A chubby baby is cute. A chubby preschooler, not so much.
I went to a fancy restaurant this weekend and saw the cutest toddler eating with her parents. To keep her entertained, they brought along an iPad. I observed her watching cartoons and noticed how little she was moving. Actually, I was a bit astonished. She appeared to be comatose but in an upright position. Not even her little feet, which were dangling from the highchair, were moving. While I’ve been known to display this behavior occasionally when tired, toddlers are known for their constant movement and curiosity. As soon as the cartoon stopped, the toddler appears to wake from a slumber and moved a bit. Thank goodness I thought. The child is alive. The parent’s response? Start a new cartoon. There it was, happening right in front of my very eyes. The lack of movement in this sweet little girl, the subsequent loss of calorie expenditure, and is the perfect storm for childhood obesity.
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