Filed under: Diet & Nutrition
There's a good explanation for why those on the receiving end of childhood torment usually end up on top: the geek turns into the CEO, the freak becomes the artist and, in most cases, the fat kid is the life of every party.
However, some things have changed over time: any hipster will tell you that it's hip to be square, and arty style rebels like Lady Gaga and teen fashion maven Tavi Gevinson have inner freaks reveling the world over. But what about the fat kid?
Well, the fat kid is still being called names, hiding behind billowy clothes, and enduring uncomfortable stares from passersby. And while the country's new healthy eating initiative is aimed for the better, it's also spurned a whole new generation of health-conscious adults proudly wielding their disgusted, disapproving stares when they see an obese child on the street.
So what happens to the kids that aren't actually subsisting on a diet of Big Macs and giant Cokes? The ones who, despite their diets, monitoring and constant activity, are still feeling the sting of an expanding waistline and endless fat jokes?
They're just like LaNiyah Bailey, a 6-year-old, 115-pound elementary school kid who, despite her parents' efforts, cannot stop gaining weight.
Bailey, who lives a normal, active childhood, yet is 70 pounds above average size, has been called every name under the sun by her peers. While her parents, a healthy couple who have exhausted themselves with diet and exercise methods, have finally come to the understanding that their daughter's rapid weight gain is a presently undiagnosed medical issue, LaNiyah has decided to put an end to the name-calling herself.
Her new children's book, Not Fat Because I Wanna Be, and website of the same name, have launched LaNiyah into popularity, teaching children and skeptical adults alike that obesity doesn't always equate to a careless, unhealthy lifestyle. As her parents search for a cause for their child's condition, LaNiyah herself has shown the confidence and panache of a girl that's beating her adversaries one book sale at a time.
Yet while LaNiyah's case in particular teaches us all a valuable lesson on judging others, should we all stop doing our parts to curb childhood obesity before it starts? Absolutely not. If anything, the Baileys very well may have sparked a new investigation into the underlying causes of childhood obesity - perhaps this rapidly-growing epidemic might not all be at the hands of Chester Cheeto.