Intermountain doctors will be more frank about childhood obesity Salt Lake Tribune, United States - Many Utah parents should expect frank conversations about their children's weight in the coming year. It could become as routine as talking about vaccines ...
Joint Clinic: Kristian Wood on post-birth strains Telegraph.co.uk, United Kingdom - For nine months, your body coped with a steady rise in weight as your baby grew. Then you had to embark upon what must have seemed like a marathon to ...
You don't have to gain weight over the holidays Memphis Commercial Appeal, TN - And if your New Year's resolution is to lose weight, get a head start before 2009, said Stacey Puryear, owner of Alpha & Omega Fitness Club in Southbrook ...
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Memphis youth make progress on risky behavior Memphis Commercial Appeal, TN - Make sure you are keeping track of your child's health status. Don't assume that a plump child will soon lose her "baby fat." Let a medical professional ...
Fitness, fundraising to combine at Urban Moves Delaware News, OH - There also will be a massage therapist on hand and a representative will discuss weight-loss options. Food and refreshments also will be available. ...
Parents Should Make Sure They Help Their Child Select A Good ... Medical News Today (press release), UK - Limit your child's backpack to no more than 15-20 percent of his/her body weight. -- Organize your child's supplies and books so that the heaviest items are ...
Money Lessons Newsweek - If you know your child is likely to overstuff his or her backpack, opt for a smaller one. Kids shouldn't carry more than 20 percent of their own weight on ...
Easing the backpack burden Black Hills Pioneer, SD - Never let a child carry more than 15% of his or her body weight. For instance, if a child weighs 100 pounds, they should not wear a backpack heavier than 15 ...
I cried my eyes out when kids called me a fat b**** Mirror.co.uk, UK - Aug 5, 2008 If you are concerned about your child's weight, visit your GP. To calculate your child's ideal BMI, or for more information on weight loss for kids, ...
Obesity risk detectable at age 2, local study finds The Virginian-Pilot, VA - Aug 5, 2008 The children were classified as overweight if their body mass index - a measurement of a child's weight to height - exceeded 85 percent of the population. ...
Shot putter is tossing a weight off his shoulders Louisville Courier-Journal, KY - Steve and Cathy Hoffa, who lived on a small farm near Bardstown in the early 1980s, were expecting their fourth child, but they also wanted to adopt one. ...
The DIY Dialysis Machine Slashdot - Maybe your wife only gained the baby's weight but that honestly sounds unhealthy for the mom and child as she was net losing weight during the pregnancy due ...
Medication safety around children International Falls Daily Journal, MN - Always know your child?s weight. Medication doses are usually figured by a child?s weight. ? Make sure another adult in the household hasn?t already given ...
Ten-year outcomes of behavioral family-based treatment for childhood obesity - LH Epstein, A Valoski, RR Wing, J McCurley - Health Psychol, 1994 - content.apa.org ...Your APA PsycNET session timed out because it was inactive for 30 minutes. ...
Long-term effects of parent weight on childweight loss. ...
Weight Status, Parent Reaction, and Self-Concept in Five-Year-Old Girls - KK Davison, LL Birch - Pediatrics, 2001 - Am Acad Pediatrics ... about yourchild eating too much when you are not around her?; 2) How concerned
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… , practices, and concerns about child feeding and child weight status among socioeconomically … - B Sherry, J McDivitt, LL Birch, FH Cook, S Sanders … - Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 2004 - Elsevier ... s food intake, physical activity, and relative weight, Int J ... Relations between parental
mealtime practices and children?s food ... 20 Nutrition and Your Health. ...
Failure to Thrive - DA Frank - Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics: A Handbook for …, 2004 - books.google.com ... 2." What, when (how often), where, why, and by whom is yourchild fed?" It is useful
Table 40-2 Average daily weight gain for age Median daily weight gain Age(g ...
Body mass index reference curves for the UK, 1990. - TJ Cole, JV Freeman, MA Preece - Archives of Disease in Childhood, 1995 - pt.wkhealth.com ... recommending titles you?ve found valuable for research at your institution. ... are highly
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If you are concerned about your child's weight, you are in good company. About 25% to 30% of school-age children in the United States are overweight or obese, which puts them at risk for disease and low self-esteem. Eating disorders are on the rise among young people as well. Keep reading to learn more about weight and kids, and healthy ways to manage weight for the entire family.
Underweight Kids
Be aware of the teen who gains too little weight, especially the teenage girl who begins to lose weight rapidly yet still complains she is fat. Young girls may worry about the physical changes that puberty brings, partly in response to society's emphasis on thinness. Full hips and breasts may make them feel "fat," and they can get caught up in behavior patterns known as eating disorders.
Some girls become obsessed with body weight and image. They will eat very small amounts of food - inadequate amounts to support normal growth and health. Some refuse to eat at all. This condition is known as anorexia nervosa. Other teens, again mostly girls, practice binge-and-purge behavior, known as bulimia. Both conditions are potentially life threatening. If you suspect either condition, talk to your child and seek medical treatment from a doctor or registered dietitian.
Teenage boys are prone to nutritional problems as well. Many adolescent boys yearn to be bigger or heavier. Beware of nutritional supplements that promise more muscles. If a teen is eating properly and consuming the right amount of a variety of foods, nutritional supplements are just a waste of money. If you are concerned about your teenager's eating habits, talk with your child's doctor. Counseling is often an effective way to get kids back on track.
Overweight Kids
Many parents worry about whether their kids are at an unhealthy weight. One way to know for sure is to check with your child's doctor, who will determine if your child is above the ideal weight for her height and age. If your child is moderately overweight, there will probably be no talk of dieting at this age. Instead, the emphasis will be on lowering the rate of weight gain as the child grows taller. You can help stall your child's weight gain by changing eating habits, lowering fat intake, and increasing the level of physical activity. Don't punish or scold your child - use positive reinforcement. Make physical activity fun and rewarding, and involve the entire family.
If a child is more than 40% overweight, a doctor-guided weight loss program may be suggested. During the course of the program, the emphasis should be on adopting a healthier lifestyle for the long term, not just on losing weight now. No matter what your children's size or shape, help them love themselves by praising their strengths and skills. It is important to de-emphasize weight and emphasize feeling healthy and strong. Above all, never put a child in this age group on a diet without consulting your doctor first. Restricting a child's diet too much can interfere with growth and development. A registered dietitian who specializes in children's nutritional needs can be a big help.
Although rapid growth and weight gain are part of puberty and adolescence, many children and teens become overweight because of too many calories and too little exercise. Encourage your child to be physically active, whether in an organized sport or individual pursuit. Whatever your child likes, if it gets her moving for about 30 minutes a day, encourage it.
If your child or teen tends to sit around and watch television or play video games, try gently introducing more physical activities into your family life. Take a walk together, go for a bike ride, or offer to take your child and some friends to the pool. Although many teens are anxious to spend time away from their parents, maybe you can take advantage of the small time you have together to get some exercise.
Obesity and Children
Obesity is defined as an excess of body fat. Excess body fat adds additional weight to a child and can cause a deviation from normal growth. If your child is gaining weight more rapidly than normal, she should be checked for obesity. Measuring fat more directly and comparing the amount of fat under the skin to normal standards (by using a device called skinfold calipers) can do this.
The height and build of the child affects whether a child is considered obese at a given weight. A child usually is obese when she is significantly over ideal body weight for her height. In general, if a child's weight is 20% or more in excess of the expected weight for a given height, a child is probably obese. (The exception to this is someone who is highly muscular, such as an athlete or bodybuilder.) Other more accurate ways to determine obesity include the measurement of skinfold thicknesses, bioelectrical impedence, and whole-body densitometry.
A family history of obesity increases a child's risk of becoming obese, especially if both the parents are obese. In addition, the high level of fat and calories in the average United States diet combined with the inactive lifestyle of many children is contributing to the dramatic increase in the prevalence of childhood obesity.
There is a small but significant correlation between infant and adult obesity. It is difficult to predict which children, if they are obese, will later have normal weights. We know, however, that obese adolescents have a high risk of becoming obese adults. The best way to determine if your child is obese is to ask your doctor to plot your child's height and weight on a growth chart to make sure she is growing normally. You should also make sure your child is eating a well-balanced diet. Obesity is a serious problem, and can contribute to sleep apnea, asthma, and diabetes. Children who remain obese into adulthood have a higher risk of developing a number of medical conditions, such as heart disease, arthritis, and certain types of cancer.
Does Dieting Work?
Dieting is a temporary change in eating designed to dramatically lower calories for the purposes of weight loss. Any weight control diet should represent an overall nutritional plan that takes into account the quality and quantity of food necessary to provide for optimum health. Dieting is a temporary solution to the long-term problem of weight management. Sometimes the adjustments made to "go on a diet" are extreme, cannot be sustained, and are not nutritionally sound.Parents of overweight children are encouraged to consult with a doctor or registered dietitian to modify the child's eating behaviors, rather than just restrict calories. Children are developing both physically and mentally, and they need adequate nutrition as they grow. Just as too many calories can cause obesity and the health problems that accompany it, a diet with too few calories can have unhealthy consequences as well. Combining a healthy diet with exercise is the best way to achieve healthy levels of body fat.Making Healthy Habits a Family Affair
To promote healthy attitudes about eating and fitness in your child:
Take a look at your own eating habits to see if you're setting a good example. Eliminate unhealthy foods from your household rather than singling out your child and prohibiting her from eating them. Keep healthy snacks in a place where your child can easily get to them. Make time to exercise with your child. Limit TV and computer time for the whole family, and don't eat in front of the TV. Discourage talk about weight unless your child brings it up. Avoid cute names like "pleasingly plump" or "skinny Minnie." Avoid preparing fried and high-fat convenience foods.
Support your child by creating healthy habits for the entire family.
The best thing you can do is make good nutrition and exercise a family affair by planning lower fat meals, nutritious snacks, and family activities. This will make your child feel included in a total family effort focused on health and not feel isolated as the one with the problem.
