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 To thwart these frightening epidemics, "American children should undergo lifestyle retraining," recently concluded the American Heart Association. And so should parents. The AHA spokesperson continued, "Hectoring kids, especially teens, gets you nowhere. Kids model themselves on what we do, not what we demand.  To curb childhood obesity and other health epidemics, the entire family needs to be involved." Concurs Rae-Ellen Kavey, M.D., Director of Children's Memorial Hospital, Chicago, IL, "Prevention holds the most promise when it is initiated in children." "We acquire eating behaviors when we are young. If we teach kids to exercise and enjoy healthy foods early in life, they will do so later in life," says James Kenney, Ph.D., R.D, F.A.C.N., nutrition educator at Pritikin.
Total family immersion is precisely what happens at the Pritikin Family Program.  Since 2002, the Pritikin Family Program has proven highly successful in helping kids and parents launch healthy lifestyles. Says Susan Tabas-Tepper of Villanova, PA, who attended the program with her 11-year-old son Fitz in 2002 and 2003 and plans to return in 2004: "The program was definitely a 10+ experience for Fitz. This was a child who never touched a vegetable! The Pritikin faculty really knew how to explain healthy living in kid terms. Fitz is no longer eating fruits and vegetables because 'mom said so.' He's eating them because he wants to." |
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