Review Of  Honey, We're Killing The Kids!
Author: Edward Charkow

Honey, We're Killing the Kids is a nutrition and healthy living
reality show that premiered in the United States on The Learning
Channel (TLC) in 2006. The show originated in the UK as a BBC
healthy living series. The US installment is a one hour weekly
series hosted by Dr. Lisa Hark.

The show, intended to be an intervention -- or well executed
wake up call - to American families who lead a predominantly
unhealthy lifestyle, has been criticized for using extreme
computer generated images of what the children will look like
if their lifestyle is not immediately altered by their parents.
The families who are featured on the show have as least two
children who range in age from toddler through teenager. One,
if not all, of the family members are overweight or obese and
usually eat fast or processed foods and log in far more
television, computer and video game hours than any time spent
exercising.

By the time we first meet the parents of the family being
featured in the episode, the children have already met with
doctors to assess their overall health, including food intake
and lifestyle habits. The parents join nutritionist Lisa Hark
to view life-size computer generated images that show what each
of their children will look like by the age of 40 if their
eating and lifestyle does not change. The images usually
startle the parents; the pictures show extremely overweight,
unhealthy and unkempt individuals who truly present a
worst-case scenario. Critics of the show claim that these
images are very extreme, perpetuating the myth that all
overweight people are dirty, sloppy and unhappy people. The
show is guilty of adding body piercings, unruly facial hair and
mullets on people who otherwise might not wear them

However, the wake up call is enough to get a commitment from
the parents, who thus embark on a month long health improvement
plan, featuring a radical change in diet and a bevy of exercise
and family outings that replace the hours once spent in front
of the TV. The success of the program varies from family to
family and the stress of the changes usually falls upon the
mother who is accountable for learning how to make tofu
attractive to her children. Many times the father puts up as
much a fuss as the kids. The mothers are trying to eat healthy
and quit smoking themselves and often crack under the pressure
of too many changes at once.

At the end of each episode, once weight changes and lifestyle
changes are noted, the computer generates a new set of pictures
- usually showing not only a thinner 40 year old, but one in
snappy professional clothes bearing an overall clean cut,
meticulous and happy presence.

The show allows us one more peek into the family's life. The
cameras visit them one month after the show stops filming. Most
of the families are filmed smiling and happy, riding together on
new bikes, and each appears to have lost at least ten pounds.
Only one family during Honey's first season refused to be
filmed for the follow up; we can surmise their bikes are
gathering dust in the garage.


About The Author: Find more out about Honey, We Are Killing the
Kids and the entire reality t.v. world at
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