Situation Four: Cultural Differences
Your racial and/or ethnic heritage traditionally finds having extra weight as attractive or something to be admired, rather than viewing it as a health concern. When your child comes home having been told by classmates and teachers that he is “fat,” he is confused and hurt. What do you say?
“Even if your culture sees extra weight as positive, obesity has serious health and social consequences on your child’s wellbeing.”
What a parent needs to know:
Even if your culture sees extra weight as positive, obesity has serious health and social consequences on your child’s wellbeing. And it doesn’t stop there – a child with obesity is much more likely to become an adult with obesity. In fact, a child with overweight or obesity is up to 10 times more likely to become an adult with overweight or obesity.14 This could translate into a lifetime of battling serious chronic diseases including type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease.
Minority populations, including African Americans and Asians, are significantly more likely to live in multigenerational family households, where grandparents have significant influences on children’s eating habits from early childhood into late adolescence.15
There is a significant relationship between grandparent and grandchild BMI, physical activity and television viewing.16,17
Tips for what a parent might say:
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Thank you for sharing what happened with me. I’m so sorry that your feelings were hurt by what your friends/teacher said. Weight is not who YOU are. You are (FILL IN with positive attributes, e.g., caring, a good friend, smart, a hard worker). |
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Our culture has seen weight as a sign of success, happiness and wealth. And in our family, we’ve celebrated our size and often mark happy occasions with food. |
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But, the more doctors learn about weight, it’s becoming clearer that carrying extra weight can hurt your health. So, let’s talk about that. |
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Carrying extra weight around means your body may have to work harder than it needs to. Just like when you don’t like it when your teacher gives you extra homework, your body doesn’t like to do more work than it has to. If we can help your body stop overworking, we can make sure you have enough energy to do things that you like to do and what makes you happy like (FILL IN). |
