Juvenile Guzzler

Call it what you want but I’ve long had a problem with juvenile obesity. I think it’s unfair and gross negligence.

Let’s clarify that I’m not arguing against adult obesity on a whole-that’s an entirely different matter that I don’t intend to address in the future I can see.

We see it all the time: usually it starts with a cute chubby baby who mom just loves to feed even when he’s not hungry.

Baby turns two and the adoring family continues to shove food down his throat. Family continues feeding Baby from every single meal or snack that anyone is eating…no matter what that person is having. That has always been an issue for me. One woman told me that as long as her baby can eat she will feed her. End result: this baby currently looks like a marshmallow and she’s not yet even four.

Sometimes it starts with a sick baby with no appetite who gets better. Mom, with the memory of her sick baby not far from her mind, begins stuffing the baby as soon as he shows signs of keeping food down. Soon enough, the illness is years away and the baby is still chugging down insane servings of food and drink.

To some of you, what I’ve said so far is all meaningless and you may argue that the child may lose the weight.

Blessed is the lucky child who loses the weight without a fight… but how likely is that anyway?

I’m twenty-five and the women on my father’s side of my family are generally ‘big-boned.’

On my mother’s side, the women’s ‘bones’ are a bit smaller but if I want to maintain the size of my dreams, I have to fight twice as hard. At least though, I have a fighting chance because I was mostly skinny throughout my youth.

But consider what kind of chance these children stand if they have been socialised toward obesity from infancy.

In our culture, we Caribbean people generally have a healthy appreciation for food but most of our foods are not calorie-conscious and although adults get to choose what goes into their mouths, children actually don’t.

If these children grow up deciding to be plus-sized and fluffy then more power to them for making informed choices. However, I don’t think it’s responsible of the parents who know of the weight-struggle to thrust their innocent babies into that headspace.

Because of my genes, it’s difficult for me to keep my favourite foods off my waistline. It’s been a constant battle for a long time.

 Can you therefore imagine how stressful it will be for those children if they decide that they don’t want to be 400lbs by age thirty?

Maybe somebody will argue that I’m advocating for starving their beloved children but that’s not so. My rant is simple: if you keep feeding your baby pastas, breads, sweet snacks, salty snacks, this, that and the other all the day long, the child will not only become obese, but may very well develop an unhealthy sweet tooth or addiction which may be hard to shake.

On the other hand, I’m not condemning meals and snacking but moderation and balanced diet is everything at that age; fruits, vegetable, nuts, grains, fibres et cetera would make better meals than processed and refined foods.

Consider it, if not for yourself then for the future of your child.