, when all of us are born, unless there is something awry, we are active. Babies use up a tremendous amount of energy and are rarely still, seeming to be more active than adults even when asleep.

If they grow into children disinclined toward activity, one has to say they have been actively discouraged from it. Some are easier to put off than others.

To me, movement for children is nothing to do with 'burning calories', it's about developing your physical skills, the joy of overcoming a repeated set of small challenges and of feeling free in yourself.

When that is not available to children, neuroses can increase and become heightened among them.

Children should be left out of calorie/weight restriction efforts, full stop. Especially under the guise of feeding them properly, well duh, feed children properly and teach them basic cookery skills too. That's something to be ashamed society is failing at, not something to use 'obesity' to fix.

Everything they have, which really consists of one thing that people cling to like fury has failed. It's one thing to mess about with adults, but you'd think the thought of introducing it to children would make people pause. I thought it would and was one of the reasons I didn't think the crisis would reach this level-even though I knew weight would increase-nothing to stop it.

If there is a problem with a child's weight, then that is supposed to be what the study of 'obesity' is working out, if it isn't that needs to be explained. Our duty is to take care and nurture the the mental, spiritual and physical health of children and let the rest take care of itself.

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