Topgrading

Brad is quoted in the Wall Street Journal responding to an article Safe Kids are Fat Kids. The original article said ”The headlong drive for safety has indeed created dangers, but not those identified by the safety zealots.  Risk is important in child development.  Allowing children to test their limits in unstructured play, according to the American Association of Pediatrics, ‘develop[s] their imagination, dexterity, and physical, cognitive, and emotional strength.’…The harmful effects of our national safety obsession ripple outward into society.  One in six children in America is obese, and many of them will face a lifetime of chronic illness.  According to the Center for Disease Control, this problem would basically cure itself if children engaged in the informal outdoor activities that used to be normal.” 

Brad’s response was, “Overprotecting kids, giving them too much stuff and making too many decisions for kids gives them the Ph.D. they don’t need: P (passive), H (helpless) and D (dependent).  In addition to becoming fat, kids who are anything but ‘can-do’ kids are more vulnerable to depression and suicide.  ‘Helicopter parents’ are well meaning but systematically deny their kids the opportunity to make mistakes, get hurt (small injuries), learn from mistakes, become savvy and build real self-esteem, the kind that can only come from attacking life’s challenges without mommy and daddy making every decision for them.”  Brad and daughter Dr. Kate Mursau published a book, Smart Parenting (click to TG Shop for it), which gives hundreds of examples of how kids can become more resourceful.