Single Moms: Make Your Health a Priority

A recent study shows a not-so-surprising trend: Single moms, who often work long hours while negotiating the arduous tasks of keeping house and raising kids, may put on the pounds.

“This study, like others, suggests that eating healthy and being physically active is a balance between individual effort and environmental influences,” says Earle C. Chambers, PhD, an assistant professor at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine who worked at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York at the time of the study. Chambers helped analyze date from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study conducted between 1998 and 2000.

“The underlying question is what barriers keep people from prioritizing eating healthy and exercising in an environment that may or may not be conducive to healthy behaviors? I think we have to address the obesity problem at the policy level as well as the individual level in order to have an effect,” he says.

Living in urban areas that are riddled with fast-food joints and a lack of places to work out doesn’t help single parents get or stay healthy. While 32% of all Americans are obese, single moms tip the scales, with 41% of those studied being obese. In households afflicted by serious problems such as unemployment, 48% of moms were obese. The average age of the mothers who participated was a young 28.

Chambers can’t scientifically prove or explain all the factors that paint this family portrait but says mothers often put their own needs well below the needs of their children.

If this scenario describes you, here are some action tips to take:

• Trade childcare and trips to the gym with other single parents.

• If you’re employed, find out whether your employer offers wellness programs.

• Your kids can help take care of you. Set aside a few minutes to run around outside with them and get in some activity with vigorous play. As they become older, assign them chores to help manage the household.

— Michele Deppe