This story at Forbes entitled "Many Parents are Blind to Their Kids' Weight Problems," sparks my memory of a similar perceptions of pets. I imagine that often the parents of overweight or obese children are in a similar weight situation. It makes psychological sense that if you are overweight it becomes easier to overlook it in other people who weight less than you.
An ex-girlfriend had two cats which were quite obese. One of the cats weighted 20 pounds while the other was a more slender 16 pounds. In the ex-girlfriends mind the 20 pound cat, Cheeto, was overweight, while Diablo was thin. Of course, this was simply not so as she found out when the vet told her they had to go on a diet. I imagine that this happens a lot with parents of overweight children. The thought is simply, "they aren't nearly as overweight as me, so I don't think they have a weight problem."
It seems like a natural, if not very sad, misconception.
Friday, June 04, 2004
Do you see what I see?
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