Public schools are to blame for obesity in children and must be abolished
@Radicalpatriot (665)
United States
February 11, 2007 12:37pm CST
In reality, it's not McDonald's or Jack-in-the-Box or Pizza Hut or any other fast-food outlet that is to blame for the rampant growth of childhood obesity. Public schools are to blame and here is why. Used to be that lots of physical activity was encouraged in public schools. But all that has been eliminated. Playground time has been cut to nothing. Kids aren't even allowed to move a muscle while in class. They can't run outside. At one school where I used to teach, students were banned from some hallways because they could not behave in a way that was safe for teachers around them. So it goes without saying that if children are not allowed to move, they will gain weight, no matter what their diet is. Fast food is not the problem. Inactivity is. Teachers have too many kids in each class, and therefore these children are not allowed to move at all. No movement equals fat. The answer to stop child obesity is to abolish public schooling and have each student learn online and play whenever they can. After school? Forget it. Kids can't play because gangsters roam the streets and kidnap and abuse children. Therefore, kids get out of school and go straight home or are carried home in cars (they don't even walk most of the time) and get less and less and less exercise. It is time to change all this. Otherwise, fat people will invade the planet. But you can lay the blame at failed public schools and their prohibition of movement.
4 people like this
4 responses
@michelledarcy (5220)
•
13 Feb 07
In my daughters school she has about 40 mins of playground time in the day and does PE twice a week. I don't think this is enough physical activity for her, but combines with a 30 minute walk each way to school and her ballet class she probably gets enough.
However I think schools should encourage children to walk there and do exercise every morning.
Also school dinners are pretty appaling as they still serve cake and custard and similar desserts rather than making the kids have fruit.
1 person likes this
@Radicalpatriot (665)
• United States
13 Feb 07
Wow. To get 40 minutes of playground time a day is very generous by most standards. In the school where I used to teach, playground time was reduced to almost nothing because the kids ended up getting into too many fights.
1 person likes this
@XxAngelxX (2830)
• Canada
13 Feb 07
I don't think learning online is the answer. I feel a lot of children would lose out if public schools were banned, how would they meet new people and practice their socialization skills? I do believe physical education should be mandatory up until they graduate. But I feel a lot of the problem lies with the parents as well. If you're not setting healthy eating habits and lifestyles, then our children don't learn them. There's no reason parents can't go outside with their children so they can get the exercise they need. We can take our children to the parks or simply go in the backyard and toss a frisbee around. If we see our children are having weight problems, it's something we need to take care of ourselves as they are our responsibility.
1 person likes this
@Radicalpatriot (665)
• United States
13 Feb 07
Your point is well-taken, but since young people are already obsessed with cell phones and computers, it might be best to channel learning through these areas, otherwise we're going to lose our kids, and schools will cease to have any meaning or purpose whatsoever.
1 person likes this
@pebbles_cubbie (3789)
• United States
19 Feb 07
I have to disagree a little bit. I do think the schools are to blame to a point but you only eat one meal a day at school. The rest of the time you have a choice of fast food or home cooked meals. Many people choose fast food because it's fast and it's just right there. Every street corner is filled with a fast food chain. I know around here they do have PE and it's required to pass high school in IL. If we abolish public schooling then no one would be able to afford an education and then the private schools would be packed. Therefore creating the same problem. I never walked to school. It was too dangerous in my city. My town was pretty rough and it still is. I still have to blame fast food chains since they are so convenient and it doesnt matter what your financial situation is because they have dollar menus that allow anyone to afford it. Teens see this as an easy way of eating and since it's so cheap they don't care.
1 person likes this
@judyt00 (3497)
• Canada
11 Feb 07
Yeah, that's it. Put the blame everywhere but where it belongs. Obesity in kids is completely the fault of the parents, If the parents didn't over feed and misfeed their kids, the problem wouldn't exist. Nobody forced one of those kids to eat cookies and cake and soda pop 4 meals a day, except the parents. Many houses in the western world don't even have veggies and fruit in the fridge, just more junk food. Many households actually eat preprocessed, fatty, sodium engorged foods 4 or 5 times a week. Burgers and pizza should not be a staple in the diet, but for special occasions only. If you don't want fat kids, kick them outside to play instead of letting them play videogames all day, and feed them real food!
@Radicalpatriot (665)
• United States
11 Feb 07
I had all manner of treats as a kid and it didn't make any difference because I was able to have plenty of exercise in schbools and was able to come home and play like hell until I dropped all over my neighborhood. Kids burned it all off! Now, fear rules. Kids are strapped to their desks at school and fearful parents keep them behind locked doors staring at TVs all day.
@llabteksab73 (800)
• United States
12 Feb 07
You are right. This is starting to get out of hand with all of these rules! THANKS!
1 person likes this
@xParanoiax (6987)
• United States
17 Feb 07
I agree with Judy, it's the parents blame not the danged schools.
Learn a little about excircise, dear. You don't have to run or play on a swing to get excircise..ever wonder how people kept in darkdank places for years stay in shape? They didn't get to go outside at all. And they did simple excircises inside their own homes.
Gangs do not populate every square inch of the world. Not all children love in the city..so if it's the school's fault, and kids CAN play outside because there are not gangs..how do explain that? It's the parents faults, theuir fault for not teaching their own children how excircise works and how they can use their muscles in fricken CHAIR and be pretty skinny.
How all children seem to eat these days is sugar also greatly contributes to it. What you were fed does not fit this equation since, we're talking about the kids. Some children have never even SEEN a vegetable. It's sad.
1 person likes this
