Maggie Goes on a Diet: A children's book

[cnb88]

Story:

http://ca.shine.yahoo.com/video/parenting-22429512/controversial-book-encourages-dieting-for-kids-as-young-as-6-26366737.html#crsl=%252Fvideo%252Fparenting-22429512%252Fdiet-story-for-6-year-olds-author-defends-work-26388341.html

 

Apparently the book centres around a chubby girl named Maggie. She gets teased everyday at school because of her weight. One day she decides to go on a diet to lose weight. After losing a lot of weight, she becomes popular, wins awards, and the kids stop teasing her.

 

I have a few issues with the book:

a) It's written for children around the age of 6. At 6 years old, children shouldn't be worried about whether or not they are "fat". If a child is "fat" at that age, it is extremely unlikely that it is their own doing- it is more the parents doing as the parents are feeding/cooking for the child up until that point. While it's easy for a child to know to eat more fruits and veggies and not to eat fast food, it's much harder for them to carry it out if fast food and snacks are all that's available at home. This book shouldn't be directed at children. It should be written for adults with children.

The children that tease Maggie. It's ok to tease Maggie because she's fat? Really? When is it ever ok to tease anyone based on their appearance??? If someone were to tease a person with a different skin colour, they'd be in trouble (their "appearance"), but it's ok to tease someone because they're fat (also their "appearance").

c) As a child who was teased/degraded when I was younger about being "fat" (not even by children- by an old coach, my dad, and other family members), I can tell you 100% that that stuff stays with you for life. Everytime I pick up any piece of food, a thought goes through my head that "I shouldn't eat this. I'll get fat if I do." You start a child thinking they're fat young, and they will develop some sort of eating disorder or unhealthy obsession with food. I can almost 100% guarantee that.

 

 

I guess my biggest issue with this book is the audience it was written for. Had this book been written differently and for parents of 6 year olds, I'd be more ok with it (still would have an issue with the bullying though). Had it been written as a pamphlet to give to the parents of children when they come into the pediatrician's office (or go to McDonald's), I'd be more ok with it. Especially since (to my knowledge) there's no mention of Maggie's parents in the book. Children model their behaviour after their parents- if their parents eat like crap, so will the kids- no matter how much they know not to. IMO, the book is completely directed at the wrong audience.

 

 

Also, to me, it's quite ironic coming from the author of the book(http://ca.shine.yahoo.com/video/parenting-22429512/controversial-book-encourages-dieting-for-kids-as-young-as-6-26366737.html#crsl=%252Fvideo%252Fparenting-22429512%252Fdiet-story-for-6-year-olds-author-defends-work-26388341.html) who is obviously overweight himself:rolleyes:. Don't do as I do, do as I say??

 

So, what are your thoughts on this? Is the book as written to six year olds a great thing, or can it cause major problems? If you had a child of this age, would you buy it for them regardless of whether or not they were overweight?

 

I'm also curious if your opinions/what you'd say would differ based on if you were talking about this with a friend vs. in an MMI (if it would come up)?

[MarathonRunner]

The children that tease Maggie. It's ok to tease Maggie because she's fat? Really? When is it ever ok to tease anyone based on their appearance??? If someone were to tease a person with a different skin colour, they'd be in trouble (their "appearance"), but it's ok to tease someone because they're fat (also their "appearance").

c) As a child who was teased/degraded when I was younger about being "fat" (not even by children- by an old coach, my dad, and other family members), I can tell you 100% that that stuff stays with you for life. Everytime I pick up any piece of food, a thought goes through my head that "I shouldn't eat this. I'll get fat if I do." You start a child thinking they're fat young, and they will develop some sort of eating disorder or unhealthy obsession with food. I can almost 100% guarantee that.

 

I guess my biggest issue with this book is the audience it was written for. Had this book been written differently and for parents of 6 year olds, I'd be more ok with it (still would have an issue with the bullying though). Had it been written as a pamphlet to give to the parents of children when they come into the pediatrician's office (or go to McDonald's), I'd be more ok with it. Especially since (to my knowledge) there's no mention of Maggie's parents in the book. Children model their behaviour after their parents- if their parents eat like crap, so will the kids- no matter how much they know not to. IMO, the book is completely directed at the wrong audience.

 

I agree with everything you've said here. It is totally directed at the wrong audience. If anything, a book should be written, for children, where it is emphasized that it is not appropriate to tease people due to their appearance. *That* would be an appropriate book for a 6 year old.

[donnadee]

i bet the guy wrote this book to gain popularity for his controversial story..in turn the book sells a lot and he gets what he wants...unfortunate but another gimmick

[donnadee]

I agree with everything you've said here. It is totally directed at the wrong audience. If anything, a book should be written, for children, where it is emphasized that it is not appropriate to tease people due to their appearance. *That* would be an appropriate book for a 6 year old.

 

that would be like any other story wouldnt it lol

[psychoswim]

I agree as well cnb. Seems like this reinforces the belief that popularity is based only on looks. I'm not sure why you'd want to voluntarily push children that way! It's completely wrong :/

[Lactic Folly]

Because we all know that skinny children NEVER get teased.

[psychoswim]

Because we all know that skinny children NEVER get teased.

 

True.. Anyone that's different gets teased. Better grades, bad grades, too skinny, too tall, too short... whatever. I almost got beat up on a few times in primary school because I was quicker with material in school and very shy so didn't fight back.

[Jochi1543]

I read about it on Jezebel. One particular comment that stuck with me said that maybe rather than Maggie having to lose weight, her mom could consider actually buying her a dress that fits.

[astrogirl]

Seems pretty creepy to me. I'm all for encouraging kids to make healthy lifestyle choices, but you can do that without all of the shame and baggage of the "fat people get made fun off, skinny people make friends and are popular" attitude. How about "Maggie Learns About the Food Pyramid" or "Maggie Learns About Different Fun Ways to Exercise"? You can teach kids how to be healthy without teaching them that fat people are miserable (they're not, trust me, I am one) and that if you lose weight your life will suddenly be awesome.

[thatonekid]

+1 to cnb & astrogirl

 

 

i bet the guy wrote this book to gain popularity for his controversial story..in turn the book sells a lot and he gets what he wants...unfortunate but another gimmick

Likely. I mean, we are talking about it here, so it's a good tactic.

[aishley]

Because we all know that skinny children NEVER get teased.

 

lol just don't understand society; I used to get teased in elementary school because apparently, I was underweight ...

[Curi0user]

Thats actually pretty heartbreaking, kids should be frolicking in mud and playing hopscotch at 6.

[David89]

Story:

http://ca.shine.yahoo.com/video/parenting-22429512/controversial-book-encourages-dieting-for-kids-as-young-as-6-26366737.html#crsl=%252Fvideo%252Fparenting-22429512%252Fdiet-story-for-6-year-olds-author-defends-work-26388341.html

 

Apparently the book centres around a chubby girl named Maggie. She gets teased everyday at school because of her weight. One day she decides to go on a diet to lose weight. After losing a lot of weight, she becomes popular, wins awards, and the kids stop teasing her.

 

I have a few issues with the book:

a) It's written for children around the age of 6. At 6 years old, children shouldn't be worried about whether or not they are "fat". If a child is "fat" at that age, it is extremely unlikely that it is their own doing- it is more the parents doing as the parents are feeding/cooking for the child up until that point. While it's easy for a child to know to eat more fruits and veggies and not to eat fast food, it's much harder for them to carry it out if fast food and snacks are all that's available at home. This book shouldn't be directed at children. It should be written for adults with children.

The children that tease Maggie. It's ok to tease Maggie because she's fat? Really? When is it ever ok to tease anyone based on their appearance??? If someone were to tease a person with a different skin colour, they'd be in trouble (their "appearance"), but it's ok to tease someone because they're fat (also their "appearance").

c) As a child who was teased/degraded when I was younger about being "fat" (not even by children- by an old coach, my dad, and other family members), I can tell you 100% that that stuff stays with you for life. Everytime I pick up any piece of food, a thought goes through my head that "I shouldn't eat this. I'll get fat if I do." You start a child thinking they're fat young, and they will develop some sort of eating disorder or unhealthy obsession with food. I can almost 100% guarantee that.

 

 

I guess my biggest issue with this book is the audience it was written for. Had this book been written differently and for parents of 6 year olds, I'd be more ok with it (still would have an issue with the bullying though). Had it been written as a pamphlet to give to the parents of children when they come into the pediatrician's office (or go to McDonald's), I'd be more ok with it. Especially since (to my knowledge) there's no mention of Maggie's parents in the book. Children model their behaviour after their parents- if their parents eat like crap, so will the kids- no matter how much they know not to. IMO, the book is completely directed at the wrong audience.

 

 

Also, to me, it's quite ironic coming from the author of the book(http://ca.shine.yahoo.com/video/parenting-22429512/controversial-book-encourages-dieting-for-kids-as-young-as-6-26366737.html#crsl=%252Fvideo%252Fparenting-22429512%252Fdiet-story-for-6-year-olds-author-defends-work-26388341.html) who is obviously overweight himself:rolleyes:. Don't do as I do, do as I say??

 

So, what are your thoughts on this? Is the book as written to six year olds a great thing, or can it cause major problems? If you had a child of this age, would you buy it for them regardless of whether or not they were overweight?

 

I'm also curious if your opinions/what you'd say would differ based on if you were talking about this with a friend vs. in an MMI (if it would come up)?

Thanks for sharing but the shared link is not working. I mean, it is not

responding me!

I'm curious about that. regards

[sprinkles]

That's insane. Stuff like that ANGERS ME. at that age it is NOT the child's fault. This is just such a HORRIBLE message to send!!! To be happy and successful you have to be stick thin?

 

It's funny. I was reading an article a few months back and apparently In today's modeling world, Marilyn Monroe would classify as fat!

[Dino]

Unfortunately, 6 year old can be very self conscious and are often made fun of. Although it was a long time ago, I remember at least one girl and one boy in my first grade class that were made fun of. Funny thing is that the girl's grand-mother was a grade 2 teacher and, when we were in the 2nd grade, she made fun of her grand-mother's weight. Tangents aside, I didn't read the book and wonder if it has anything to do with the "epidemic" of childhood obesity in the U.S. and that, instead of appealing to the health aspect of proper nutrition and exercising, it focuses on the social side, which children can better understand. Kids will tease anybody who's different, whether fat, mentally handicapped, of different ethnicity, etc. Many kids literally have to be taught not to be cruel. In addition, if this book was written in the U.S., there are no laws preventing discrimination against fat people. They are one of the few unprotected groups left and were probably the first group to be teased in pre-history, before distant travel arose or gays were discovered. Now, I can't judge the book without having read it, but I hope it was well-meaning. If not, then what kind of a publisher would print it? Another point is that, let's face it, research has shown that heavy women are less likely to attract successful or educated men and often end up working harder than more attractive ones. Studies also found that good looking people of both genders, but especially females, are generally better treated by society; they get more free things, better services, more promotions without better credentials, etc. Say what you want, appearance is still the most valued personal trait in a female, right or wrong. Maybe Mr. Kramer is teaching them a lesson in survival for their adult years and wants them to have a more confortable life and let's not forget all possible health issues suffered by obese people.