THE misconception among many Jamaican mothers that babies must be plump and chubby in order to be healthy is one of the main contributors to childhood obesity here, nutritionists argue.
To tackle the problem of children becoming overweight and obese, this cultural perception must be eliminated from the minds of parents.
Food and nutrition consultant Heather Little-White said many Jamaicans believe that fatter babies are healthier and "nice and cute", and so from an early age, mothers tend to overfeed their infants, not realising that this practice eventually follows them into adolescence and adulthood.
"Parents must recognise that while chubbiness is nice, it is not always a factor that you want to encourage," she said. "We have to try to cut back on the overfeeding."
Fatness perceived as prosperity
Little-White further said this perception was often continued into adulthood, as fatness is often perceived as a sign of health and prosperity for many Jamaicans.
"A man will see a woman and say, 'I like that one because she is nice and chubby', versus the more slender woman, not knowing that the plumper one might be less healthy," she said.
Nutritionist Patricia Thompson said from a very early stage, mothers must guide their babies' eating habits so that they stop eating when they are full.
"Your new-born infant needs to be breastfed on demand. That way the child not only consumes what they want but they develop their internal physiology so that they eat when they are hungry, and when hunger is satisfied they stop eating," she said.
This practice, she said, would eliminate the problem of overeating and eating more than the body needs.
The nutrition experts further said public education and counselling were also important to change the mindset.
They said parents needed to be educated on the nutritional value of food and how and what to prepare so that they are feeding their children a balanced and healthy diet.
"Sometimes we feed the children too much starch and empty calories, they need to have a good balance of vegetables and protein," Little-White said.
She said parents must make a conscious decision, despite the hard economic times, to provide their children with wholesome, healthy foods.
"It's a trade-off, because if they go for the fast food with the empty calories because it's cheaper, they are going to end up spending more for the doctor bill," she said.
Both nutritionists also agreed that parents must closely monitor what their children eat when they are away from home, particularly while they are at school.
athaliah.reynolds@gleanerjm.com
Athaliah Reynolds, Staff Reporter
CHILD PSYCHOLOGIST Dr Gemma Gibbon says children who are overweight or obese are just as likely to experience learning problems in school as a child who is undernourished.
She said this is because obesity can affect the child's brain function and ability to retain information in the same way that being underfed can affect an individual.
"(Similar to) malnutrition, you're going to lack a lot of brain function, because you're not getting enough vitamins and you're eating too much sugar, so you will have less focus, less attention and you will have problems attaining and retaining information," Dr Gibbon said.
She further said children who were obese or overweight might also experience problems sleeping and this could also influence how they functioned at school.
"They won't be able to sleep properly at night, they won't be able to get up properly in the morning, and they'll often feel tired and drained," she said.
She said nutrition played a very key role in how children learned and if they were not eating properly, that is, having a balanced, healthy diet, it often caused them to perform quite poorly.
Getting too much nutrition
"People think that because you're eating a lot you're getting proper nutrition, but you're getting too much of the wrong things," Dr Gibbon said.
She said proper nutrition, especially in children, was very important for brain function and for feeling good about themselves. "Being healthy has a strong psychological impact on a person," Dr Gibbon said.
Psychologists also argue that obese or overweight children might also develop low self-esteem and or depression tendencies, which can also affect how they behave and learn in school.
A recent study from The Mayo Clinic in the United States suggests that the psychological and social effects of obesity are just as damaging to children as the other physical health problems to which they are prone.
The study further said that overweight children were likely to experience low self-esteem, teasing and bullying and often suffered an increased risk of depression.
Dr Gibbon, however, suggested that this might be different for some Jamaican children, as being fat is not as much of an issue as it is in other countries, such as the US and the United Kingdom.
"It's quite a mixed bag ... but the generation coming up now is far more aware of body shape, as opposed to about 10 years ago," she said.
Self-esteem issues
Dr Gibbon, however, said psycho-logical or self-esteem issues might arise if the child is picked on or has a problem with his/her weight.
"But if they're just having a bad diet and they don't even realise it, and no one is calling them names, then it's not a problem for them really," Dr Gibbon reasoned. "It's only a problem if they feel themselves fat, ugly or horrible, that they can't do anything, or that people pick on them all the time."
She said it was very important for parents who noticed that their children were overweight or obese to seek professional assistance in getting them on a proper healthy diet.
Dr John Royes, paediatrician at Kidz Klinic, said parents should monitor their children's weight according to their height, not their age. He said that just by looking at a child's parents, a weight issue could be determined.
"Even with the untrained eye, you would be able to know that something is wrong - whether the child is a little bit meagre or overweight, just by the appropriateness of his body contours," he said.
He said the correct thing to do is to chart the child's height and weight to determine whether the child's weight is appropriate.