babble » blogs » Strollerderby
Strollerderby
Working Moms Have Fatter Kids
Working mothers are getting it from all sides this week. First, there’s a new book called “How Not to F*** Them Up” in which the author, a psychologist, claims that mothers who have a choice should never choose to work outside the home when their children are young. Leaving little kids in the care of someone other than mom or dad, he says, will result in life-long insecurity issues for that child.
Then there’s a scientific study out of the UK that blames the growing number of obese children on working mothers. The study, in which researchers compared the height and weight of children in 1965 to those in 1991, claims that as more mothers entered the workplace during those years, more children got fat.
The University College London researchers blame this phenomenon on several factors related to mom’s employment. First, those whose children are home alone while she’s out earning a living are more likely to be sitting in front of the television eating junk food. Second, moms who work long hours are less likely to come home and cook a healthy dinner and instead feed their families less-healthy prepared frozen foods. And finally, moms who have a job to get to every morning are more likely to drive their kids to school, denying them the health benefits of walking.
I am sure all of those things do happen in some families whether mom goes to work or not. In fact, I know plenty of homes where the kitchens are stocked with junk food and the kids spend hours stuffing their faces in front of the television while mom is in the very next room doing the exact same thing.
But what really bugs me about this study and others like it is the complete absence of any mention of dad. Why is he never considered when talking about what’s wrong with the kids? Can’t he go grocery shopping and cook dinner? Can’t he walk the kids to school?
Maybe, in addition to public policy changes and better food labeling and healthier school lunches, we should be urging dads to get with the program and shoulder their part of the responsibility of raising healthy children.
Image: Niklas Hellerstedt/Flickr
More from this author:
Is Technology Disconnecting You From Your Kids?
Pediatricians Want Choking Warning on Food
Children and Sports: Too Much Too Soon
Moms Hiring on For Phone Sex Jobs
Stress and Mess: Portrait of the American Family
Preschool Depression: What to Look Out For
Denim Diapers: Dress Your Baby in Style
Microsoft Kin Ad Sending Wrong Message to Teens?
California Wants No Part of Texas Textbooks
Go Back To Strollerderby
9 Comments
PlumbLucky commented on May 26 10 at 1:12 pm*/Sarcasm on/* Doesn’t that suggestion (a good one, I might add, about Dads actually being Dads and taking on a share of the work too) take the fun out of bashing on working moms? ;-)
GtothemfckinP commented on May 26 10 at 1:42 pmTraditionally, women care for young children. It may be changing (for better or worse, I can’t say) but it hasn’t really changed yet. That’s why these studies are framed this way. Get over it. I am happy and proud to have this role.
Samantha commented on May 26 10 at 3:05 pmARGHHH! Following the links in this article, I got sucked into reading Oliver James’ key points on how to be a good parent. I am failing on almost every point! And I am trained as a geneticist! I WAS going to blame all future problems all the genes.
LindaLou commented on May 27 10 at 2:59 amThis doesn’t surprise me at all. Working moms have less time to cook and have to rely more on processed foods. I know I spend an awful lot of time getting my kids to karate and swim team and the YMCA. I don’t know if I’d have the energy if I had to work all day. Also, kids with working parents probably spend the summer staying indoors and eating and watching television. Not meant to be bashing, but it does make a lot of sense to me.
GtothemfckinP commented on May 27 10 at 7:12 amI don’t buy the “less time to cook” although you are right, LindaLou, many people cite this as an issue. Even though I am a SAHM…half the time my husband who works cooks our meals and half the time I cook and the things we make generally take 30-45 minutes to prepare. You don’t need alot of time to eat healthfully. Also, they could prep things on the weekend if they were so very culinarily challenged that a 30-minute meal, or throwing a roast chicken on the table with a bagged salad was too much for their feeble minds! And, I see lots of school kids in summer camps when I am out with my preschooler in the summer, to the kids probably could get exercise too. Too many excuses! I would say that maybe NOT being around to influence and guard food choices is the hardest challenge. You could pack your kids’ lunch, but they still might get a Ho-Ho from Johnny or something.
jenny tries too hard commented on May 27 10 at 11:12 amMeh. I work, and while we do eat a lot of bagged salads and frozen veggies (what? they’re cheap, whole foods already clean and cut up) I really don’t think working moms use a whole lot more of the “bad” processed foods than sahms. Crockpots, ladies and gentlemen, are wonderful things, and there are tons of wholesome meals that can be made pretty quick even without a crockpot. Not exactly gourmet, but good, healthy food that doesn’t come from a box.
Maybe adolescents spend a ton of time unsupervised with cheetos and tv while mom works…but kids under 12 or 13ish are usually in some kind of summer camp/daycare/babysitting during the summer while their parents work. My kids went to sports camps and went swimming practically every day last summer.
PlumbLucky commented on May 27 10 at 1:06 pmCan only speak to the facts that:
I work fulltime.
Husby works fulltime.
The only food that comes from a box in our house is TJ’s Macaroni and Cheese.
Longest I’ve ever spent in the kitchen on a worknight is roughly 30 minutes. That’s prep and cook. Most times, much shorter. Much, much shorter. And the crockpot(s) ARE my friend.
LindaLou commented on May 27 10 at 6:06 pmI use my crockpot an awful lot and I also use frozen and bagged veggies and I don’t work. It sounds like you laides are doing a great job. Here’s the thing: I don’t think that your good habits represent what most or many people (working or not) are serving their kids. Processed food is a huge, HUGE market. Someone is buying and serving those foods. I also know an awful lot of families where a young teen is charged with taking care of younger siblings all summer long with instructions not to leave the house. It’s very, very common. At any rate, I wasn’t trying to justify OR critcise. The correlation just made sense to me. i
LindaLou commented on May 27 10 at 6:07 pmI use my crockpot an awful lot and I also use frozen and bagged veggies and I don’t work. It sounds like you laides are doing a great job. Here’s the thing: I don’t think that your good habits represent what most or many people (working or not) are serving their kids. Processed food is a huge, HUGE market. Someone is buying and serving those foods. I also know an awful lot of families where a young teen is charged with taking care of younger siblings all summer long with instructions not to leave the house. It’s very, very common. At any rate, I wasn’t trying to justify OR critcise. The correlation just made sense to me.
Add your take:
Note: Babble is a supportive, diverse community. We encourage a range of opinions,
but any unduly hostile comments will be removed.
Comments are delayed up to 15 minutes
Lori Garcia 
Joslyn Gray 
Amber Doty 
Julianna Miner 
Monica Bielanko 
Sierra Black 
Meredith Carroll 
Carolyn Castiglia 
Sunny Chanel 
Madeline Holler 
Rebecca Odes 
Danielle Smith 
Danielle Sullivan 
Katherine Stone 
The Walt Disney Company supports Babble as a platform dedicated to honest, engaged, informed, intelligent and open conversation about parenting. However, the opinions expressed on this site are those of individual parents/writers and do not reflect the views of Disney. In addition, content provided on this site is for entertainment or informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, or safety advice.
9