It should not be a "tricky dilemma" but it is. Nobody wants to tell a parent that their kid is fat. We don't want the child to develop even worse eating habits or an eating disorder or low self-esteem but we don't want a parent to labor under the delusion that their 4 year old still has "puppy fat". Most over-weight 4 year olds don't have puppy fat - they just have...fat. And it's not an easy subject to talk about.
So instead of talking about the realities of life - that 20% of preschoolers are actually obese - we talk about baby fat, puppy fat, or that they'll grow out of it or that once they hit a growth spurt, it'll all even out. Or maybe it's only that Junior is "big-boned" or just built to be the star linebacker of the high school football team.
No-one wants to say that the child is simply fat. The other "f" word.
Researchers from Ohio State University monitored the weight and height ratios (BMI - Body Mass Index) of more than 8,500 children of white, black, Hispanic and Asian and Native children and found that a staggering 18.4% of them were classed as obese.
The BMI is considered by most experts to be the best way to gauge the appropriate weight of a person. There are certainly exceptions to this - many athletes have a high BMI due to their muscle mass. Since muscle weighs more than fat, it makes sense that they may be classed as over-weight, when in fact they are in excellent health and shape.
Preschoolers, however, are not yet athletes and don't have this level of muscle mass.
The percentage were also very defined among race: 31% of Native children were obese. The numbers for Hispanic were 22%, for blacks 21%, for whites 16% and Asian children came in at 13% being obese.
Researchers say there are many reasons for so many children being so over-weight. They believe that cultural expectations (where it's not considered unusual or unhealthy to be fat), poor access to outdoor activities, poor access to healthy school lunches and kids living in urban neighborhoods deemed unsafe to be outdoors contribute to over-weight children. Overweight kids are also more likely to have overweight parents and simply eat what they see their parents eat. Parents and other families members are often guilty of over-feeding to show love; a dangerous habit that leads to a lifetime of weight battles.
To combat this epidemic of overweight kids, the buck really begins and ends at home. Doctors believe that parents need to admit that their kids are fat and stop using excuses like "puppy fat" or comparing their overweight child to an even more overweight child and saying that their kid isn't so bad in comparison.
Pediatricians also need to talk to the parents about it and give advice or referrals to a nutritionist who can educate the entire family on healthy eating habits and regular exercise. It's a sensitive area, particularly when the parents themselves are heavy, but it's as important as any other health issue that a doctor needs to discuss with a patient.
Parents also need to disallow incessant use of video games and TV and take their kids outside, to parks or just a walk, where kids can get some exercise.
Parents also need to adopt their own healthy eating habits and exercise regimes so that they lead by example. Why should a kid eat veggies for dinner when Dad is eating pizza?
Make exercise fun and something that is looked forward to - not dreaded. Parents (in this instance, it's ok to lie!) need to talk about how much they like to exercise and how great they feel after (no lie needed there) in order for the kids to adopt the same mentality.
We eat healthily and exercise because we love and respect our bodies. Never exercising and eating junk daily is not showing our bodies respect.
And there is no need to insist a child is on a "diet" in order to lose weight. Parents don't have to make a production of it. They can gradually, over a few weeks, introduce newer, fresh foods with an emphasis on lean proteins, fruits, veggies and other healthy options. Good and healthy foods can be delicious - just a little creativity can have children munching on the good stuff. And when parents are happily munching along with them, their chances of losing the fat and maintaining a healthier weight increases dramatically.
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How do you feel about nearly one in five preschoolers being obese? Do you have experience in this area?
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Add a Comment5 Comments
Ok I have an overweight 13 and a half yr old son, and I feel frustrated with gradually introduce healthy foods and give them more exercise thing. My son loves food and we eat really healthy organic food and tons of veggies and fruits.No one else in the family is overweight. He however does not seem to know when to or to want to stop eating. if we go into a store, he is stuffing food off the sample tray into his mouth as fast as he can inhale it. At parties he is piling his plate as high as he can get it and the relatives attitude of " oh let him eat, he is a growing boy ,does not help either'. He sneeks into our cabinets and he eats large amounts of carbs. If there are no sweet things such as granola bars or other snacks, he will eat large amounts of dry oatmeal or even frozen potatoes uncooked. When he stays at friends houses he gets tons of unhealthy food. Yet experts reccomend not to say anything to him because it might damage his self esteem. I do know he feels bad about this but there is not just an easy solution of oh go to the park more and cook healthy dinners because I have been doing that for many years now to no avail. We even have a lock on our pantry door that eveytime we change the code he seems to just figure it out so he can do more snacking. I feel bad about talking with him about this and I feel bad not saying anything too him and just letting him ruin his health.
July 23, 2010 - 11:08amThis Comment
Remember when our parents would tell us to clean our plates? This was because they were children of the Great Depression and were taught to not be wasteful.
I know a few people for whom "eat until you are not hungry" would still mean over-eating because they don't know when to stop.
Use smaller dishes. :))
April 10, 2009 - 7:16pmThis Comment
And then there are some kids who are just different. My sister has four children - 3 lean, and 1 who has always been overweight. She has struggled with her weight all her life. In the early years (she is 21 now), every pediatrician said "don't mention it to her, she'll grow out of it" or "don't worry about it now" or "the worst thing you can do is put a child on a diet." This was a child who preferred fruit to candy naturally, so it wasn't simply due to bad snacking, for instance.
It was my sister's first child, and they were poorer then. Perhaps her inability to buy the best food choices did play into it.
If you ask my sister today, she would say that the one thing she'd do differently for that daughter would have been to lovingly, carefully tackle the weight problem when she was younger. She didn't "grow out of it." And while she'd never have put her daughter "on a diet," per se, she thinks that earlier instruction about food portions, exercise and weight might have helped more than they'd have hurt.
April 10, 2009 - 8:41amThis Comment
Diane - you're so right. We've overlooked the child who is "different," like the one who may have an underlying pituitary condition, for example. Then, there's the one who may have a psychological issue due to some trauma in her life.
I'm sorry about your niece. Sometimes the best of a mother's intentions can backfire.
April 10, 2009 - 7:21pmThis Comment
There's another side to the child obesity issue, and it has everything to do with economics, education and, in some cases, another "e" word - ethnicity.
The poor and under-educated eat what they know and can afford. If that means cheap, processed, fatty foods, that's what they get. Unless they're growing their own food, they are more interested in filling bellies than watching waistlines. Also, there are those who abuse food stamps and buy more stuff than real food.
Texas had programs in place to help educate lower income families in eating more healthfully on their limited resources. But, I also know how difficult it is to get information and assistance out to their clients.
Those who can afford to make better choices should have no excuse for raising obese children. I'm appalled at the rate of childhood obesity in our country. Like the song goes: "teach your children well."
April 8, 2009 - 4:28pmThis Comment