Is obesity linked to class?

My oldest son did food technology at school and was saddened by the lack of actual cookery (he loves to cook and bake), he often came home and cooked something out of sheer frustration. My youngest son had me as his PSHE teacher and as I had the luxury of devising my own syllabus we did a whole term of basic cookery (calling it 'life skills' to please the pen pushers) during which he and others learned the rudiments of preparing simple meals. The Ofsted Inspector visited during that term and sat in on one of the lessons (we made vegetable soup that day). He was very impressed at what the children achieved in the time allowed and enjoyed a taste of the finished product.
At school we did Domestic Science and in addition to cookery that also covered simple sewing and housekeeping. Skills that I've probably used almost every day of my life. If budgeting and cookery were both taught at school I think society would gain hugely.

My DD is dreading getting a letter from DGDs school as it it weigh and measure time for Reception children! DGD2 is not a skinny Lizzie but she is equally not obese! She enjoys her food and eats a wide variety... on Sunday afternoon she worked her way through the fruit bowl: apple, apricot, kiwi and a pear having had a pancake for breakfast and then a roast lunch! She does not like cream so no Eton Mess for her just a bit of a meringue and red fruit for pudding! Her older sister is a skinny malinki but also eats (healthily) but like a horse! With regard to class: her dad is a self taught builder and her mum is a teacher... not sure what that adds up to!

You have just reminded me glammanana about my first job and my first rebellion. I was expected to do the 'first make the pinny and then do the cooking' regime. I amazed myself by refusing, which was incredibly brave of me, but was backed up by another older member of the department and in one fell swoop no more pinnies were made. We did a deal with a local shop and the kids all had nylon overalls.

glamma I forgot about the pinny and headband. Yes, we made them, too, and had to baste the edges of the apron with bias binding, hand stitched. The headband was starched till it was like cardboard, with bias binding ties. We learned to make a swan out of starched napkins - what was it about Robin starch? It went in everything!

In the top 'A' stream at secondary school we did not get Domestic Science or Woodwork because we had Latin instead. I presume they thought that as we were 'clever' we would also be rich and able to employ servants to carry out these tasks while we sat (upstairs) reading Pliny, Ovid and Virgil. The reality was somewhat different - I went home with my Latin homework to take my turn making the tea in our Council Prefab, because my Mum worked and Dad was a shift worker. My 3 2/3 years of Latin did me no harm but not much good whereas being taught to cook (and wash, iron and clean) at home ensured that I was fully competent by the time I was 13/14 and able to produce not one but two full Christmas dinners each for 5 people, as a newly wed 19yo. MIL was dumbstruck!

I don't know what to say about obesity and class as I was a plump baby, toddler, child, teenager, fat dumpy adult and now am an obese pensioner, whereas my Dsis, same parents, same diet and always given to eating more than me, was and is tall and slim.

I remember the apron and headband too...we had to embroider our initials on the headband and the pocket of the apron. I still adopt this invaluable practice in my kitchen no .

..now

Oh I would honestly have loved the choice of woodwork instead of domestic science. I had no interest in cooking, baking or ironing. However, when I got married, I did what a lot of others did and taught myself. A few disasters, but I got there and eventually enjoyed trying new recipes. I remember once phoning my mother and saying, "I've bought a cabbage, what do I do with it?"

I think younger generations now have much more opportunity to learn with many more cookery books and cookery programmes available.

Still have my first cookery book by Marguerite Patten

I had to make a blue gingham apron and cap, embroidering my name neat enough was the hard bit. By the time I was 15 I could and did cook anything and everything. I also won cookery competitions. Oh for that kind of domestic science now.

Before we made our pinnies we had to make a decorated and named bag to keep our sewing in. I found mine when I cleared mum's flat - how I ever passed that bit I'll never know.

I was in the A stream at secondary school so during the first year was taught French instead of Domestic Science. I do remember having separate Needlework classes during the first year. My first project was a pink apron with a bib and pocket in prep for DS lessons the following year.

Less academically inclined pupils also had housewifery lessons. This involved visits to a house in Port Sunlight Village were they were taught various domestic duties such as ironing a mans shirt and folding sheets properly (so glad to have escaped that)

I don't really feel that I learned anything useful during DS lessons in fact I could barely boil an egg when I first got married. It was only when DH suffered renal failure and had to follow an extremely rigid diet that I got to grips with baking etc.

I think that for many post war babies being 'Bonnie' was seen as a sign of a healthy baby. I was certainly a chubs as my mother fed me on full cream Jersey milk and then took me to the doctors because I wouldn't eat (hardly surprising).

I believe that fat cells are laid down in childhood and once we have them the threat of obesity is always there, unless we eat healthily and exercise regularly. I am sure somebody with a more scientific background could explain this more fully.

Agus my sister gave me Marguerite Patten's Step by Step Cookery for my 19th birthday and I have it to hand in the kitchen and still refer to it nearly every day for one reason or another!
I'm afraid my DS teacher was one of the very few teachers I disliked and who clearly disliked me, but I still have my little school hand-written recipe book and still use her Christmas Cake recipe, though I don't bother washing all the dried fruit, leaving it to dry overnight and only then soaking it in sherry!

Granny23 You don't look like an "obese pensioner" to me and I seem to remember your wedding photos on your profile showed a beautiful young woman!

You (and your DH ) look absolutely great!

There was a case on the Welsh news reported last night of a 5 year old, who was over 10 stone, being taken into care because of the obesity.

That's horrendous Jess ~ both the 10 stone and the taking into care. Surely something can be done to help the child and family adopt a better lifestyle or was this a last resort?

Lona It is very kind of you to say so but it is my Doctor who has classified me as obese

Granny23Perhaps your learning Latin contributed in some way to your eloquence and it seems anyway that domestic science lessons would have been superfluous if you could cook a Christmas dinner for 5 at 19.

Aka and jess This is not the first time that a child has been taken into care because of obesity - a boy of 6 was taken into care in North Tyneside a few years ago. There was a discussion on the Today programme yesterday about whether such drastic measures could ever be justified.

Oh and Granny23 I forgot to say you don't look obese to me!

jane The on I was given in 1970 is Cookery in Colour, A Picture Encyclopaedia for Every Ocassion. I'm still using it too.

If parents endanger the life of their child by not being able to manage the child's diet and support /advice is ignored or rejected what should we do as a society?

Do we interfere too much?
Should we allow the child to get so obese that ireversible damage is caused because the harm caused by separation from parent is just as bad?

So glad I am not having to make that decision. Who would be a social worker???

If the contrary were the case, and the child was dangerously emaciated, would there be any question about taking her into care?

Care proceedings have to be initiated, only after all other avenues have been explored. I am sure the health authority will have long involvement with the obese 5 year old, and it may well have initiated the social work involvement. The points made by Pen and Anno above don't need repeating. The relevant LA will have made an application to the court, the child will have her own solicitor and children's guardian to ensure the welfare of the child is at the centre of decision making. A detailed sw report, setting out the history, attempts to work with the family and medical reports will be put before the court. No child would be removed against her parents wishes without careful consideration by a family court. Currently, the evidence remains confidential but the opening up of the family courts to reporters will hopefully broaden people's understanding of the careful consideration given to family matters. My fear is we'll have more of the sensationalised, dishonest reporting that we've seen in the recent case of the Italian mother and her baby.

I also remember the dreaded apron and cap with bias binding. If your stitches were not neat we had to take it all out and start again. I was always taking mine out and my cap and apron were always filthy round the edges from being handled too much. I learnt how to chop an onion in my domestic science class and still use the same method today. Also how to iron a shirt and how to sit like a lady on a chair. I loved domestic science - it was always fun.

I only did Domestic Science for a year, before we in the A stream moved on to Latin, as some of you have mentioned. But oh, that b****y apron and cap!