Daily HealthBeat Tip

Baby fat?

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I'm Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

A study indicates gender stereotypes may affect parents' views of their toddlers.

Parents of three-year-olds worried that their sons – but not their daughters – were underweight. In reality, the weights and sizes of the boys and girls were nearly identical.

Researcher Thomas Joiner of Florida State University says this suggests parents may buy into stereotypes about thinness for girls and strength for boys even at an early age.

"It's overdoing to think that a three-year-old girl's body size or body shape needs to be perfected. They may be sowing the seeds for later problems regarding eating, maybe even eating disorders, and behavioral problems in general.” (15 seconds)

The study in the International Journal of Eating Disorders was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Learn more at www.hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I'm Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: April 26, 2006

The White House | USA.gov | HHS Archive | No FEAR Act