The Fat Kid

Watching the Biggest Loser the other night and seeing the kids on the program this year brought me back to my childhood. I remember being the fat girl in class, and I was the fat girl in class when there was only one or two! These days it doesn't seem like as big of a deal because there are lots of fat kids in class. When I was younger I hated the way I looked and felt. What was even worse is that I had no idea that I had the power to change it! I thought that I was just born that way....destined to be the fat kid forever! Please, I was using the baby fat excuse til I was 12!

Growing up in a large Italian family I loved my pasta, my bread, my cannolis, basically everything that is very delicious, but adds to the pudge! My mimi would always make me a huge ice cream cone whenever I visited with neopolitan ice cream (I always made her skip the vanilla and strawberry and only put in the chocolate). 

 I didn't really see a huge difference (maybe I just wasn't aware) in my eating habits compared to the other kids...and I was athletic and played sports so that seemed the same, so therefor came to the conclusion that I was just born that way. I was always uncomfortable in my own skin, and my confidence was affected because of this. If the adult me could give the kid me a stern talking to right now, I would smack the twinkie out of my hand and smack some sense into myself! (the pic on the right is of me in middle school....I look MIZ! LOL)

 Looking back now I realize it was the multiple packages of ramen noodles, devil dogs, and munchos chips to name a few that were doing it to me. I can remember a time where I chugged an entire big bottle of pepsi. I use to crave it! Thinking about how I ate as a child, and how I felt as a result of it made me on one hand sad, but on the other hand happy that now I have more knowledge...knowledge that I can share with parents and kids today so they don't have to feel the way that I did! So today I will share a few visuals I found interesting and might be interesting to you and your children! I also want anyone to email me anytime  at Messina1892@gmail.com if you would like help with meal ideas, or just have questions about nutrition!

So this first picture is actually pretty funny because when I was a child and my grandmother would have the whole family over on Sunday afternoons for a meal of lots and lots of pastas and bread, I use to top it off with sugar cubes that she had in a bowl on the table for coffee. And I wondered why I was the fat kid LOL!

But I guess if you are eating or drinking these things, you might as well be eating the sugar cubes! For those of you that don't know sugar is quickly assimilated by the body causing a sudden raise in glucose level in the blood. It causes an instant energy boost. In response to high blood glucose levels, the body secretes more insulin which makes the glucose level to fall. When your sugar level drops, you feel hungry and eat more food.

This effect can clearly be seen in children. Kids eat cake, biscuits, and lots of sweets in a birthday party and they become manically energetic. A short time later they become irritable and tearful. This is caused by reduced blood sugar levels. If you give some more food to eat that time, they will be happy. It is a main cause of obesity in children.

So this next picture is interesting because right around the spike of obesity happened, also the time I got fat, is when we started seeing more processed foods that used hydrogenated oils, and high fructose corn syrup. I use to always wonder why if my brother and sister had the same genes as me, why weren't they fat like I was when they were younger. Obviously this isn't proven, but my brother is ten years older than me, and my sister 5 years older... they grew up in a different food era!

There are ways to not only get your kids and yourself educated and interested in health, but to also bring you closer together while you are learning! Check out my spaghetti squash recipe! It is a fun healthy recipe that could easily be done with your kids! If you have room for a garden in your back yard grow some veggies! Get your children involved in the process. When they are involved in the whole process it not only helps them learn about veggies and health, but then they get to see what their hard work created! It will get them excited about eating veggies and cooking with them! maybe make a veggie pizza when you are done!

For exercise, think of fun ways to get your kids active! even video games these days can be active. The Wii is awesome with getting your body moving! Shaun T. has a pretty cool, fun workout video for kids if maybe outdoors isn't an option! You can check that out here. 

Now, I really don't know enough about facts and figures to be giving you guys exact information, all I know is the obesity problem in this country has grown HUGELY and is one of the biggest problems in my opinion that we are dealing with! I know that there is a lot of misinformation out there about what is good for you and what isn't. I know that I was fat and unhealthy at one time, and I know what I did to change that. All I did was drink water, exercise, and eat clean! If you would like to learn more about what I did or want help to become a healthier person friend and message me at facebook.com/messinaboston ! There are lots options out there for you to get healthy! It's just about finding what works best for you!! But honestly why wouldn't you want to take care of yourself??? Do it for you, do it for your kids, or just do it!!!