As if we didn’t already know it, a WHO report out of Geneva stated that “child obesity is an exploding nightmare.” But instead of facing the reasons square on, the report makes waffling statements about “biological pathways that can expose children to an elevated risk of obesity once they are born.” Whew! All that just so they won’t offend the food manufacturers who contribute most to obesity.
The truth is rather simpler. Children, and people in general, get fat because of what they eat. The biggest culprits are sugar, wheat products, refined salt, vegetable oils, French fries and processed foods. (Read soft drinks, “energy” drinks, pack juice, cake, bread, doubles, bake, chips, to name a few.) And please don’t hide behind the excuse that obesity is hereditary. While genes play a small role, it is hereditary mainly in the sense that if the parents eat junk, they will feed their children the same junk, with the same fat result.
So it was heartening that, among all the bad news lately, came some good news. A baking company announced that they will be raising the price of several of their sugar-loaded, wheat-based, insulin-spiking, diabetes-causing products. My only wish was that the prices could have been higher.
Even with the modest increases, one hopes that this will deter some parents from buying these and similar products for their children, helping to save them from a future of disease.
Noel Kalicharan