Weighing in schools

Lisa82 · 22-05-2006, 12:20

So today the government have decided that all school age children from the age of four will be weighed at school and if found to be over weight a letter will be sent to parents outlining how to look after your childs weight. Personally i think young children have enough issues without the added pressure of them being told their overweight by a teacher. They worry about their weight now as young as ten do we really want our four year olds wanting to go on a diet?? Plus will other children bully children who are found to be overweight? At that age they may be overweight but that doesn't mean by adult hood they'll be obese. I personally am against it.

What do you all think about it?

lettie · 22-05-2006, 12:34

I remember being weighed in school as a kid. This is not a new thing it is something that has come full circle. Along with being weighed we had nitty nora and vaccinations polio, rubella etc... This was all done by the school nurse not the teachers. I think it will be the school nursing service who will do this weighing and if they do, it will be subject to confidentiality issues the same as any other nursing service. Therefore other kids will not know who has had a letter or diet sheet given to them to take home or sent to the home.

Kids take the mick out of other kids. It doesn't matter if they are fat, thin, have specs, spots or ginger hair, a kid will always find something to pick on about another person if they are that way inclined. If a kid is overweight the other kids know it without the use of scales. I don't think it will make any difference in that respect.

A friend of mine had a diet sheet sent home for her overweight daughter. She was offended that they had sent it until I pointed out that she is overweight for her age and height. There are lots of variations between people's bodies both young and old but there is also a large range for normal weight limits. if you are over the normal limit then you are overweight. I think it is a good idea and should make parents more aware of what their children should weigh in order to prevent serious diseases such as diabetes, which has risen amongst children in this country over recent years.

garinda · 22-05-2006, 12:41

I'm in two minds about this one.

Children may be bullied already if they are a little chubby, but then again that might also be if the case are too tall, small etc. We all come in different sizes and shapes, but as long as the child wasn't targeted by this initiative, and the parents were made aware that there might be a problem, it might be a good idea. Healthy eatting and exercise rather than dieting is a good idea. You only have to look at the problems in the States to see what can happen if this goes unchecked.

Being over weight can lead to problems in later life if not addressed, such as diabetes and heart problems amongst others. However I agree that ten year olds worrying about their weight when they are perfectly normal and healthy is worrying.

those were the days · 22-05-2006, 13:22

I too am in two minds.
I seem to remember being weighed at school, and to tell you the truth i presumed they still did it. Nitty Nora should make a comeback as everyone has had the sceniero of clearing the blighters only to be instantly reinfected.
Back to the weighing though..
I think that rather than just sending letter stating the obvious - your child is overweight blah blah blah.. (because majority of people know if their child is overweight or not, unless of course just on the borderline)
They should send helpful information and contacts to help them help their child, with details of kids clubs run by various sporting things such as swimming or athletics, and maybe a support person to talk to for advice, not just accusation.

If done tactfully, confidentially and provide decent assistance, then yes it could be a good idea to tackle the rising problem of obesity at an early age. If just standard letter stating the obvious etc, then leave the kid alone, they`ve enough time to get hung up about the way they look, allow them to be innocent happy children.

Finally, the charts used for guidelines of weight should be reviewed into sensible charts, not the kind to be considered normal you`d have to be like twiggy! but take into account how the child looks, muscle build, skeletal frame etc not just numbers on a piece of paper and scales.

Tealeaf · 22-05-2006, 13:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lisa82

What do you all think about it?

The simple fact is that if parents fed their offspring correctly there would be no need for this. Forty years ago, when I was at school, we would have had one, possibly two kids in the class who would be nick-named "fatso".

Now, I have a school located just up the street from me. On those mornings when I leave late, I see an entire army of ethnically-diverse, obscenely-obese, junk-food eating foul-mouthed girls puffing and panting like dying elephants as they waddle towards the school gates; All appear armed with the obligatory pot noodle, crisps and fag. I dread to think of the effect on the NHS of this lot in 10 or 20 years time.

Madhatter · 22-05-2006, 15:07

A agree with tealeaf, I also think that these things such as being over weight and having nits are being accepted as normal in children nowadays because nothings said about it. I think all kids should have a regular basic check up at school for fitness and health, where better to do it than at school. Plus regular nit nurse inspections. I went through my school days not having nits once, but got them through staying with a friend that has kids and didn't bother, I was 26. she obviously had them herself because I didn't go near the child.

Gayle · 22-05-2006, 19:26

I don't disagree with children having health checks at school - nits, weight, etc. Only problem is that a parent can see if a child is overweight and if they're not doing anything about it already then a letter home won't make the slightest bit of difference.

My daughter's school has just started Fruity Friday, she now thinks that she doesn't need to take fruit in on any other day whereas I've been telling her for the last two years that she should.

SPUGGIE J · 22-05-2006, 19:47

Should these checks can lead to help for the child then I am all for it. Wether something will be done to help the affected child is a totally different matter and that goes for the parents as well. Its too easy for parents to take the easy option were food is concerned and will be hard for them to change their habits.

Parents cannot but their childrens life at risk just for the sake of a quick to make potentionally unhealthy child. Lets give it time and see if it works and wether the children benifit.

chav1 · 22-05-2006, 20:10

if a parent is already neglecting its childs health by constantly feeding it crap i cant see a letter altering anything

Gayle · 22-05-2006, 20:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by chav1

if a parent is already neglecting its childs health by constantly feeding it crap i cant see a letter altering anything

It took me three paragraphs and you just one but you said it so much better than me!

harwood red · 22-05-2006, 21:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by chav1

if a parent is already neglecting its childs health by constantly feeding it crap i cant see a letter altering anything

Nail on head!!!

And how many kids out there are classed as overweight only to hit puberty and shoot up and their weight is then within normal range.

I have one friend whose son has done exactly that and she used to worry so much about his size, she has a younger son who is also on the larger side but she doesn't worry about it as much now, he goes swimming every week and is a very active child

wozaup · 22-05-2006, 21:52

My daughter was visited today by the teeth doctor

She was shown how to brush her teeth correctly then she had to demonstrate on a teddy bear, now im not against this at all she does her teeth 2 even 3 times aday, as in my time i was neglected as a child and now my fillings have a bit of teeth in them, lol

The best thing about this story is my daughter is at nursery 3yrs old lol, ive heard of starting early!

And she got a massive sticky badge......

katex · 22-05-2006, 22:09

Nobody is born obese ... just what they are fed as they go along their path of life. (hmm.. very serious for me) ... if you eat more than your body requires, it is stored in fat.. end of story. Look at the mother waiting at the school gates of an overweight child; usually similar obesity, not hereditary I can assure you, only in the fact of what they are fed too much food at home. Better to weigh the mother, rather than the child. As already stated a letter home will not have one iota of success.

If you are happy with being on the larger size, that's great, just the effects it may have on your health at the end of the day and the child is not getting much choice here. Weighing at school and the letter home will only give the child a sense of being abnormal and could lead to eating disorders, etc.

Red: yes, this is true, lots of children do have what we call puppy fat, and do shoot upwards and slim down ... mainly boys ... but lots more don't, they just carry on becoming horizontally challenged and stay this way for the rest of their lives.

Lisa82 · 23-05-2006, 10:08

Before i posted this i was against this but after reading all your comments i can now see the plus and negative side of this. I suppose only time will tell.

Madhatter · 23-05-2006, 11:27

Well I'm limited in experience cos I haven't got kids, but I think they deserve to be looked after better than they are being at school, compared to our day health wise they get neglected, the schools have become about providing a BASIC eduction, when I was at school it was about making sure you were as physically fit as you could be in the long term, about making sure you were as fit as you could be in school so you can learn, about teaching right from wrong. It's not about fat/thin, it's about health. A lot of these parents don't even know they're doing anything wrong, they don't know how to look after kids nowdays, they have to be told by letters, explained. We've got a mother and child centre here that teaches young mums how to look after their kids, teaches child care, and it's very successfully. In a world were we can't even discipline our kids anymore, it's important than parents are good parents from the outset, that school comes across as setting an example to all. School should be a third parent.