Canadian parents appear to be looking at the health of their own children through rose-tinted glasses, according to Ruth Collins-Nakai, President of the Canadian Medical Association (CMA). While giving Canadian children in general a C rating when it came to health, parents tended to mark their own children up, according to a survey the CMA commissioned Ipsos-Reid to carry out.
While 26% of Canadian kids aged 2-17 are obese/overweight, only 9% of Canadian parents thought their own children were so.
While perhaps reluctant or unable to acknowledge the health status of their own kids, many Canadian parents supported proposals designed to improve children’s health, such as diet and physical activity initiatives.
The survey found that:
— 61% of parents would be in favour of a ban on junk-food advertising
— 43% were very/somewhat keen on a new junk food tax
— 81% would like to see all junk food removed from school vending machines
— 92% would like to see compulsory physical activity for children in schools
— 87% thought children should be taught about the benefits of physical activity and a healthy diet at school
— 63% would like to see tax breaks to encourage the purchase of healthy foods
— 80% would like to see tax deductions for money spent on sports and other physical activity programs
In general, parents in Canada feel that children’s mental health services are seriously lacking in the country, with only 7% of those surveyed saying the services were excellent (A grade)
The telephone survey contacted 1,007 parents in June, 593 parents of children under 18 in June/July, and 129 parents of special needs children in June/July.
Ruth Collins-Nakai wrote ?As a specialist in cardiac care for both children and adults, I have a very real fear we are killing our children with kindness by setting them up for a lifetime of inactivity and poor health.?
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Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today