Childhood Obesity – Dear Mrs Jones, Your son is fat!
Dear Mrs. Jones,
We have taken your son’s BMI measurement and it has been noted that your parenting skills are low: to such an extent that our results reveal that your son is clinically obese, or as we say in the staff room: "fat". We suggest you learn how to look after your son properly.
Yours Sincerely,
The Headmaster
Okay, because the UK is so concerned about being politically correct, the letter will never be this blunt and will more than likely tip-toe nervously around the subject like a size zero model addressing a Weight Watchers meeting. So what am I talking about? Well….
…Next month in the UK parents of primary age school children will receive a letter giving them details of their child’s weight in a government initiative to tackle childhood obesity. This letter will let parents know if their child is overweight, very overweight, a healthy weight or underweight.
The measurements are part of a nationwide programme and the results will be used to calculate the body mass index of each child (BMI) but the exact scale measurements will not be passed on to the parents.
But don’t tell the children
The information in this letter will only be shared with the parents and not with the child, other children or staff at the school. There is concern that children should not be stigmatised by the results but that parents should be encouraged to seek advice to improve their child’s health.
Don’t use the ‘O’ word…
Also the term ‘obesity’ will not be used as the Department of Health considered the word was unhelpful. Neither will the word ‘exercise’ be used – instead they have used the term ‘physically active’.
… or the ‘E’ word
Will Cavendish, director of health and wellbeing at the department felt that the word ‘exercise’ conveyed an unhelpful image to parents (so they prefer to say ‘physically active’)and the word ‘obese’ he said: “just shuts people down…there’s no point in giving parents a letter that doesn’t have an impact.” Apparently experts in the US originally thought the same about the word ‘obese’ and then changed their minds because the term has a useful shock effect.
Figures from 2006/7 show that just over 1 in five children, 22.0% aged 4-5 were either overweight or obese, and by the age of 10-11 that figure had risen to almost one in three or 31.6%
Should the letter be more forceful?
Critics of these letters feel that they are too concerned about giving offence and that the approach should be more forceful as the consequences of being overweight have such serious health risks. Others feel that the subject needs to be treated with care so parents and children don’t feel they are being got at and so will be more co-operative.
What do you think? Email your ideas and we will print the best ones over the next few days – let’s start a debate!
Sources and further reading
Read about our feelings on the BMI test
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/child_health/article4458852.ece
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/afp/20080805/tuk-britain-obesity-children-a7ad41d.html
