Childhood Obesity - Do you have an overweight child? We offer tips to help your child lose weight and get fit!

Children under five years old need fat and carbohydrates, but so many parents worry about their children becoming overweight that they are restricting them to low calorie diets.

• A government study of nursery schools in 29 British councils found that some were offering children inadequate amounts of food because of pressure from parents.
• Some parents wanted their children to eliminate red meat, whole milk, and desserts, and yet the very young children cannot yet obtain adequate nutrition from fruits and vegetables alone.

"It is important that parents do not apply healthy eating messages designed for the whole population to small children," said Prof. Helen Crawley. "Poor nutritional status in toddlerhood is linked to permanent cognitive damage and a child never reaching their full potential, as well as shorter stature in adulthood."

Labels: diet, nutrition, parenting, health, toddlers

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In an April 15 article by Jennifer Forker of the Associated Press, the clinical director of the Wellspring weight loss program advised parents about simple yet effective ways to help their children get (and stay) active:

If you want your teens to exercise, you need to get out there with them and show how it's done.

"Parents have an incredible, powerful ability to model behavior," says Daniel Kirschenbaum, a professor at Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago and clinical director of Wellspring, which provides treatment services for overweight youths and adults at several U.S. locations. ...

Kirschenbaum suggests buying an inexpensive pedometer for each member of the family.

Get one for everybody and have steps become a part of the language of the family, he says. He recommends that families work toward 10,000 steps a day, about 5 miles, which he says is double what most adults walk in a day.

"You start to look forward to ways to get steps. You park farther away" when shopping, for instance, says Kirschenbaum. "Studies show just getting a pedometer and wearing it regularly increases activity."

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Helping kids establish healthy eating habits can prepare them for a lifetime of good habits, and help prevent the onset of things like obesity and diabetes.

Sugar contains "empty calories" -- it has no nutritious benefit whatsoever. Diets that include too many calories cause children to become overweight. Too much sugar can also cause tooth decay and diabetes.

Milk and fruit juices, though nutritious in many ways, contain high levels of sugar. Soda typically contains 10 teaspoons of sugar in an 8-ounce can ... So limit your children's consumption of beverages that have a high sugar content.

In addition, many health professionals suggest that parents talk to their kids about what they can and should eat, rather than emphasizing foods that are "off limits."

Source: KTVI-TV (St. Louis)

Labels: nutrition, parenting, healthy_eating

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People who feel stressed at work and then come home and "veg out" in front of TV are more likely to be overweight and obese, according to a new study from the University of Rochester Medical Center:

• Dr. Diana Fernandez and her colleagues studied almost 3,000 employees in a large factory in New York, and found that the ones that were working in the most high job strain conditions were heavier than those who worked in more passive areas.
  
• About one third of the people in the study were overweight and another 35 percent were obese, which mirrors the American population in general.
  
• If a person went home and watched more than two hours of television, they were more likely to be obese. Watching four or more hours of TV a day increased the risk of obesity by 150 percent.
  
• Eating a diet high in fruits and vegetables did not protect against being overweight, although those who managed to exercise were better able to cope with stress and maintain their weight.

"We are not sure why television is so closely associated with being overweight," Dr. Fernandez said. "Other studies have shown that adults tend to eat more fatty foods while watching television."

Previous studies have identified watching too much television as a potential risk factor for childhood obesity.

This study appeared in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

Labels: parenting, causes of childhood obesity, television

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Children who become obese teenagers are usually overweight by the time they are two years old, according to a new study in the journal Clinical Pediatrics.

• Dr. John Harrington of Eastern Virginia Medical School studied data on more than 100 obese children and teenagers.
• Dr. Harrington discovered that 90 percent of his subjects had been overweight by the time they were five years old.
  
• The researcher said that he believes that age two is a "tipping point" age for being overweight, although most of the children in the study began gaining weight as early as three months.

Dr. Harrington said that his study should be a wake-up call for pediatricians to address inappropriate weight gain in early infancy during well child visits.

Labels: parenting, infant, obese teens

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Though the United States and many other nations continue to experience an epidemic of childhood obesity, some parents fail to grasp the significance of the problem. A report released by the Ontario Medical Association found that although 25 percent of Canadian young people are overweight or obese, just 14 percent of their parents reported their child was "somewhat overweight."

Amidst all the expert advice out there, one simple lifestyle change may help: let your kids walk to school.

"Most kids are being driven to school simply because their parents think its safer. Its the same fear that allows many parents to turn a blind eye to their kids screen time. Few will admit it, but Im convinced many parents are secretly thrilled their child is spending hours staring at a screen in the family room or basement, rather than running or cycling around outdoors." (Source: The London Free Press)

An increasing number of kids are falling prey to heart attacks, strokes and other life-threatening illnesses. Parents are right to be concerned about their children's safety, but overreacting to safety concerns may be result in today's children being the first generation who are so unhealthy that they wont outlive their parents.

Labels: parenting, safety, walking, healthy_living

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Parents can do a lot to help children keep their weight in check, according to an expert from Harvard University -- and some of the steps to prevent childhood overweight and obesity begin should be taken during the infant and toddler years.

Professor Elsie Taveras said that mothers who start pregnancy at a normal weight but who gain more than 25 pounds increase their child's chances for being overweight by age three. Also, allowing children who gain too much weight in the first six months of life puts them at much higher risk for obesity by age three, Dr. Taveras warned.

• According to a study in the journal Obesity, today's babies are almost 60 percent more likely to be overweight than were babies 20 years ago.
• Some simple feeding practices are important, such as paying attention to your baby's cues when you are feeding him or her.
• For example, if an infant pulls his head away from his bottle, he is saying, I don't want eat anymore.
• It is a good idea to keep the television off while you are feeding your baby so that you can remain sensitive to his cues.

Dr. Taveras told parents to ask their pediatrician how their child is doing in terms of weight.

Labels: childhood_obesity, parenting, prevention, infant

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If a mother is obese, her daughter is three times more likely to menstruate early, according to a new study from the National Institute of Health.

• Dr. Sarah Keim and her colleagues interviewed 597 women to determine their age of menstruation.
• They compared this information with their mothers pre-pregnancy weights and heights, and other demographic information.
• Menstruation at age 12 or earlier was 2.7 times more likely among daughters of obese women.

The study about one of the many possible effects of parental obesity appeared in the journal Epidemiology.

Labels: parenting, daughters

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Parents are more likely to understand their doctor's advice about their children's weights when the doctors use color-coded charts, according to a study from the University of North Carolina.

Dr. Eliana Perrin tested 163 parents as to their understanding of body mass index. If their doctors use color-coded BMI charts, parents were more likely to understand their children's weight problems. In these charts, for example, green indicated a healthy BMI, yellow was risky, and red was unhealthy.

"The study shows the importance of simplified communication," Dr. Perrin said in a Sept. 16 article on the medical news website ScienceDaily. "It's important that all parents understand what their doctors are telling them. They don't want a complicated chart."

Labels: parenting, bmi

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Parents who encourage their children to play team sports or otherwise exercise vigorously are influencing their children to spend less time in front of television and computer screens, according to a new study from Baylor College of Medicine and Duke University.

Researchers led by Dr. Cheryl Anderson studied 681 parents of 430 children in grades three to five in Houston, Texas. If parents encouraged their children to participate in vigorous team sports such as soccer, and hard exercise, such as bicycling, swimming or heavy household chores, their children tended to be more active than children who had no such encouragement.

Dr. Anderson's study revealed some gender bias, as parents tended to encourage their sons to participate in sports and strenuous activities more often than their daughters. Boys were more likely to perform heavy outdoor chores such as yard work.

Along with healthy diet, regular exercise is one of the most important factors in the fight against rising rates of obesity among young people.

Labels: parenting, activity

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Compared to parents of normal weight, obese mothers are ten times more likely to have obese daughters, and obese fathers are six times more likely to have obese sons, according to a new British study that was published in the International Journal of Obesity.

The authors of the study do not think that genetics is responsible for this phenomenon. Instead, they call it a form of "behavioral sympathy," in which children copy the lifestyles of their same-sex parents.

Researchers at Plymouths Peninsula Medical School studied 226 families and found that 41 percent of the eight-year-old daughters of obese mothers were also obese, compared to only four percent of girls with normal weight mothers.

Professor Terry Wilken said that the implications of this study are that governments should target parents' weight problems, and not focus their childhood obesity prevention efforts solely on overweight or obese children.

Labels: parenting, research, causes of childhood obesity

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In the last 40 years, childhood obesity rates have quadrupled in the United States. And while many look to schools, food manufacturers and health experts for help, we can't forget another important resource in the fight against childhood obesity: parents.

In an Aug. X article on the ScienceDaily website, psychologist Edward Abramson, Ph.D., said that parents can play a pivotal role by ensuring that their children eat a healthy diet and get plenty of exercise:

While everyone, including children, is entitled to have food preferences, infants are born with genetic predispositions toward sweet and salty tastes and against sour and bitter tastes and unfamiliar foods, Abramson said.

"For these children, it may take several repetitions (10 or more) to have a child try a new food, but parents should retreat gracefully and try again another day rather than get into a battle of wills when the child refuses a food," he said. ...

Physical activity can also help prevent obesity even when there is a tendency to gain weight due to genetics, Abramson said. Research has shown that four- to seven-year-old children of active parents were six times as likely to be active [than were children of sedentary parents].

Labels: parenting, causes of childhood obesity, prevention

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Most pediatricians agree that parents play an integral part in the fight against childhood obesity. But they also warn parents that certain restrictive feeding practices can increase a child's risk for unhealthy weight gain.

According to an Aug. 11 News-Medical.net article, researchers with the Center for Childhood Obesity Research at Pennsylvania State University followed nearly 200 girls over a 10-year period, tracking their body mass index and the familys eating habits.

The researchers found that girls whose parents exhibited more control over food had less ability to self-regulate and were twice as likely to be overweight by age 15.

"Parental attempts to help children with lower self-control by restricting their access to favorite snack foods can make the forbidden foods more attractive, thereby exacerbating the problem," wrote co-lead researcher Stephanie Anzman, MS.

The study is scheduled to be published in an upcoming edition of the Journal of Pediatrics.

Labels: parenting, research, causes of childhood obesity

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Arresting the mother of a 550-pound boy for child abuse may set a bad precedent, according to some experts studying a South Carolina case. Jerri Gray faces charges of child neglect, because her son, Alexander Draper, became morbidly obese by age 14.

Alexander is in foster care, and Gray was released on a $50,000 bond.

Linda Spears, vice president of policy and public affairs for the Child Welfare League of America, said criminal charges like this should only be a last resort.

"I think I would draw the line at a place where there are serious health consequences for the child and efforts to work with the family have repeatedly failed," she said.

The Gray case appears at a time when 20 states require students to go through weight-related exams, and some send home "weight report cards" to parents.

Ron Jones, a corporate wellness expert, believes parents should be held responsible for their children's weight.

"If you gave your child a drug, you'd be held in court," he said. "But if you kill them with food, that seems to be acceptable."

Labels: parenting, overweight children, laws

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Children who are breastfed are less likely to be fat, regardless of their height or family background. Now a new study finds that the quality of diet a breastfed infant consumes during weaning also affects body mass index.

Researchers at the University of South Hampton in the United Kingdom studied 536 children at age six and twelve months old, and again at age four years.

"We found that independent of the duration of breastfeeding, children with higher quality weaning diets including fruits, vegetables, and home-prepared foods had a greater lean mass at four years of age," Dr. Sian Robinson of the Epidemiology Resource Center at the University of South Hampton wrote in the Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism.

Labels: childhood_obesity, parenting, prevention

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One in three mothers puts too much food on their childs plates, according to a report entitled "Kids and Nutrition."

Researchers surveyed 302 mothers of children ages one to seven years old, and found that 80 percent were unsure if their children's food intake met nutritional requirements. In general, the mothers put too much food on the kids' plates, and 80 percent believe that their children are "fussy eaters" if they do not eat all of it.

These finding are similar to those that were arrived at by Cornell University researchers who documented the negative impact that forcing children to clean their plates can have on childhood overweight and obesity.

Children have a "tremendous capacity" to self-regulate their food intake, and parents should not force them to eat, said pediatrician Dr. Michael Kohn. T

This study appeared in the Journal of Nutrition and Diabetes.

Labels: nutrition, parenting, causes of childhood obesity, family meals

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A study of more than 27,700 mothers found that those with negative moods and mindsets are more likely to feed their children junk foods.

Psychologist Elvind Ystrom of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health asked the mothers how often they fed their (all of whom were less than 18 months old) any of 36 different fatty and sweet foods, and then inquired about the mothers' states of mind.

"We found that mothers who were emotionally unstable, anxious, sad, angry, had poor self-confidence or a negative view of the world were far more likely to give their child sweets and fatty foods," Prof. Ystrom said. "At the same time there was no link between maternal personality and how healthy a diet the child got in the form of fruits and vegetables. & Unfortunately, we could not study the fathers."

One theory is that depressed mothers could not say "no" to their children.

This study was done in conjunction with the University of Oslo.

Labels: childhood_obesity, parenting, obese-kids, overweight children, eating-habits

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A concerned mother recently wrote in to CNN's Expert Q&A, asking for help with her overweight daughter. Though mother and daughter walk two to three miles several times per week and follow a healthy diet plan, her daughter is still significantly overweight.

"Your goal for your daughter at this age should be geared more towards weight maintenance rather than weight loss, allowing her to grow into her weight as she ages and her height increases. If she does lose weight, the [American Academy of Pediatrics] suggests that weight loss for children aged 2-11 be no more than 1 pound per month..."

Diet and fitness expert Dr. Melina Jampolis also suggested family outings that are based around activities such as mini-golf or bowling. She also suggested limiting TV time to a maximum of two hours per day. Source: CNN

Labels: parenting, advice

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Insisting that your child "cleans his plate" may lead to his overeating, according to a study in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.

Researchers from Cornell University studied 63 preschoolers in daycare settings. The ones whose parents enforced a "clean plate" rule were more likely to ask for seconds.

"Parents who insist children clean their plates may be asserting excess control," said Dr. Brian Wansink, author of the study. "They could unknowingly be inhibiting the development of the child's self-control around food."

Labels: parenting, overeating

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Susannah Locketti is a working mother of two who is often sought out by other moms for nutrition advice. How, they want to know, can they make sure their kids eat healthy when life is so hectic that fast foods and pre-packaged meals seem to be the only options.

"Phase one of the plan consists of switching out every white flour product in the house with a whole grain alternative... I remember the first day my kids ate 'brown bread', as they called it. It was 100 percent whole wheat and they refused it for three days... They eventually caved and whole wheat bread is a staple in my school lunches."

Parents can also switch to whole grain cereals, and replace chips and cookies with yogurt and string cheese. Source: The Kingston Observer

Labels: nutrition, parenting, healthy_eating

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A study led by Dr. Matthew M. Davis at the University of Michigan found that many parents underestimate their children's weight and overall health. The study was conducted using an online survey in which parents reported their children's height and weight and asked parents if their children were overweight or obese.

"Among parents with an obese, or extremely overweight child ages 6 to 11, 43 percent said their child was 'about the right weight', 37 percent responded 'slightly overweight' and 13 percent said 'very overweight'."

Dr. Goutham Rao of the Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh noted that obesity is more difficult to identify in children, and that - because of the social stigma - some parents simply aren't willing to admit that their children are overweight.

Labels: parenting, overweight, pediatricians

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Parents who find themselves at a loss for ways of helping their overweight children become healthier can rest easy. The results of a new study show that just two simple changes can help; increased physical activity by 2,000 steps per day (equals approximately one mile), and elimination of just 100 calories from the daily diet.

"This family-based study showed that, over six months, 67 percent of overweight children... maintained or reduced their percent BMI-for-age..."

Conducted by the University of Colorado at Denver, the study shows that managing a child's weight and overall health is easier than most parents think.

Labels: parenting, healthy_eating, exercise

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Recent studies have found that diet foods and diet drinks may actually increase a child's risk of becoming overweight or obese, as may a parent's efforts to "push" healthy foods. The unfortunate result of these types of weight-control tactics is that children lose the ability to regulate their own eating.

"What seems to happen when children are exposed to this sort of parental behavior, says Goyder, is that internal hunger cues become confused. Pressure to eat certain foods and to avoid others leads to 'uninhibited eating and weight gain, particularly among girls' as they eventually fail to recognize satiety."

Instead, experts suggest that parents lead by example, eating healthy food in reasonable quantities and enjoying desserts (also in moderation). Read more at TimesOnline.co.uk.

Adolescent substance abuse can affect families in many ways. Learn how you can help at DrugRehabTreatment.com.

Labels: parenting, healthy_eating, influences

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A study from the University of Florida has found that kids of parents who are distressed or depressed often have a lower quality of life, which can hinder an overweight child's attempts at weight loss. Emotional factors caused by things like peer bullying also make it difficult for a child to adopt a healthy lifestyle.

"From the study, the researchers concluded that tending to the needs to distressed parents could be one of the best ways to help children."

Talking about quality of life also gives kids a better focus for weight loss when fears of developing health problems like type 2 diabetes don't motivate them.

Read more at AndhraNews.net.

Labels: parenting, influences, lifestyle

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All of the talk about childhood obesity is causing some parents to panic. Their panic is leading to extreme food restrictions and criticisms of their children that may be making the problem worse.

"Food restrictions, pressuring and criticism don't work at any age, but especially not during adolescence, said [David] Ludwig, who believes such coercive strategies can have negative consequences. 'These methods teach children what not to do instead of what to do,' he said. 'They can leave a child feeling upset, erode self-esteem and take a toll on the parent-child relationship.'"

Studies have shown that restricting a child's food actually has the reverse effect. A child who's denied certain types of food, is more likely to become preoccupied with food and more like to overeat when given the chance. Read more at TheOlympian.com.

More important that rapid weight loss, are learning how to make healthy lifestyle choices. Learn how to make small, but important changes, in the Guide to Behavior Change.

Labels: diet, parenting, criticism

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A recent report from the American Medical Association calls for doctors to stop using "fuzzy" terms like "at risk for overweight" to describe children who are overweight or obese.

"The committee didn't identify a specific BMI score to classify overweight kids, yet recommended any child in the 84th to 95th percentile should be considered overweight and urged by pediatricians to drop some body fat. While no one is suggesting that doctors become less sensitive to kids or parents, there is a strong sentiment that fuzzy terms let everyone off the hook."

Dr. William Dietz, director of nutrition and physical activity at the Centers for Disease Control, says the agency will "fully discuss" the recommendations before deciding whether to adopt the new terms. Read more online.

Confused about the terms overweight, obese, BMI and childhood obesity? Read this factsheet on Obesity and Overweight in Children and Teens for clarification and programs to help your teen lose weight.

Labels: parenting, pediatricians, sensitivity

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In addition to working with over 100 teenagers for her book Weight Loss Confidential, Anne M. Fletcher, M.S., R.D., also interviewed parents for help and advice on teen weight loss. In speaking with parents of overweight children, Fletcher found

"First, they make it clear that kids need to know that they're loved unconditionally, regardless of their weight. Both the parents and the teens also stress that the initiative for weight loss has to come from the teenif the teen's not ready or isn't motivated, nagging, preaching, and complaining will only backfire... Parents also emphasized the importance of providing healthful foods, not having a lot of high-calorie foods around, and being role models for healthy eating and exercise. Once the teen makes a decision to slim down, parents stressed the need for providing them lots of support and praise, no matter how small the changes are."

Read a full review of Weight Loss Confidential.

Labels: parenting, weight_loss, tips

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A recently published studies kids actually gain weight during the summer.

"One researcher said, 'Clearly the sources of children's obesity problems lie outside of the school." Researchers suggested lengthening the school year or providing structured programs to maintain control of kids' eating and activity levels. Because many children are poorly supervised in the summertime, parents might be depending on junk-food and video-games to keep kids safely occupied."

Parents must begin to refrain from letting their children sit inside all day and letting them constantly eat whatever they want. It may be more difficult to do, but whoever said parenting was easy? Read more online.

Labels: parenting, summers

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A child's obesity may begin when his mother is pregnant, according to new research from Technical University in Munich, Germany.

The research team found that mothers who develop diabetes during pregnancy had a greater chance of having children who are overweight by age 11 years old. Diabetes is more common among overweight people.

Previous studies have shown that people who are overweight as children and teenagers have an 80 percent chance of being overweight in adulthood.
 

Labels: parenting, mothers, pregnancy

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A study out of Montreal, Canada, has found that an increasing number of young people are using their bedrooms as “junk food havens” where they can eat whatever they want, without any adult supervision.

In the study of 534 10- to 12-year-olds, the Universite de Montreal researchers found that 58 percent of boys eat once in a while or every day in their bedroom, compared with 48 percent of girls. And when the researchers asked the kids what they ate, they were astonished by the responses.

The boys were more likely to wolf down pastries, ice cream, hamburgers, pizza, chips, French fries and soft drinks. [Source: The Montreal Gazette]

Very few of the boys or girls surveyed ate anything healthy while in their rooms, and many of them ate in front of a television or computer screen. Researchers encouraged parents to make family meals a priority, and to make them healthy. Parents are also encouraged to replace junk food with healthier snacks like fruits and vegetables.

Labels: parenting, junk food, family meals

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