With childhood obesity becoming more and more of an issue, parents are eager to keep their kids healthy and help them lose weight. But the well-meaning words and actions of parents can backfire, causing kids to resort to disordered eating in order to lose weight. A group of teens recently talked with U.S. News and World Report about the things they wished their parents had never said.
"Maybe this new diet will help. 'I'm always hearing about how bad food is; they showed Super Size Me, [a documentary about the dangers of fast food] in school,' says [Leah] Schumacher. 'I would have like to have learned from my parents or teachers about the positives of food, like why I need some fat to build cells and what fruits and vegetables do for my body.'"
All of the girls interviewed were undergoing treatment for eating disorders which they feel they developed, in part, because of comments from parents and friends. Source: U.S. News and World Report
Labels: eating_disorders, healthy_eating, pressures