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It may be true that obesity is caused by a number of different things, but it is correspondingly true that eating superfluous fat contributes to the condition. This is something parents of young children in particular have to watch carefully.

It's generally true that children like fried food, because this manner of cooking slightly caramelizes the food by burning natural sugars. In short, it makes it taste sweet. Grilling, which can be less of a problem, has a similar consequence, and so too does roasting.

But the real felon where fat consumption is concerned is frying, because the food often has fat added to it, the main purpose of which is to prevent meat from sticking to the pan it's cooking in. Oils such as olive and peanut may seem healthier than, say, butter, but they are still fats and should still be viewed with suspicion.

However, one effective way to avoid this problem is to use non-stick cooking pots and pans and leave out the extra fat altogether.

Unfortunately this sort of cookware has received some bad press recently, which suggested that there is a danger to pets associated with its use. There has been much supposition that the death of caged birds has been linked to toxic fumes given off from heated non-stick surfaces.

While there may be some truth in this, it's important to understand that these criticisms are aimed at Teflon coated surfaces in particular. There are lots of other non-stick surfaces available which have not had this type of criticism levelled at them. In fact the use of this type of cooking surface has now become so universal, it has led to a new style of healthy home cooking using those fashionable double-sided grills.

These are great because during cooking any grease cooked out of the meat runs away into a separate tray, and of course no added fat is necessary to properly cook the food.

This means that low fat cuts of meat such as chicken and loin of lamb remain just that, relatively fat free. This is a big plus not just for those of us fighting obesity, but for anyone who cares about having a healthy diet.

It's very easy to cook with these grills, and this in itself may well encourage people to eat more home cooked food and less bought-in takeaways. In addition, both fish and meat cook very quickly, further assisting the busy family cook with little time to spare.

If the healthy living assertions don't convince you to at least try using non-stick pans, perhaps the budgetary ones will. Most non-stick cookware makes use of aluminium, making it much cheaper to buy than the stainless steel or cast iron equivalents.

And just to make life even easier, a simple rinse in warm, soapy water is all that is called for to keep non-stick surfaces clean. Even the most over-weight of us can surely manage that.