Pamela Garber on Childhood Obesity |
 OurBlook interview with psychotherapist Pamela Garber...www.midtowncounselinggroup.com What are the pros of getting America's public schools involved or more involved in trying to combat childhood obesity? PG: The pros of school involvement include generating an improved menu of snack items and a collective atmosphere of conscious nutritional eating. Health education classes and gym class would be an effective venue for educating students about nutrition. What are the cons? PG: The lack of education on this subject matter is a factor. You have said that "the best move the schools can make is simply providing healthy snacks and discontinuing sugary drinks/snacks." Can you elaborate on your thoughts? PG: The scope of responsibility within the school system is providing healthy snacks and meals, monitoring sugary drinks, and educating students within the school setting. Going beyond is taking on a parental role and is out of the scope of the school's place, outside of the boundary of what a school is designed to offer. Even if parental involvement is lacking, elevating the school to the level of parent is not an effective answer. Parenting is not part of the school's aptitude any more than a psychology college professor would not become a student's family advisor or social advisor within the class setting, as part of the class. As a psychotherapist, can you tell us if the battle against childhood obesity is winnable ... or is it on the same difficult and perennial level as problems with drugs, alcohol, sex, depression, conflict, etc.? PG: It is winnable on an individual basis ... each individual has the ability to conquer his bad habits and meet his goals. Schools have counselors. Should they take a more prominent role in this ... perhaps taking proactive steps to help obese students? PG: An individual school counselor can establish a therapeutic bond with the child, rule out abuse in the family, create goal sheets or treatment plans with the child and perhaps a group meeting with several children on a weekly basis structured as health ed. If abuse in the family is historical, the link between the experiences and eating can be worked through; if it is current, the appropriate intervention would take place according to state statutes. British TV celebrity chef Jamie Oliver came to America last year and launched a Food Revolution campaign ... he worked with school lunch crews in Huntington, W.Va., to create meals with fresh ingredients instead of processed foods that bring on obesity. He even set up a cooking school there. Your thoughts? PG: Sounds enterprising and positive. It may be a good template for restaurants or cooking schools to follow ... to partner with schools with this goal of nutrition in mind. Are American public schools doing a good job with physical education classes and periods with a goal of reducing childhood obesity? PG: Varies from school to school. Some schools are curtailing or even eliminating recess periods to concentrate more on academics. Your reaction? PG: Children need the recess period to regroup. Is there anything else you'd like to say about childhood obesity and the role of schools in dealing with it? PG: The only additional option is providing individual and small group counseling on premises and structuring that during recess time or health class time. This keeps the school in a supportive role, offering more services, but not altering the focus of the educational system. (Pamela Garber practices in New York City. She earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Texas and a master's from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale. She also studied film production at the Film Actors Lab in Las Colinas, Texas, and produced a DVD program called "Playing the Tape." It won the award for best short in the Palm Beach Film Festival in 2006 and is being used in treatment centers and in private practice to help prevent relapse of addiction. An avid runner, she has completed the New York Marathon twice.)
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