Childhood Obesity and Cheese...

After their run in the park, tortoise watching and ball catching yesterday, Julian and Genevieve were TRULY tired. Tongue wagging (literally!) Julian came up to me and announced that he wanted, "Cheeeeesssseeee!". Normally, he has a slice of Kraft Cheddar Cheese Singles in the mornings alongside his glass of milk and of late little Genevieve also follows suit, NOT an entire slice but an estimated quarter slice.

So, since I always thought Julian as slight for his height, although he weighs in at a hefty 13kg (that's due to a good bone mass) I was happy with his good choice of snack. To my horror, he ended up eating 3 slices of cheese, and not to sidetrack Genevieve, she had an entire slice on her own! Initially I was excited that they were consuming "extra calcium" and "extra Vitamin D", and tried to allay my own concerns regarding Childhood Obesity due to fat content in cheese, but Baby Daddy Maran wasn't too happy with "too much of the good thing".

Me, being the paranoid mom that I am, usually control what goes in their mouths (more so with a history of atopy in my family), but what happens when I'm NOT around is when I get worried. Like a week ago when my Dad bought Julian an ENTIRE bar of Cadbury's milk chocolate with macadamia nuts.(Sorry, Appa) Yes, it was bought out of love, but chocolate before 2? Hmmm....

Not to digress, I researched a little and saw this article on 10 Frightening Facts About Childhood Obesity, which could happen to any child looking at the nature of what we do, technology and habits. Since I started Un-schooling the children, I have noticed a trend of them wanting more and more screen time (etc the laptop) - will post on Disadvantages of Increased Screen Time soon - especially at certain times of the day. In my eyes, more screen time equals less play time equals less calory burning and eventual obesity. Drastic, I know... but that's how it is!

Image from Obesityhelp101.com

So. I have decided to start them on healthy snacking and went to the supermarket to buy fresh food items like:
1. Nestle's Low Fat Fruit Yogurt (which has probiotics- great for the gut)
2. Banana (1 a day, high in Potassium)
3. Grapes (antioxidants), Citrus fruits (Vitamin C)
4. Cherry tomatoes (easy to hold and crunchy to munch) - my Dad brought some lovely ones from   Cameron Highlands today.
5. Cucumber and Celery (which can be eaten raw, cut into sticks - lovely to hold and munch)
6. Soya bean drink  (fresh from the Chinese uncle), with no sugar - when you start them young, they know no difference!!!

What I TRY not to buy:
1. Processed foods like Bottled Baby Food (only for extreme necessities, I have stopped for the past 6 months)
2. Processed meat for the kids - sausages/ meatballs/ nuggets (who knows what goes in there?)
3. Tropical fruits (this I only get once in a while - due to the high sugar content- Diabetes Mellitus Type 2 also runs in the family)
4. Junk food (chocolate, ice cream - I make my own -, sugared biscuits, deep fried foods)
5. Fast food (might as well control it now, when I still can!)

There's much more I can add to the list, but here's the gist. I may not be the world's healthiest eater, (definitely not!) but I can start with my children. I'm also not one of those "ONLY ORGANIC FOOD FOR MY KIDS" sorta person, though I seriously "salute" those who are, mainly because as a working mom with so little time to spare, I buy easy-to-get foods, and also am a big believer in easy-to-prepare food. I thank God, my children are easy to please when it comes to food, so food prep for snacking is a breeze!!!

Articles worth a read:
http://www.emedicinehealth.com/obesity_in_children/article_em.htm

http://apjcn.nhri.org.tw/server/apjcn/Volume6/vol6.3/kasmini.htm   (Prevalence of overweight and obese school children aged between 7 to 16 years amongst the major 3 ethnic groups in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)