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Will these ads further stigmatize kids with weight problems?
Is the site of a chubby kid — in an effort to prevent more chubby kids — offensive to other chubby kids?
The state of Georgia has an anti-obesity campaign featuring images of some chubby kids. The Georgia Children’s Health Alliance said the ads were necessary to “jar parents of obese kids out of a state of denial that their children had a problem,” according to CBS News.
But some parents and activists argue the ads will only add to the stigma of kids struggling with their weight, and that “stigma is not an effective motivator.”
The National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance said, “Billboards depicting fat kids are extraordinarily harmful to the very kids they are supposedly trying to help.”
Take a look at the ads in the campaign (via Strong4Life.com) and see if you think the ads or more harmful than helpful:
Children in London will be charged to use their own playground.
In the borough of Wandsworth, London, children will be charged £2.50 to use the local playground on weekends. The Wandsworth council says it will help fund £55m worth of budget cuts.
Some politicians say the new rules are “unbelievably mean-spirited and an attempt to turn play areas into no-go areas for the poor.” An e-petition was filed on the council’s website.
The council claims this particular playground is not only more upscale than most, but has extra features such as an adventure area containing zip wires, climbing walls and large wooden balancing structures. They also say the charges are needed to pay for more than a dozen staff at the park each weekend. They maintain that additional staffing was necessary as a precaution due to the extras.
Clearly not all agree. Some propose that the plan to charge kids for playground use was a function of the city’s budget gap combined with a desire to keep out kids from surrounding neighborhoods. A recent survey of the playground by the council showed that half of the children came from neighboring boroughs.
Frisbee is once again safe for city kids, for now.
In a swift and surprising turn of events, New York State officials not only admitted they were wrong in creating a list that called typical summer kids’ games like freeze tag and kick ball unsafe, they ripped it up.
Furthermore, they say they are embarrassed that such a ban exists and blame the nonsensical list on former Governor David Patterson.
The New York State Health Department originally created a list of what they deemed “risky recreational activities” which would force many summer programs to ban the games unless they shelled out extra funds to be recognized as an official summer camp. They said the activities listed pose a “significant risk of injury” and have been named as hazards which need to be regulated at day camps. The prior list included wiffle ball, dodge ball, and kick ball goodbye. Horseback riding and scuba make the list and more understandably, archery. But so does freeze tag, Frisbee, steal the bacon and tug of war.
Tag has been deemed an unsafe game by New York State Health Department.
School will be soon be out but if it’s up to the New York State Health Department, a lot of city kids might be spending their time indoors.
The New York State Health Department created a list of what they deemed “risky recreational activities” and is forcing many summer programs to ban these games unless they shell out extra funds to be recognized as an official summer camp. They say the activities listed pose a “significant risk of injury” and have been named as hazards which need to be regulated at day camps.
While proper supervision and safety concerns rank high on every parent’s list of priorities, the games that have been deemed unsafe and risky might shock a lot of city parents who grew up playing these ‘dangerous’ games.
Overweight kids may benefit from weight training, both physically and mentally.
With childhood obesity reaching an alarming rate, it is clear that we need to find new and innovative ways to help kids get healthy. Everyone knows that eating right and exercise is vital, but overweight and obese children don’t necessarily see exercise as something they can do, much less want to do. Could weight lifting and resistance training be an answer?
It’s no secret that overweight kids in gym class get overlooked, ridiculed, and picked last for team sports. Most overweight kids dread going to gym class simply because the strain is too physically demanding. They also can’t keep up with their peers and worst of all, are embarrassed about it. Naturally, exercise becomes something they avoid.
Even overweight means health risk
A study out today in The New England Journal of Medicine says that there is a significant risk to being simply overweight, not just obese. This has been a controversial point in public health research, with earlier studies showing mixed results.
Now, the most massive analysis of data on Americans shows that being a little chubby around the middle – not just obese – has major health effects.
The researchers did a meta-analysis (a review of multiple studies) and included data on 1.5 million white americans, all non-smokers who had no existing heart disease or cancer at the beginning of the study. The population had a median age of 58 and were followed for anywhere from 5 to 28 years. Those who were only overweight had a increased risk of dying.
Here’s what they found, including the “sweet spot” – the ideal BMI for lowering risk of death: Continue reading »
Plus-sized clothing for children is nothing new. Even when I was a young girl back in the 1970′s, larger sizes for bigger kids could be found in their own special section of most department stores. They called them ‘husky’ and the selection was quite limited. A husky boy could choose from a few different pants and shirts and a big girl might find a dress or two in her size.
Things have changed. These days, the selection of plus-sized children’s clothing has grown to the point that in many stores, it equals the offering of standard-sized clothing. And now, these expanded sizes aren’t just available for school-aged kids. In the UK, a large retail store recently began selling an entire line of plus-sized clothing for kids as young as three. That’s right, plus-sized clothing for toddlers. Continue reading »
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