141lbs is heavy for an 11-year old boy. The CDC states that the average boy that age weighs 89lbs. When I was 9 or 10 in the year 2000, I was 125lbs and the normal weight thin boys ranged between 55lbs and 65lbs. The other kids screamed out almost in horror at how much I weighed. Maybe I didn't look as fat as I was, but I was and certainly got bullied for it. I'm not obese anymore, 6'2 and 196lbs, but I do have some abdominal fat that should be worked on and lose ten or at the very least five pounds. For context, though, I'm from a still thinner country than the US (Sweden).
As to whether Gerry would be bigger today, it depends on the racial group as whites (his group) have lower rates of obesity than blacks and Hispanics. It is stated that child obesity among white children has not gone up since 2002. So at least among his own racial peers, he would not be much smaller today.
That’s right. In 2016, 26 percent of Hispanic children had obesity, compared to 22 percent of Black children and 14 percent of White children. We find that obesity rates among white children have remained steady since 2002 and are no longer increasing. Black and Hispanic children, on the other hand, have not seen the same progress and their obesity rates are continuing to increase. As a result, the gaps in obesity rates have been increasing between groups.
https://stateofchildhoodobesity.org/how-childhood-obesity-rates-have-changed-over-time/
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punkrockgirl (1270)
6 months ago
I agree 141 is too heavy, but I wonder if that was his actual weight in real life. It seemed they were trying to portray him as bigger than he actually was. Now the main adult camp counselor was certainly very big even by today's standards. I understand that Hispanic and Black people tend to be more overweight and I'm assuming it's based on the culture of food and perhaps less encouragement of exercise (the second assertion is an assumption, not saying I'm right) but I don't see what it really has to do with this particular conversation. It's also important to consider the actor playing the main kid was several years older in real life
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EleazarHisSon (751)
6 months ago
Their higher rates of obesity is likely a combination of eating more junk food (fast food) and living in dangerous areas where they can't go out and exercise without the risk of danger.
Well, you stated in your OP that Gerry would not be that big by today's standards compared to in the 90's. It is true that he would not be compared to the whole U.S. population, but he would still be within his own racial group who are the most numerous and haven't gotten that much fatter since then (compared to others).
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