Crack down on fat

It’s a tough place, the school yard. Who of us went unscathed in the rigours of school life, where every tiny difference or impediment was magnified a thousand fold?

The ALP has a proposal which, while having much to recommend it, could add to the cacophony of harsh judgments against one group of children - those deemed overweight or obese.

Children would be checked for obesity under an ALP plan to introduce a national scheme of health and development tests for all school starters.

Kate Carnell, who was part of a meeting to discuss the “Healthy Kids Check” plan, said obesity checks were “a priority”.

While I welcome any initiative that contributes to healthier children, I’m worried about any campaign which singles out children on the basis of weight. Schools could be turned into the site of a “biggest loser” competition, if not handled with great sensitivity.

School kids already understand the equation Big = Bad.

It is inevitable there would be jokes about “breaking the scales” or “are you the biggest loser?” directed at larger size kids. Recently, Singapore dumped a program aimed at cutting obesity levels in schools, as overweight children were being singled out and teased by their class mates. Even the nanny state of Asia has figured out this sort of approach doesn’t work.

The ALP move adds to a growing list of proposals to crack down on fat: fax taxes, fat camps, bans on junk food advertising, tax-payer funded private weight reduction programs, There’s even talk of removing welfare payments from single mothers who haven’t been successful in getting their kids to lose weight.

Governments should do more to educate, encourage and empower - coercion should be an absolute last resort. Punishing already stressed single mothers is not going to result in good health outcomes. Rather than punishment, parents need support and resources to make good choices, not just have a rule book thrown at them.

Conveying a message to children, already vulnerable at a time of rapidly changing body shape and with hormones awry, that if you’re not slim you’re a failure, is not going to help the self-esteem levels of young people.

It has now been established that the media’s portrayal of the “ideal” female form as skinny is a pathological influence among women who already have some of the setting conditions for an eating disorder.

An Australian Institute of Health and Welfare report on the health of young people shows that eating disorders and mental health problems are among the leading causes of burden of disease in young women.

One in 100 adolescent girls develops anorexia nervosa - the third most common chronic illness for adolescent girls in Australia. Bulimia nervosa is as high as one in five in the student population. Obesity is only one part of the body image equation - it should be of equal concern that many girls are also trying to "disappear" themselves by indulging in extreme dieting.

Have you noticed how on The Biggest Loser, it’s all about the scales, which have a god-like status as the revealer of all truth. So when Munnalita weighed in at exactly the same as the previous week, is she commended for sticking to her rigorous exercise program and for her healthy eating? No. (I wonder if any account is made of the fact that women’s weight varies naturally during their cycles which could account for nil weight loss in a particular week?)

I want to know what happens after “the results are in”?

What about reversing the erosion of the “commons”, and creating environments where children can roam and which sees the maintenance of sporting grounds as an investment in health rather than an economic burden? What about addressing work family balance, so there is time for relationships and the creation of healthy meals?

What about helping disadvantaged families where obesity is more prevalent, with community-based advice on cooking, and budgeting to accommodate a healthy diet? Perhaps the fact that lettuce can cost $4 a head in some remote communities makes chips look like a good food choice?

If our political leaders are truly concerned about children’s health, perhaps they should do something to address a toxic culture environment, which prematurely sexualises little girls. As the American Psychological Association has found, this dangerous environment results in eating disorders, self-harm, binge drinking, and depression because of the pressure to conform to an idealised body type.

We are seeing a breakdown of what makes communities and families work; an erosion of mutual care and connectedness, an epidemic of violence against women and children. We’re over regulated but under connected. Addressing this is where the priorities should lie.

Childhood obesity is the tip of the iceberg of the demise of a healthy childhood. The erosion of childhood that results in obesity is caused by economic and social policy settings that need to be urgently addressed.