Love is blind. This appears to be true in the case of many Canadian parents. As part of the Canadian Medical Association’s Sixth Annual National Report Card on Health Care in Canada, parents were asked to grade the overall health of Canadian children, including their own children. Only 9% of those surveyed reported that their own child was overweight even though Statistics Canada findings show that 26% of children under the age of 18 are overweight or obese.
Why are some parents in such a state of denial?
Let’s face it -- it’s a hard pill to swallow. What parent wants to admit that their perfect little angel has a weight problem? Besides, the world around them is telling them a very different story. Have you gone clothes shopping lately? Recently, I tried on a pair of size 6 pants that fell down around my ankles. I ended up buying a size 2. There is no way that I’m that small, especially right after having a baby! If you take a teenager who is actually a size 12 but fits into a size 8, therein lies one of the problems. Labels can mislead parents and children alike into a false sense of reality.
On the bright side, the majority of parents surveyed were supportive of proposed initiatives such as mandatory physical education, removing junk food from school vending machines, and getting tax breaks on the purchase of healthy foods. They are all great ideas, but parents have to remember that good health starts at home. Parents themselves need to lead by example by swearing off junk food and exercising regularly. If they don’t, they could be setting their children up for disaster in the form of diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, joint problems and a whole host of other problems later in life.
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