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OVERWEIGHT CHILDREN
Questions taken from "Food For Thought": The best way to help an overweight child to lose weight is to limit portion sizes at meals. True or False? False- Parents can help by providing a variety of good-tasting, low-fat, low calorie foods to everyone at the table. The child should be allowed to choose what to eat and how much to eat. Restricting foods makes a child anxious and may lead to sneaking food and overeating. In addition, the parent should encourage more activity and less television and/or video and computer games. The average American child age 6-11 watches how much television in a week? Children spend more time watching television or playing computer games than they do in active play, almost one full day out of each week. This sedentary lifestyle, which often leads to snacking, contributes to the alarming fact that childhood obesity has more than doubled since the 1960’s. Cautions and Recommendations from Mayo Clinic: · If children are placed on a severely restricted diet, then they will be at risk for nutrient deficiencies and impaired growth. Children need adequate vitamins, minerals, protein, fat, and calories to develop strong, healthy bodies. It is also important that infants or young children not be put on a restricted diet or for parents to give them skim milk when they get most of their calories from milk. · The present government recommendation is that children by the age of 5 years should slowly adopt a diet that includes only thirty percent of the calories that come from fat. · The Mayo Clinic dietitians recommend for parents to use a common-sense approach by emphasizing to their children to eat appropriate servings of food from the Food Guide Pyramid and to teach them to eat fats, sweets, and oils sparingly. Facts About Childhood Obesity from William H. Dietz, M.D., Ph.D. · The most recent estimates taken from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey suggest that between 1 in 4 and 1 in 5 children are affected. · The most frequent problem encountered by overweight children is teasing and discrimination. Women, who were overweight as children appear especially vulnerable to discrimination. · Medical conditions which can be caused by excess body fat are high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol levels, elevated blood sugar, (an early sign of diabetes) abnormal bone developments, or a breathing problem such as sleep apnea. · Obesity is when a person consumes more food than the body can handle as a result of overeating and reduced physical activity. · Parents should pay close attention to what the child drinks as well as the portion size and fat content of food. Many children drink high calorie containing fluids such as juice and soda, which tends to replace their water intake. · A major factor, which affects the child's energy balance, is his or her level of activity. It is not essential for the child to be active in sports. Children who were the most successful at losing weight participated in vigorous exercise and reduced their time in front of the television. What Can Care Providers Do to Help an Overweight Child? · Care providers can help the parents recognize that their child's weight is an issue that needs to be addressed and then recommend ways to handle this problem. The care providers can directly influence the child because they will provide two or three of the child's meals during the day. · Encourage parents to get more involved with their child so that the child will know that the family supports them. · Acknowledge the parent's cultural beliefs because some ethnic groups believe that being overweight is a sign of being healthy. · Promote programs that support the child's growth through an adequate diet, exercise, and counseling about nutrition and social issues. · Educate healthy eating and exercise habits to all of the children at the facility. Parents can be invited to observe the child's lessons and newsletters about nutrition and exercise can be sent home. · Deter children from teasing other children. Overweight children are especially vulnerable to teasing and discrimination. · Avoid expressing inappropriate concerns, that could possibly create an eating disorder or a poor self-esteem. It is important not to stress thinness as the ideal body image and that their self worth is not tied to their appearance. Related Web Sites: · American Dietetic Association. "Food For Thought." Child Nutrition and Health Campaign. 1998. http://www.eatright.org/child/food.html. (22 Nov. 1998) · Dietz, William. "To Combat Childhood Obesity, Turn Off the Tube as Well as the Food." American Obesity Association agenda. 1998. http://www.obesity.org/childob.html · Mayo Clinic. "Diet and Exercise Guidelines for Overweight Children." Childhood Obesity. 1997. http://www.mayohealth.org/mayo/9705/htm/over_2sb.htm. (22 Nov. 1998) · Smith, Ilene. "Understanding and Preventing Childhood Obesity." Child Care Provider Magazine. 1997. http://childcare-ppin.com/articles/s97ccp.htm (6 Dec. 1998)
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