Fat Grade

Post by **Blaze** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 12:55 am

[quote="StruckingFuggle";p="451067"]Which part of the media do you mean, Blaze?[/quote]

All parts. All kinds of magazines, TV shows, well, not so much movies, but one wouldn't expect it anyway, but they all have stories or shows about how the "ideal image" of a woman today is unhealthy. I guess they just want to be trendy.

StruckingFuggle · Post by **StruckingFuggle** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 1:04 am

Well. The news media seems to be critical of it, whereas the entertainment media is largely doing nothing but the opposite.

Post by **Blaze** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 1:15 am

But since they're all owned by the same corporations anyway...

Deacon · Post by **Deacon** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 1:41 am

Let's say you're a teacher and a kid in your class goes from healthy to skeleton skinny. Do you say something? Report the parents? Discuss proper nutrition? Or just ignore it and hope it goes away and that she lives long enough to graduate from your grade so it's not your problem anymore?

coyote blue · Post by **coyote blue** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 1:45 am

LoL, same corporation I work for... *sigh*
If the school believes that a child is either severly overweight, or there is a risk factor (I'm talking about a child that isn't just a few pounds, or even 10 pounds overweight) then the school should contact the parents and maybe provide a nutrition list, or a list of specialists. But in a report card? It isn't helping to state the obvious, they need to help correct it.

vixendrop · Post by **vixendrop** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 4:01 am

[quote="Deacon";p="451094"]Let's say you're a teacher and a kid in your class goes from healthy to skeleton skinny. Do you say something? Report the parents? Discuss proper nutrition? Or just ignore it and hope it goes away and that she lives long enough to graduate from your grade so it's not your problem anymore?[/quote]

If a child becomes seriously skinny (health threatening levels) then I think the teacher should bring it to the attention of the school nurse and let the nurse call the parents to mentions their concerns. They should be able to provide information on nutrition and basic health guidelines (like the standard weight/height charts) so the parent can get some information. The parent then should hopefully take charge of the situation, even getting medical attention for the child, if it's that severe. If there is no improvement in the child's condition within a reasonable amount of time, the nurse should contact the parents again to find out if there is in fact a medical condition causing the problem. If there isn't, and there is still no improvement then the schol should report the parents to the child protective services for investigation.

Sending the BMI home on a report card is completely unnecessary. If it's a concern to the school then it can be handled discretely like I outlined above. If the parents don't care or do anything about it then sending it on a report isn't going to change that. If the child's weight isn't life threatening then it's just NOT the school's business. It's between the child, parents, and doctor, if needed.

naval_aviator_2040 · Post by **naval_aviator_2040** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 9:23 am

vixendrop, annoying little fact, height/weight charts aren't meant for younger children. The youngest I've ever seen was for 19-20 yr olds (if there are accurate ones for younger ages I haven't seen them). Also, by the standard height/weight chart I am at least 30 lbs overweight and qualify as obese. I may have a bit of a spare tire on me but No One I know would ever guess that I was that much over weight. Why? Because they don't take into account things like muscle mass and body composition.

But I agree with the rest of the post, just pointing out that the charts alone are not the best way to measure.

AzraeL · Post by **AzraeL** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 12:45 pm

If the child's weight isn't life threatening then it's just NOT the school's business.

obesity, like world hunger, is everyones business. if the child is overweight, than the parents are neglecting their duties. so who else will look after the child?

vixendrop · Post by **vixendrop** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 4:57 pm

There is a difference between being overweight (even in the obese category) and being LIFE THREATENINGLY obese. BIG difference.

And no, obesity is not everyone's business. It's a personal subject that should be left that way... UNLESS it is seriously endangering the child's life. And by serious I mean to the extent that it appears the child may not make it out of childhood (50lbs overweight certainly is not to that extent), or it happens rapidly which could possibly mean child endangerment or a medical condition that needs to be treated immediately.

Any weight problem should be dealt with my the parents and the doctor. A doctor is much more qualified (generally) to determine how healthy a child is. Not a teacher who knows nothing about the child's medical history.

Oh, and I find your statement that a parent is neglecting their duties if their child is overweight to be very offensive. There ARE extenuating circumstances in some cases which may not be readily apparent, and there are some children (and adults) that no matter what they eat and how much they exercise are just over the current *ideal* weight. To basically accuse a parent of neglecting their child (a form of abuse) is outrageous.

Deacon · Post by **Deacon** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 5:38 pm

Obesity by its very nature is everyone's business. Unlike most of the rest of the time, obese people's problems are immediately visible and difficult not to notice.

And I'm sorry, but as long as our government is busy spending money they've taken away from me to provide services for this little kid, they're going to do it right, and that means treating fat kids just like skeleton kids.

Princess_Lorien · Post by **Princess_Lorien** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 6:31 pm

Its not a matter of 'Ideal' weight. Its a matter of health. Like religion classes, kids with medical reasons for weight problems will be off the hook. The kids who sit and play Xbox and eat crap all night will be the ones with a problem. I see five year olds who are the size of a small horse, because their families feed them crap and as much as they hate to admit it... their child will have health issues.

As you get older your metabolism isnt as good, you have reason to be overweight and its okay because you are done growing. These kids arent. They need to be healthy.

StruckingFuggle · Post by **StruckingFuggle** » Sat Feb 05, 2005 6:48 pm

I saw a kid (like, seven or eight) at a chick-fil-a waddle up and grab four or five of their HUGE plastic things of mayo, look at the chubby fist full of it, and then grab one more.

... Now what sort of medical trouble needs to be placated with mayo?

I mean, damn. Some people really DO need talkings-too.

Rileyrat · Post by **Rileyrat** » Sun Feb 06, 2005 12:32 am

They don't have charts for kids, they use percentiles. My son was very tall for his age when he was 1.5 years but very skinny for his height. Due to the fact that kids change in wheight and hight rapidly, they use the % system rather than some cookie cutter chart. For instance a chile may be 90% in height but only 45% in weight. Plus children under a certain stage of development are supposed to have higher body fat than after.

vixendrop · Post by **vixendrop** » Sun Feb 06, 2005 1:21 am

[quote="Rileyrat";p="451377"]They don't have charts for kids, they use percentiles. My son was very tall for his age when he was 1.5 years but very skinny for his height. Due to the fact that kids change in wheight and hight rapidly, they use the % system rather than some cookie cutter chart. For instance a chile may be 90% in height but only 45% in weight. Plus children under a certain stage of development are supposed to have higher body fat than after.[/quote]

That's actually the chart I was mentioning. It helps parents see if their child is at the top, bottom, middle, or off the percentile chart. Very useful.

AzraeL · Post by **AzraeL** » Sun Feb 06, 2005 2:08 pm

Any weight problem should be dealt with my the parents and the doctor. A doctor is much more qualified (generally) to determine how healthy a child is. Not a teacher who knows nothing about the child's medical history.

obviously, anyone who is at a reasonable body weight is more qualified than the overweight/underweight people in question. anyway, i know doctors who smoke and dont really look after themselves.

Oh, and I find your statement that a parent is neglecting their duties if their child is overweight to be very offensive. There ARE extenuating circumstances in some cases which may not be readily apparent, and there are some children (and adults) that no matter what they eat and how much they exercise are just over the current *ideal* weight. To basically accuse a parent of neglecting their child (a form of abuse) is outrageous.

didnt we talk about how these extenuating circumstances dont count, as the migority are just lazy overeaters? i know there are people who cant help it, and they are fine, but for the rest, which is like 90% of people who are over/under weight, lessons need to be taught.

I saw a kid (like, seven or eight) at a chick-fil-a waddle up and grab four or five of their HUGE plastic things of mayo, look at the chubby fist full of it, and then grab one more.

... Now what sort of medical trouble needs to be placated with mayo?

someone to chase the kid with a wet towel, whipping him.

Real Life Forums

Fat Grade

Who is online