News Flash: You are Making Your Kids Fat
I was amazed at the time spent on The Today Show the other day telling parents that it is their fault that their kids are fat. Oh my gosh, you mean that if I let my kids do anything they want at any time, like never saying “no” to the food they choose or ingest it is my fault???? I am a little shocked! You mean that I am actually responsible for raising my children?!?!?!?!?!
All sarcasm aside, if you are so clueless that you don’t understand that your “parenting style” could contribute to your child’s habits and attitudes toward food then maybe I should connect you up with some basic Parenting 101. Time and money was actually utilized for a study to tell you that it is your fault.
Gali Saltz described the “Parenting Styles” to watch-out for:
The demand-free style of parenting is called “permissive.” If you think you are a permissive parent, watch out: Though you may be warm and loving, you are not teaching your child to manage his or her desires and wishes — in other words, your child is not learning to tolerate the idea people don’t always get what they want when they want it.
This style of parenting correlates with childhood obesity, but so do other styles. On the opposite end of the parenting style spectrum, an authoritarian style (having high demands for self-control but without being warm or loving) and a neglectful style (having few expectations for self-control but also not being warm or loving) also correlate more highly with kids being overweight.
So what’s the healthiest style of parenting, then? It’s something called authoritative parenting (not to be confused with authoritarian, explained above). In this school of parenting, moms and dads expect their children to exhibit self-control, but at the same time, remain warm and loving toward them. This method is the only style not linked to weight issues in children, and it also helps kids develop the ability to manage self-control and frustration (which, as you can imagine, helps in many areas of life).
Many parents think they can be “friends” with their child and are therefore averse to having conflict with their child. If that sounds like you, consider that you are ultimately doing both of you a disservice. Kids need clear limits and they benefit from being taught how to manage their desires and wishes. When these limits are placed in an environment that also says “I really love and value you,” then you have a recipe for an adult who will be able to exert self-control and not suffer too much in the process.
Now in fairness, I think that many parents would be surprised that being too strict can have drawbacks too and 25 million children in the United States are either obese or dangerously close to it. One interesting study was that 40% of parents that had obese children between the age of 6-11 thought that their children were fine and less then 10% of the parents were really concerned. Oh, MY Gosh….maybe this wasn’t such a lame study after-all.
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POSTED IN: Health, Misc. Foodie Stuff
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