GETTING JUNIOR TO JUNK

As doctors in Delhi operate on the world’s heaviest teen, a look at how some parents are fighting fat in their own way

Did the story of the 14-year-old Delhi boy who is the world’s heaviest teen at 236kg shock you? His diet of pizza, pasta and fries wouldn’t have. These are what an increasing number of Indian kids are consuming which, combined with a sedentary lifestyle, is leading to a growing child obesity crisis. At 14.4 million, India is now home to the second-highest number of obese children in the world after China.

But some parents are going the extra mile to inculcate healthy eating habits in children, in the hope that these will shape their food preferences as they get older.


Mumbai-based Reema Iyer started early, with a no-sugar, no-salt diet for her daughter in the first year as well as swapping packed infant formula for homecooked food. Initiating Shruti to everything from bitter gourd and bottle gourd to jowar and raw ginger juice has helped give her a varied palate. The family rarely eats out or orders food. Now eight, Shruti is tempted by desserts, but doesn’t binge on them. “I can eat rasgullas, but she can’t take that level of sweetness,” says Iyer.

Stop presenting fast-food as a reward that they can earn for good behaviour as it only makes it aspirational, she says. And don’t be scared of tantrums. “You’re the parent. It’s okay to say no if the child is asking for something unhealthy,” says Iyer, who admits that she’s judged by other moms who have no qualms about having “junk food days” and serving fast-food at kiddie birthday parties.

When entrepreneur Meghana Narayan had her first child, her food role model was her grandmom who lived till 94 and was very active. She started her daughter’s solid food intake with ragi porridge with a dash of jaggery, and traded refined sugar, oil, flour and transfat for millets, cold-pressed oils, non-antibiotic meat and lots of greens.

“As a result of my keeping her off refined sugar and salt, she doesn’t have a taste for them,” says Narayan. “Even though she’ll want a lollipop because it’s colourful, she will return it after a few licks.” Narayan has managed to keep her sixyear-old daughter off colas. “You can’t say no to everything but you have to introduce them to the healthier alternative, sometimes even two healthier options, and they will pick one,” she says.

While relatives may diss such rules with statements like ‘this is the age to eat’, most aware parents realise that while chubby looks cute it may lead to a lifetime of obesity and related health problems.

Doctors say the obesity crisis shouldn’t be taken lightly. In 2017, a study revealed that 11-18% of Indian children are obese. “In the metros, the prevalence is about 25%,” says Dr Vandana Jain, paediatrics professor at AIIMS. The causes are dietary (preference for fast and refined food, low fibre intake and moving away from a balanced, home-cooked diet), minimal physical activity and sleep deprivation. Significantly, Jain’s 2016 ICMRfunded study on the presence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in over 200 children with obesity revealed that in over 90% of cases, parents were also obese, underlining the role of “shared lifestyle in the family”.

Nutritionist Rujuta Diwekar, who is writing a book on healthy eating for children, says we are raising kids in an “obesogenic” environment, with several factors making kids vulnerable to weight gain: no access to walking or cycling tracks to go to school, buildings having more parking space than playing areas, easy availability of junk food around and inside schools, and absence of curbs on food advertising.

Bengaluru-based food blogger, nutritionist and author of The Everyday Healthy Vegetarian Nandita Iyer goes beyond diet control. She educates her nine-year-old son about nutrition through videos and conversations, as well as introduces him to the pleasures of growing and chopping vegetables or making a sandwich.

Reema Iyer and her husband too take their daughter for farm visits so she knows where food comes from. “The kids at the NGO where I volunteer can’t even identify basic veggies like cauliflower,” says Iyer.

Rushina Munshaw-Ghildiyal, who runs workshops on everyday cooking for children in Mumbai, believes that learning how to cook enables kids to make better food choices. “It is an essential life skill. Kids need to learn how to cook food for themselves, not just cupcakes or brownies,” she says. “We’ve had many cases of children who don’t eat vegetables becoming more open-minded. Our most popular session is on making dal-chawal.”

It is as important for parents to examine their own eating habits and lifestyle. “If I’m having a cold drink, but the child is restricted, why will she listen? We realised that if we control ourselves and align ourselves to healthier food, my daughter will have a foundation for life,” says Noida-based Ratna Joshi. She ensures that her daughter is involved in different kinds of physical activities through the week: skating on three days, kathak on two days, and western dance for the remaining two. “It’s a way to keep her both happy and healthy,” she says.

Model-turned-television chef Amrita Raichand suggests that parents can present nutritious versions of their children’s favourite foods in creative ways. “Pick up on what your child wants and add a healthy touch by introducing fruits in smoothies, vegetables in pizzas, pancakes with oats and bananas,” she says. “As they grow older, they will move to healthy food on their own.”

“The best way to put a child off healthy habits is to talk carbohydrates and proteins at the dining table,” says Diwekar. “The key is not just to talk but do. Kids watch more than they listen.” She suggests that parents educate kids not just about avoiding sugar, calories or fat, but by living more responsibly. “They have to be able to identify it as junk and not associate aspiration or prestige with it,” she says.