Booby traps to catch sneak-eating. Jabs about jiggly thighs.
Teasing about tummies and hints about needing to exercise. Well-
meaning parents trying to subtly address their children's weight
issues instead might be the biggest bullies in their kids'
lives, according to a recent study in the journal Pediatrics
about "weight-based victimization." “There still remains the
widespread perception that a little stigma can be a good thing,
that it might motivate weight loss,” said Dr. Rebecca M. Puhl, a
clinical psychologist and the study's lead author, in an
interview with The New York Times. But the reality is these
subtle measures may cause the opposite and worse. According to
the study, criticism and teasing can be "extremely damaging."
Even poking fun at your kids for their younger "baby fat" days
can be hurtful since the study found formerly overweight kids
remain vulnerable to weight-based victimization and its ill
effects. The study took 361 teens at two weight loss camps, ages
14 to 18, and surveyed them abou