Do School Obesity Programs Cause Eating Disorders?

ANN ARBOR (WWJ) - A new report out Tuesday shows that school obesity programs may promote worrisome eating behaviors in kids.

The report from the C.S. Mott Children's Hospital shows that 30 percent of parents say they see at least one behavior in their children that could be associated with the development of eating disorders.

WWJ Newsradio 950 spoke with David Rosen, a professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry at the University of Michigan.

"We have to be really careful that we're not putting things out there, particularly to younger kids, that might be misinterpreted, not be given appropriate supervision, and being done in ways that kids can, or some kids, can go off in dangerous directions and have bad outcomes," Rosen said.

Rosen said it's important that parents get involved and keep an eye out.

"Parents need to know what's going on in school. They need to be able to talk with their kids about the information they're getting in schools, be attentive to any changes they're seeing in their kids, particularly if those behaviors seem to persist or seem to be getting worse," said Rosen. "We think the parents ought to be talking to schools about this kind of education."

Rosen said is also the responsibility of school to pay attention to the outcomes of their programs.