Dads: Guardians of the Waistline

Posted on 13. Sep, 2007 by rebel in General

One more way that involved dads make a difference: dads who are aren’t engaged in the whole parenting thing are most likely to have overweight kids:

“This study of a large cross-section of Australian pre-schoolers has, for the first time, suggested that fathers could be at the frontline in preventing early childhood obesity,” associate professor Melissa Wake, who worked on the study, said in a written statement. “…It is timely to look at the parenting roles of both parents and the impact they have on a child’s tendency to be overweight or obese.”

I haven’t really dug around in the stats, but this is one more piece of evidence that argues — at a minimum — for keeping as close an eye on dads in research on kids as we do on moms.