Parents must fight obesity in children

Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh is urging parents to be committed in the fight against childhood obesity which he said has risen by 400 per cent.

He said childhood obesity was not difficult to fight, but said TT had become a nation that adopted the American diet and lifestyle of consuming empty calories and leading sedentary lives.

“Your fridges, stoves and pantries are harbingers of death. This is where we have to start the fight first,” Deyalsingh said at the TT National Parent Teacher Associations’ (NPTA) mid-year convention held yesterday at the Valencia Secondary School in east Trinidad.

This year’s theme was Obesity as it Pertains to the Child.

Deyalsingh said the culture change has to start at home first, but Government has its part to play.

He said Government has had to borrow US$55 million to invest in exercise equipment to place in public parks and schools to “do what we used to do for free.”

The minister admitted that while some childhood obesity cannot be helped as it can be hormonal, glandular or genetic, life style factors were preventable.

“Sugar is addictive. We didn’t have this problem when we were small because our parents were poor and we drank water.

“One bottle of soft drink has about 100 calories, while a box of fast food has between 700-1,000 calories.

“These are empty calories. The average child does not need more than 1,000-1,500 calories per day.”

“As children we used to be very active playing games, skipping, running, jumping, so whatever calories we took in were expended. We had to walk to school. Nowadays children are dropped to school in air conditioned cars and after school they sit before a screen.”

Deyalsingh urged representatives from the NPTA, the National Association of Secondary Schools Principals and the TT Unified Teachers’ Association to spread the word and encourage children to eat healthier and be more active.

“This message will be lost if it is not taken into schools. The ministry cannot do it alone and parents need to stay committed.”