About 1 in 5 American children have obesity. Your child’s health when they are young greatly affects their health later in life and children who are overweight are more likely to be overweight in adulthood. Plus, children with obesity are at a higher risk of developing long-term conditions like asthma, sleep apnea, bone and joint problems, type 2 diabetes and risk factors for heart disease, such as high blood pressure. Being overweight can also impact children’s mental health, potentially contributing to lower confidence, anxiety and depression.
To set our children up for success, it is important to work together to teach healthy lifestyle habits at home. We’re here to help you combat childhood obesity with the resources and information you need.
How to Know if Your Child Needs Help Managing Their Weight
Children's bodies are changing all the time, pretty much up until adulthood. Growth spurts, hormonal changes and weight changes are all normal throughout adolescence. Your child’s pediatrician can help you determine if your child is at a healthy weight.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also has a body mass index (BMI) calculator for children and teens that can help you monitor their BMI between provider visits. This BMI calculator is different from the one for adults. It provides detailed results that consider children’s and teens' age, height and weight and places it into a percentile compared to others of the same gender and age. The CDC’s BMI calculator is meant to help determine if your child is overweight but does not replace medical advice from their pediatrician.
Track Weight and Height at Routine Well-Child Visits
Preventive health is vital to your child’s overall wellness. With the rise of childhood obesity, it is important to keep up with well-child visits so your child's pediatrician can track their weight and height to help identify any concerns. Your child’s provider will be able to determine if your child is overweight and help you create and follow an action plan specific to their health.
Make sure your child is up to date on their well-child visits as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Tips for Managing Your Child’s Weight
For overweight or obese children, the goal is to slow down weight gain while still allowing for healthy growth and development. As a parent, you can guide your child into making small, everyday changes that may have a big impact on their health. Here are 3 steps you can take to help manage your child’s weight.
1. Find Time for Fitness
The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans recommend children between the ages of 7 and 17 years get at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity every day.
Exercise can look different for kids than it does for adults. One way to ensure your child is active is enrolling them in an after-school sports program or other activities that get them moving, like dance. Giving your child options to pick from can help you find an activity they enjoy.
There are also a lot of ways to sneak physical activity in throughout the day, like walking the dog and walking or biking to and from school. Plus, just being outside as a family is naturally conducive to active play. Play a classic game (like tag or jump rope), go for a bike ride or organize a game of kickball in the backyard.
It can be tough to motivate kids to exercise when they just aren’t interested. If joining a soccer team day one seems like a stretch, start with small goals and build from there. It is also important to talk to your child about the benefits of exercise to help them understand all the ways moving their body can help.
Need activity ideas?
Check out this tool from Move Your Way®, which helps you discover ways to fit more activity into your child’s day and calculates how much activity they are getting as you go. You may even find new ways to stay active yourself!
2. Adopt a Nutritious Diet
A well-balanced diet is key to maintaining a healthy weight and ensuring your child gets all the nutrients they need. Focus on a diet that is rich in:
- Vegetables
- Fruit
- Whole grains
- Lean protein
- Fiber
Try to limit their intake of sugary beverages, like soda, sports drinks and fruit juice. These drinks aren’t very nutritious and are packed with sugar. Instead, serve water, milk or diluted fruit juice to keep them happy and hydrated.
It can be hard to balance cooking nutritious meals with all your other obligations. Reduce stress at mealtimes by planning out meals before the week starts. Get kids engaged by letting them choose meals and assisting with meal preparation. Looking for healthy recipes? USDA MyPlate has ideas for the whole family.
Some studies have found that children who have frequent family meals are less likely to be overweight or obese and have better nutritional health. Plus, eating together encourages more mindful eating compared to eating in front of a TV or while on a phone. When sitting down to eat together, try to focus on the positive — that we eat food to grow big and strong — and stay away from negative emotional interactions.
3. Set consistent bedtimes
It is recommended that children ages 6 to 12 years old get 9 to 12 hours of sleep per night. Adequate sleep helps prevent type 2 diabetes, obesity, injuries, and problems with attention and behavior. Set a regular bedtime for your children, including weekends. To help ensure they fall asleep, implement a curfew on screens an hour before bedtime and store devices outside their bedrooms, if possible.
4. Manage mental wellbeing
As children enter pre-adolescence, it is essential to watch for early warning signs of anxiety and depression. Children who are overweight can face low self-esteem and bullying. They may also lose interest in activities if they feel embarrassed or too out of shape to keep up with other kids their age.
Try not to add to their stress at home, too. Stress can also alter children’s eating patterns, like overeating to cope with negative feelings, which can lead to weight gain and increase their risk of obesity.
It is important to approach weight-related discussions without judgment or punishment, and instead make trying new foods and exercise fun for the whole family. Make sure to have open conversations with your kids about their social lives. If they seem depressed or anxious, don’t hesitate to contact their health care provider.
Kids go through many physical and emotional changes as they are developing and are often vulnerable to weight gain and obesity. Encouraging healthy habits while kids are young can help make sure those habits stick.
Did you know you can use Compass Rose Living Well to get help for your child’s weight management? Our team can provide resources to help you better understand childhood obesity and what you can do to help.
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