Clueless parents see kids’ weight as OK

Researchers in Michigan have found that an amazing 40 percent of parents with obese (not just overweight) children ages 6 to 11 say they think their child is “about the right weight.” The survey data came from an online health survey, the National Poll on Children’s Health. Only 13 percent of parents with obese children aged 6 to 11 said their child was overweight, compared to 31 percent of parents with a child aged 12 to 17. Fewer than 10 percent of parents of younger obese kids said they were very concerned about their child’s weight. Researchers say parents tend to overestimate their child’s height and underestimate his or her weight, which means parents estimate about 25 percent of kids are obese or overweight, while the real number is more like 35 percent…

Overweight Hawaiian kids getting bullied

The Hawaii state Department of Education says in a report that school districts need to develop programs to prevent bullying of overweight kids, transgender students and those from foreign countries. More than half of middle school students and 44 percent of high school students said they had been bullied, and one white student has had her arm broken in what might have been a racially motivated attack. Hawaii is generally one of the leanest states, but obesity is growing, especially among native Hawaiians…

Childhood obesity has lifelong effects

If most of the kids who are overweight and obese today remain that way, a recent report says that by 2020 as many as 44 percent of women and 37 percent of men in America will be obese by age 35. Researchers said the incidence of heart disease will likely rise about 16 percent by 2020, and that heart disease deaths among people aged 35 to 50 will go up as much as 19 percent. Experts say big public health changes are needed to educate parents and kids of the health risks of obesity and that even being a little chubby can lead to health problems…

Study in mice links sugar and Alzheimer’s

A small study in mice from the University of Alabama, Birmingham found that feeding mice lots of sugar water increased their risk of developing Alzheimer’s later in life. Some mice were given the equivalent of five sugary sodas a day, and those mice had more evidence of Alzheimer’s than mice who were fed just water. Researchers say they aren’t saying drinking five sodas a day will give humans the disease, but that this is more evidence that an unhealthy diet may affect a person’s risk…

Wansink to head nutrition center

Finally, friend of the Lab and Cornell professor Brian Wansink has been tapped to become executive director of the Department of Agriculture Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion. He will oversee planning, review and development of the new nutritional guidelines for Americans that will be released in 2010, as well as any changes to MyPyramid, the nutritional visual aid that replaced the old food pyramid in 2005. He’ll also oversee programs looking at the nutritional content of the American food supply and the cost of raising a child, among other projects.

(By Sarah White for CalorieLab Calorie Counter News)

Subscribe to our RSS feed | Weekly e-mail updates | Follow us on Twitter

This entry was posted on Monday, December 10th, 2007 and is filed under Nibbles: diet news shorts. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed. Permalink.