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Four decades ago, mothers across the world used to tell their children, “eat all your food, people are starving in China.” But times have changed and things are different now. In fact things are so different that far from having too little to eat, the pendulum has swung way over to the other side. I sat in the corner of a downtown Beijing McDonald’s sipping a hot chocolate and people watching. It is my favorite pastime in China. Nearby a mother and her young boy, who could not have been more than eight, plonked themselves down and unloaded their tray.
I watched as the boy noisily munched his way through two cheeseburgers, two jumbo packets of French fries, a large coke, apple pie and some kind of ice cream pudding.
What was fascinating was the systematic way he ate - it was more an act of devouring. Mom ate nothing, content only to gaze on adoringly. Now, what made this scene worth watching was that the boy was plump to the point of being obese. His cheeks began where his eyes ended and the flesh undulated its way down his body in rolls. None of this seemed to bother his mother, who actively urged him on with encouraging proud pats on the head and cooing noises.
Glancing around the room, I saw there were at least five other podgy boys and adults, presumably parents, in the same feasting process. Bountiful is the word that came to mind.
There is something inherently wrong with seeing a fat Chinese person. It is like seeing a white Ferrari or watching Jackie Chan in a love story. It is just not right somehow. After all, this is the nation that is known for its slim figures and healthy lifestyle.
The saddest thing is that it is the Chinese children who are bloating up faster than you can say “pass the double thick shake.” Put it down to the fact that these little “emperors” are being given everything that their now affluent parents never had as youngsters, or that in some convoluted way fat means well-off and healthy to many proud parents.
As the only child in an extended family, children are spoiled by their parents and grandparents (on both sides of the family) and given food, especially fast food, with a high proportion of fat and calories. They also exercise less by sitting idle or watching TV while eating snacks.
The government is battling the juvenile bulge, in part, by building more playgrounds, initiating fat bootcamps and requiring students to exercise or play sports for an hour a day at school.
But it is not only about more exercise. An increasing number of Chinese are eating more processed meat products, fat, salt and sugar, but less grains and vegetables, often associated with the modernization of lifestyle in developing countries like China.
In 2013, the number of obese people under the age of 18 had reached 120 million, according to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Inevitably this is leading to massive spikes in cases of high blood pressure and diabetes. I watched as the supersized Chinese boy and his mother got up to leave. She beamed at him and took his chubby hand leading him out. As he waddled away I thought those extra rolls he was carrying are the price Chinese are paying for their new prosperity and lifestyle. Perhaps it is time that the relationship between the growing economy and even faster growing waistlines should provide some food for thought, and doting parents learn to say “No!”
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