According to new survey results, parents would rather talk about sex and drugs with their kids than weight. Twenty-two percent of parents are uncomfortable discussing the risks of being overweight with their kids. For parents of kids ages 8 to 12, only sex is a more uncomfortable topic and NO topic is worse for parents of teens. So talking about the horizontal mambo and where babies come from is easier than telling kids that if they continue to eat Doritos, drink sugary soda and sit in front of the television that they will get fat. That makes a lot of sense parents.
And it isn't like parents are in denial. Thirty-seven percent think it's a risk to at least one of their children. They see it as a bigger threat to their kids than drugs (34%) or cigarettes (33%), and nearly as big a threat as alcohol (42%) and premature sexual activity (42%).
Parents think this discussion should fall on physician shoulders, but physicians think it should be the parents. UH OH Disconnect...
There seems to be a fear of creating an eating disorder, but if you start early with healthy messages the risk would be less. If you want to prevent obesity, you have to be talking to the kids who are normal weight AND those who are overweight.