Are parents the cause of obesity in childeren?

Parents are responsible for what their children eat. My kids understand that fast food is ok in moderation but not for every day eating. I even had them watch Spurlock's Supersize Me. That showed them what eating fast food all the time will do to you.

You're absolutely correct! A reward will carry on through a child's life, and they will get more pleasure from these "treats" than they would have without getting them as a child. When they are sad they will look for comfort in these foods that their parents once nurtured them with. If that's not bad enough, teachers do the same thing for students to learn, bribe them with snacks for answers. My parents would not reward me like this when I was smaller, because they knew that I could live unhealthily in my adulthood with that kind of upbringing. I am very thankful that I am in this body.

well that will take effect if the reward you always get from reward theory is food..

i think so. as i've seen on tv on some show that the parents are the reason why their children are obese. my wife is a cook she feeds us balance diet. we eat for a week with chicken, fish, pork, beef, and a lot of veggies. she only gives potato chips if ever we will eat. my child only eats 1 time per month of hotdog. we give him a little of cakes and icecream but not always. he eats more of fruits. we dont feed him candies and chocolate and no cola. if the parents really knows how to cook and give time to prepare meals for their child/children then the children wont be independent with fast-food and junk food.

I totally agree with you. Kids today are given a reward for just about everytime they accomplish something. The teacher give candy for getting the answers right. I was never given any rewards for my accomplishments. My childhood was long before it became popular to rewards the kids for everything. I also didn't use them for my kids. or the grandkids that I helped raise. Something else that we do is tell the kid that veggies are good for them(may taste bad) and cakes and cookies are bad for them (taste good) so we give them a mixed message. If It's good for them it has to taste bad and if it's bad for them it tastes good. So many of the discussions here about kids and the answer to the problems like potty training is give them rewards like candy. All of this and trips to McDonald's because one doesn't want to cook make for kids and a nation of obese n nation.

You have a very good point, but having said that I don't think we can always blame the parents...at least not completely.

I was like you when I was a kid and I think a great many people were too. When something bad happened or I was extremely good I would always get a treat and a lot of time it was a special treat of some food that I enjoyed. Fortunately for me I was not a sweets eater even as a kid so candy just wouldn't do it for me!

When I did get something special though, (could have been something as simple as a balloon or cheap toy too), I was always told that it was a treat and not something to expect all of the time and that if it was junk food that it wasn't something that was healthy for me All of the time but once in a great while wasn't going to kill me.

I honestly do think that kids are smarter than they are given credit for a lot of the time. Like you, most are told not to eat too much candy or junk food as it's not good for you and I think that message does get through to them and they know the difference between a nice little treat once in a while and eat garbage all day every day.

In this day and age many kids out there don't get to see their parents very long each day due to work, school, appointments etc. so they spend a lot of time away from the parents. I believe that they know that they are not suppose to eat 20 candy bars each day or 5 bags of French fries for lunch but some do and become addicted to junk food and begin to eat huge amounts of food thus causing the obesity thus causing the inability to get the proper exercise that they need to work off all of those calories.

I think that there are very few parents out there that would feed their children these things each and every day in huge proportions. And if the children are going to learn from their parents then it should be just as easy to learn that junk food bad and healthy food good and unless there is something mentally wrong with them they should be able to distinguish the difference between an occasional treat and being a glutton and stuffing your face all day every day with junk.

I do agree that there are a lot of times that when you see an obese child then you also see an obese caregiver but do remember this is not always the case. I have known parents that were proper size with huge children and 99% of the time, when I have known these people personally, the kids are always waiting until the parents are busy talking, working etc. and then they are going and sneaking food that they eat right away and then sneaking food and hiding it in their rooms etc. so they can gorge themselves later when everyone is in bed.

Kids also have a world of information out there available to them. What with school and teachers, computers, television and of course skinny classmates that they know, and can learn without much effort that a diet with only junk food and gluttony will only make you fat and keep you fat if you don't change your eating habits.

Glad to see that you are eating more healthy but remember it's not the only thing in life and also remember not to criticize and judge those that overeat...instead, try to use your knowledge to enlighten and help them! Great subject for a discussion!