No, I did not make that title up myself.
As if being a tween is not hard enough, scientists now call the years between 9 and 12 a time when girls are especially at risk of getting fat.
Girls are more likely to become overweight in those preteen years than when they are teenagers, researchers report Monday in The Journal of Pediatrics.
The study did not say why that was and did not examine boys to know whether they face a similar risk.
Imagine that.
Other research has shown that the preteen years are when youngsters switch from heeding parents’ dietary advice to eating like their friends do, [National Institutes for Health Dr. Denise] Simons-Morton said. Less physical activity plays a role, too. She recalls from her own daughters’ tween years long sedentary hours on the phone and worries about getting sweaty.
“It should be cool to be physically active, and attractive,” she said.
Yes. Because what’s cool now is to sit around and be ugly. Someone’s got her finger on the pulse of adolescent priorities.