Upstate Camp Helps Kids Who Struggle With Childhood Obesity, Part 1
August 15, 2007
It is a serious health crisis that experts say could shorten the lifespan of young people for the first time in generations. In the past few decades, along with adults, rates of obese and overweight kids have more than doubled. In the first of a two-part series, NY1 Health & Fitness reporter Kafi Drexel visits a camp that seems to have been tackling the issue just as long as the epidemic’s been growing.
Just over 100 miles outside New York City, nestled in the Catskill Mountains, you’ll find Camp Shane. Shane, derived from a Yiddish term for “beautiful” has been a summer weight loss camp for children and young adults for nearly 40 years.
And part of the story of the nation’s growing struggle with weight could be told right here: when the camp started in 1968, they had just 21 campers. But in recent years, that number has swelled to more than 800.
David Ettenberg’s parents started the camp, and he still runs it today.
“There are a whole lot more kids with weight loss issues than there was 20 years ago,” says Ettenberg. “I think there is a much more greater awareness of the problems that come with that. It’s sort of a complex situation. While more people know about it, they don’t know what to do.”
At camp, the lifestyle change for most of the kids is drastic. They’re engaged in constant physical activity almost from the moment they wake until they go to sleep at night. In between, they break for group nutrition and counseling sessions. And all their meals are strictly portion controlled, with no sharing allowed, and counselors close by making sure campers aren’t eating too much, or too little.
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If the exercise activities alone weren’t enough, the physical layout of this camp could also be having an impact on these kids. You could probably burn off part of lunch, just trying to climb up a hill.
Ask most of the kids, and many will say, coming to camp was actually their decision.
“I made the choice to come here, because I’m really sick and tired of being overweight. And it’s been a problem for me ever since I was younger,” says 15-year-old camper Nicole Carroll. “I don’t want diabetes. I don’t want any of that stuff because it’s horrible. I don’t want to live the rest of my life with those problems, and I don’t want to die earlier than I have to.”
“It’s for myself. I want to feel better about myself,” says 14-year-old camper Inessa Tsidulko. “Not many people pick on me back home, but I feel like I don’t fit in completely with my friends who are smaller than me, and I just want to feel better about myself.”
It is a life choice that’s not just about losing weight, but gaining self-esteem needed for building the healthier lifestyles to guarantee success.
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