DEAR ABBY: I am greatly worried about the health of my parents. My mother has Type 2 diabetes, and my father has high cholesterol and blood pressure. Both of them have poor eating habits.
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I have tried convincing them to eat healthier and exercise, but they are stuck in their old ways. Mom still brings home cookies, brownies and candy, and Dad still eats cheese and deep-fried foods. How can I get them to adopt a healthier lifestyle? -- DEEPLY CONCERNED DAUGHTER, LOS GATOS, CALIF.
DEAR DAUGHTER: As much as you love your parents, you cannot do for them what they refuse to do for themselves. I am assuming that their physician has warned them about what will happen if they continue eating the way they do.
You can offer encouragement, but you cannot force them to give up their unhealthy lifestyle. You can also learn from their poor example and not backslide into the eating habits you learned as a child growing up in their household.