We’re becoming a nation of fat people, says Health Canada, so a more
active lifestyle is recommended for all Canadians and for youths in
particular.
The fattening trend is also apparent in the United States, where
teachers are sending letters to parents warning them their children are
flirting with obesity. It’s not that Johnny can’t read, these letters
say. It’s that Johnny must reduce his feed.
Farmers, once among the fittest, are gaining weight as the work becomes
Read Also
Producers face the reality of shifting grain price expectations
Significant price shifts have occurred in various grains as compared to what was expected at the beginning of the calendar year. Crop insurance prices can be used as a base for the changes.
more mechanized, Health Canada studies show. The same thing is
happening to farmers’ children.
Not surprising when you consider how the world of rural youth has
changed.
1940s: Jimmy Schoolboy walks, rides a horse or
drives a buggy to school. If he wants to play hockey, he has to shovel
the snow off the pond first. At home, the chores await – more chores
than usual since the able-bodied men are overseas.
1950s: Joe Schoolboy may still be walking to school but because there
are fewer schools, he may take a school bus. At home he helps with the
chores without much assistance from trucks or tractors.
1960s: Jack Schoolboy takes the bus to school and his participation in
activities and games is mandatory. At home, he helps with the chores,
which continue to involve a lot of physical labour. Tractors and trucks
are available for the big jobs.
1970s: Jason Schoolboy participates in the mandatory Canada Fitness
school program and takes pride in earning his gold medal of excellence.
1980s: Jeremy Schoolboy listens to disco. He takes his turn each day on
the school’s single computer. At home, he uses the bale stacker at
haying time and the tractor with grapple at cattle feeding time.
1990s: Jared Schoolboy tries to catch the schoolbus each day but if
he’s late his mother drives him in the minivan, which is good because
it’s too far to walk. He surfs the web at school and at home, the
latter when he isn’t watching television. Physical education is
optional at his school. At home, his help with farm chores is still
expected.
2000s: Jordan Schoolboy has a long bus ride to school because there are
fewer rural schools. Yet he’s never out of touch because he has a cell
phone. He opts out of physical education classes because of allergies.
At home he still helps with chores because his parents are working
off-farm jobs to make ends meet.
Yet Johnny Schoolboy of the 1930s is likely in better shape than Jordan
Schoolboy of the 2000s.
It’s a brave, new, fatter world.
![Protesters crowd a street carrying signs that read, "Global warming real. In other news, water is wet," and "Stop denying the [blue painted pic of the Earth] is dying."](https://static.producer.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/29145152/158171_web1_2019-10-18T222818Z_1221762151_RC14C26A65A0_RTRMADP_3_CLIMATE-CHANGE-THUNBERG-1200-220x165.jpg)
