Obesity is a problem in children and adults it is an important issue. Just leave Cookie out of this.

If parents pay any amount of attention to these changes on Sesame Street and follow through by changing even one poor food choice eaten daily by their kids, then at least it is a start!

I'm going to start by polishing off the box of Yodels all by myself.

The real game, bhw, is to find out how many you can stuff in your mouth at the same time.

Richard, I agree with you wholeheartedly - sugar, flour and corn syrup are the causes of obesity coupled with lack of exercise.

I realized this when I went on the Atkin's diet last year.

The first week without these three ingredients in my diet made me feel like a junkie trying to clean up her act.

The withdrawls I suffered ranged from fainting spells to utter listlessness but once all the toxins were flushed from my system, my appetite was reduced, I felt light, energetic and actually came to hate anything that tasted sweet.

Since then I have ensured that we have minimum junk or processed food in our kitchen and eat out only on weekends.

My toddler eats healthy stuff like mini carrots, asparagus, yogurt etc as snacks. Cookies are banned in our household.

As far as i'm aware, a balanced diet is the best kind of diet. The kicker is to not over-indulge.
Anyway, I generally find the hardest time to resist buying biscuits/cakes is the first; afterwards, it generally gets easier. It also helps to think of just how many additives and other crap goes in to most of these kind of products.

swingingpuss,

Thanks for the positive comments. I have been involved with the low carb industry for the last 18 years (well before the low carb boom) and have heard countless stories such as yours. I believe strongly in a reduced carb diet (though each body is different and may require a different diet), not necessarily the strict induction stage of the Atkins Diet.

The issue of the prevalance of Syndrome X has been completely overshadowed while the big time companies produce anything they can and label it as low carb.

This is a deadly issue that has to be corrected and that starts at home.

Richard, this is an exceptional post on a vital topic and I agree with you all the way. I have no problem with modifying Cookie Monster's diet a bit to publicize the fact that an enormous number of Americans, including children, are fat lazy sacks of shit addicted to sugar, salt and fat. Thanks!

The real game, bhw, is to find out how many you can stuff in your mouth at the same time.

I love it when you talk dirty to me.

Cookies are banned in our household.

Yikes! How about the "free range" cookies you can get at Whole Foods? They taste kind of plain, but I guess that's the point.

One hidden source of extra sugar is the typical American yogurt. They have a ton of added sugar, so for all their low or non-fatness, they still pack a whallop.

Eric

Thanks for the kind words, it is a subject I am quite passionate about.

bhw

I believe there is no benefit (reduced sugar/carb) to free range cookies.

And yes yogurts and other foods do have hidden sugars that is not common knowledge. Keep in mind when checking out the carb counts to subtract the fiber in the product. Fiber is a carb that does not act as a carb in the way it is processed by the body. It is insoluble and is considered by many to be an "empty" carb.

Richard, maybe you could write a follow-up post for adults, explaining reduced-carb diet strategies and info about insoluble vs. soluble fiber, etc. We all hear that we need to get more fiber in our diets, but not so much detail on the kind of fiber and what foods contain the good kind.

bhw

Good idea! Obese children have a good chance of growing into obese AND unhealthy adults. I'll get started on it but it will take some time.

Good job on this article. This si an important issue and it is getting negative press with the backlash against Atkins. Low carb is not Atkins and vice versa. Some Atkins followers have used it as an excuse to overindulge in bad fats. The best advice is to eat food that is as close as possible to its natuiral state. The less processed the better.

(the yogurt comment is good too, i see diabetics eating yogurt filled with sugar and i cringe)

Thanks Tom! The negative backlash was expected upon his passing but for over 30 years this man fought everyone including the Government about the concept of reduced carbs to lose weight and maintain overall health.
Dr. Atkins is missed, trust me!

What sad, sad people we have become. I would rather see violence leaving children's programming than cookies. People need to start raising thier own kids instead of allowing the cable company to do in on thier behalf. If your kid is fat, it's your own damn fault, not Nabisco's or Sesame Street's.
We are always so quick to blame someone other than ourselves.

I agree with you Melinda, parents have to address this issue head-on, though TV can help educate.
As for violence on TV, I'd have to point the finger again at parents for allowing their children to watch it, though the networks should show responsibility with the times in which they air these shows.

Here is a link to the USDA's new site containing their new MY PYRAMID program. This replaces the old food pyramid with its "one size fits all" mentality which was all wrong. You can probably trace the rise of obesity and diabetes cases with the beginning use of the original food pyramid.

http://www.mypyramid.gov/

Each person's body is different from the next, and this really does offer a better source for what you should be taking in on a daily basis.

As requested by many people at this site, I'll be posting a intriguing article on the effects of the old food pyramid vs the new food pyramid and its realtionship to obesity.