How to Help Your Overweight Child.

The percentage of overweight children in the United States is growing at an alarming rate, with 1 out of 3 kids now considered overweight or obese.  We can blame some of the increase on electronic devices; ipads, laptops, and the endless choices of streaming video content that have caused more inactivity in our kids that leads to weight gain. Mental health concerns are also a huge concern and blame for weight gain.    Most of us live a fast-paced life where both parents are often working.  Food can often be picked up from the fast food drive-thru or pulled out of the box from the freezer.   Quick and easy is often the new norm when it comes to feeding the family, which is also part of the blame for weight gain in kids.  There is certainly multiple causes and factors when it comes to excessive weight gain in children.   What can we do as parents when we’ve been told by our pediatrician that our child is overweight and needs to lose weight?

When I work with children referred by their pediatrician, I use a no-diet approach. Kids should NOT be dieting or restricting calories during this important growing period. It only makes the situation worse. Here are some tips I use in my practice to help overweight children establish good habits to improve their health and lifestyle.

• Don’t tell them they are overweight and need to go on a diet. A recent study in the Journal of Pediatrics showed that nagging children about their weight is more likely to backfire and cause them to gain weight. You don’t want to harm your child’s self-esteem by making their weight an issue.

• Don’t put them on a diet by restricting their food intake. Children are born to be self-regulated. Restricting calories can only be harmful by causing them to not satisfy their appetite and overeat later. As a parent, it’s your job to prepare and serve the food, and it’s your child’s job to decide how much their body needs to eat. Encourage them to listen to their hunger cues and stop eating when they are full. This is the healthiest habit a child can have.

• Offer healthy meals and snacks 80% of the time. Make sure you are offering plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and low-sugar snacks.  I like to refer to these foods as “growing foods.”     Children need 2-3 snacks daily, spaced 2-3 hours apart from meals.   Be a good role model and eat the same balanced food options that you offer your children.   I’m a strong believer in the 80/20 principle and not making favorite treats forbidden in the household,  but offering the less nutrient dense foods (which I like to refer to as ” fun foods” )  20% of the time with a portion at the meal or a snack.

• Reduce the added sugar in your child’s diet. The recommendations provided in the new dietary guidelines published in January recommend that sugar intake be 10% of total calories or less.  For a 6 yr. old child, this is roughly 40 grams of sugar per day or 4 teaspoons.  The whole family should be reducing sugar in their diets, not just your child.  The best place to start is by reducing soda and sugary beverages.   Sugar from whole fruit and milk is natural sugar and very beneficial in the diet.  To learn more about sugar in your child’s diet, check out my blog post “Sugar and Kids, Is it Really That Bad”. 

• Limit fast food and eating out at restaurants. A home-cooked meal will have less fat, sugar, sodium, and calories, so you’re always better off cooking at home.  If you don’t have time or know what to cook, perhaps you’d enjoy receiving ingredients and recipes from a food service (Hello Fresh and Blue Apron are two big ones).  Ask for help and input from your family members.  Dinner doesn’t have to be fancy.  Tacos, spaghetti, and grilled chicken are regulars at my house.

• Make sure your child gets 60 minutes or more of activity per day. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommends this, and it includes PE, recess, swim class, or playtime at the park. One of my favorites on a rainy day is a dance party. Turn up the music and have a dance party with your kids. Limit their screen time to 2 hours per day to encourage other activities and outdoor play.