Childhood Obesity: Don't Let Your Kids Get Fat

Research has shown that overweight kids usually turn into overweight adults. Not only that, it has also been shown that people who were overweight in childhood are far more likely to suffer from life-threatening conditions like cardiac disease and cancer. Additionally, some teenagers are developing type 2 diabetes, sometimes called late onset diabetes as it affects people in middle age.

The damage of childhood obesity can cause emotional and psychological problems too. Obesity makes children a target for all kinds of bullying at school, both physical and psychological. They tend to do less well at sports, may have fewer friends than thinner children and so become isolated and solitary.

Because of all this, it is obvious that allowing your children to put on excess weight is the unkindest thing you can do either in the short or long term but how do you avoid it?

• Start young: as soon as your children start to be weaned, don't train

  them to prefer sweet foods. Never give them candy or desserts as a treat or

  reward.

• Don't give babies that are being weaned the sweet commercial desserts,

  mash up a banana instead or stew an apple without sweetening it too much.

• Don't assume that because you like sweetened drinks like coffee or tea that

  you must put sugar in your children's drinks too. It is far better to get

  them accustomed to drinking them unsweetened.

• Get your children in the habit of eating breakfast. It is the one meal of

  the day we should all eat. A good breakfast would be something like cereal

  (no added sugar) and milk with some fresh fruit chopped up and mixed in or

  eaten separately. Eat it with a glass of real orange juice (unsweetened) and

  a milky drink.

• Children should avoid fast foods like burgers, fries and fried chicken.

  Freshly cooked food with portions of fruit and vegetables are much better.

  Do not allow your children to develop the fast food habit--it is much easier

  than trying to break the habit later.

Good Food for Kids

• Milk
• Fruit and vegetables
• Eggs
• Wholemeal bread
• Unsweetened cereals
• Fish and lean meat
• Cheese

Exercise

Although diet plays a large part in childhood obesity, lack of exercise

can also be important. Here are some tips for getting your kids to take more

exercise.

• Whenever possible, your children should walk to and from school rather than

  ride in the car.

• Get a dog and make it your children's responsibility to walk it if they

  are old enough. If they are too young, make it a regular part of the routine

  for you and the kids to walk the dog (the exercise will do you good too!).

• If you don't want or can't have a dog, make regular visits to a local park

  where your children can play ball, use slides and swings or just run around and have fun.

• Allow time at weekends for the whole family to spend time on enjoyable physical

  activity like going swimming, walking, cycling, etc.

• At Christmas and birthdays, don't just give your kids computer games, give

  them a football, cricket, baseball bat, or other sporting equipment, anything that gives them an

  incentive to get out and play.

• Encourage your children to join a sports club or team--football, baseball,

  cricket, judo, karate, athletics, it doesn't matter as long as it demands

  physical activity.

• You might also want to think about taking the whole family on activity vacations.

  Instead of lying on a beach, why not take a vacation backpacking, horse riding

  or yachting?

The most important thing is to build a foundation, as young as possible, of an appreciation for good nutritious food and a love of physical activity. Your children won't suffer if they aren't addicted to sweet food or hamburgers and prefer a piece of fruit to a piece of candy.

Copyright ? 2006 by Carol Fisher

Carol Fisher writes the website All Info About Diets and Nutrition where you can read about all aspects of healthy eating and sensible weightloss.