The whole milk debate...

A recent conversation with a neighbor of a toddler my son's age:

HER: So, are you still giving your little dude whole milk?

ME: Of course. I don't have a problem with it.

HER (contrite and indignant): Well, my pediatrician said not to give them whole milk after age two b/c it was too fattening. I give him 1% milk. Personally, I can't stand the taste of whole milk. Besides, I don't want my son to grow up fat. You know, childhood obesity is a problem.

See, here's the thing. Mr. Landlord and I grew up on whole milk. WE are not obese. WE come from a long line of big Italians and Germans. The little dude has been in the 100th percentile in weight and height since he was born. He's a big kid, and his body needs everything it can get. He is the biggest kid in his class, both at preschool and at church, in his age group. He is also more developmentally advanced.

Here's my take on childhood obesity:

When we were little, we spent an enormous amount of time outside. Never inside watching toons or videos, or playing video games. We learned to play hop-scotch, tag, hide and seek, dodgeball, ride bikes, and explore the open neighborhood. Mr. Landlord did the same, and also spent his time down at the creek catching fish and snakes. (He would sell the snakes to the local pet shop...what an enterprising young man.) By playing like this, we developed the ability to acquire, manage, and sustain long term friendships and social relationships, which made us better people growing up and into adulthood. The concepts/issues of childhood depression, childhood bipolar disorder, ADHD, etc. were pretty much nonexistent. (For the purpose of this post, I won't get into the controveries surrounding these issues and discuss the numerous reasons why they are more prevalent today.) We played organized sports, and learned teamwork through this and other avenues. We experienced plenty of sunshine. And we learned to think critically and abstractly through playing board games.

Childhood obesity is NOT soley caused by ingesting whole milk, for G-d's sake. Get your kids outside. Encourage them to develop social skills through inviting friends over to play, or organizing a neighborhood dodgeball game. Hell, even basketball. Quit feeding them damned fast food and all beige diets. (Granted, toddlers go through the beige stage, but it is shortlived if you handle it right.) Don't make a big deal out of your kid's diet...this is a surefire way to 1) set up a situation of control between you and him/her and 2) it set's them up for a bad relationship with food later in life. If you obsess over what they eat...and I mean OBSESS...then they are likely to obsess over it too...either they will refuse to eat all together, or eat to spite you. Bake them cookies every once in a while...show them it's okay to enjoy the "bad" stuff such as cookies and cake in moderation. And finally, set a good example by eating good, wholesome foods and eating WITH them...Now there's a novel idea...A family meal together.