Preventing Childhood Obesity

[paula 4]

My grand's were big people. Mike's grands were big people. Our parents (all 4) fight weight issues.

I have the band. Mike NEEDS the band (LOL).

What does this mean? As much as I LOVE my 3 kids and seek perfection for each of them, Im learning to accept the idea that its in their genes to eventually become overweight.

My mother loved me so much that she stayed on me constantly about my weight. She thought that by constanly creating imbarrasement by my size/looks, that it would motivate me to change.

Didnt work.

Only made me super insecure and uncomfortable to be in the presence of others... which made me want to eat more. Ha!

I have chosen NOT to fight MY kids obesity this way.

My 10 year old boy is eating me out of house and home. Mike says this is normal for a growing boy. Im sure it is. But in the mean time, Im trying REALLY hard to PREVENT obesity in him.

So, Ive done alot of thinking about this lately. His diet is loaded with carbs. He is my most particular eater - HATES veggies.

Due to the carb filled diet, his energy level is lowered. Playing video games and watching tv were his favorite things to do.

So? My effort has been to reduce the carbs, which has increased his energy levels.

Something Ive done lately (and Im giving it as an idea for you)...

weekends are the worst for his eating ALL day. So Ive tried this and found that it works. When he has eaten 15, 30 min's - even an hour earlier, and comes to me complaining that he's hungry; I tell him to drink the largest glass of Water - wait 1 hour - THEN he can eat again.

Might be a little controling on my part, but Im trying really hard to establish the difference between head hunger vs real hunger.

And during the hour long wait for MORE food, Im usually successful in getting him involved in house duties. Yesterday he and I did yard work together.

When we were done, he reminded me that he didnt wait 1 hour - but nearly 3 hours. He was proud of that.

I thought that was a sign of success.

Anyway, Im wanting other parents to give ideas with their battle to help obesity in kids.

This is real.

At least in MY home it is.

[burnsun 27]

I know I started early.

Every weekend I make up baggies with carrot, grapes, melons and other fruits, apple slices dipped in lemon, they are the perfect to go size and my son and daughters will choose them over Cookies any time. (they also love frozen grapes) They will fight for yougurt in the cups- we started as a baby food. chips and other Snacks are for parties! They love goldfish and animal crackers and smarties is the only cany I really let them have on a regular basis.

I also wrote the serving sizes on the cookie containers and the calories/fat amounts so I would remember and not hand them Cookies to shut them up.. (Actually it is more for grandma- to know that two is sa 190 cal serving and it is ok to give them only one) I also taped a pictur eof what a serving size really looks like to each storage container for each type of food. I told COlin to pour or scoop till that amount.

[mousecrazy 2]

Thanks, Paula. We have the same situation with my DD, who is 8. She's a big girl, 5" tall, and 160 lbs. Like you, I don't want to give her insecurity about her size...at the same time, I want to teach her some healthy habits. Also, due to heredity, she will not be petite, to say the least. My being banded has taught her alot about food choices, which is good. I use the glass of Water technique, also...if that doesn't do it, then we only offer fruit/veggies as a snack. Lucky us, she likes fruits/veggies! She just likes sweets more!

I'm always interested in reading on this subject...it is a big concern for me. Thanks for posting it, Cindy

[nightingale2u 42]

Paula...

I have worried so much about my daughter becoming overweight and fighting the same battle I have always had to fight. My theory with her was to make food a no-brainer... in other words... I don't want her to have to really think or worry over food like I do. I never made her clear her plate as a little one... and I never made dessert a constant part of the dinner routine. I didn't keep empty foods around for snacking on. So far do good... she doesn't seem to need to overeat... just eats until she is full and stops. She went through a little chubby period but it was short-lived and now she is tall and trim. :confused: I have also tried to encourage her to be active but I don't push it.

[Alexandra 55]

I'm noticing a tendency in my younger one to want to eat all the time. It's a clear to me as the nose on her face that this is genetic in her, in a way that it is not in her sister. Catie, my younger, has been orally-fixated since infancy, which her sister never was.

When she comes to me saying that she's hungry, and I know she's not really, I tell her she's not hungry--she's BORED. The challenge for me is keeping her engaged. But it's so clear to me that when she's doing something else she's not thinking about food and what she can eat next.

I'm very sympathetic to her being hungry at meals, because God knows I always was. But I want her to get in the habit of eating what she wants at the meal and then being done until the next meal. Eating out of boredom is a sure-fire path to obesity.

[NJChick 3]

On my dad's side of the family they all tend to be swelt My mothers side all tiny and thin... guess which side I take after.

My DD who'd 4 is chunky.... she's like a fish, she'll eat until she bursts. I'm hoping now that she is in an all day daycare/school she will thin out. My Mom watched her since she was born and just fed fed fed w/out exercise (kinda like what I went thru living there as a kid lol).

[Dianechef 3]

This is a great topic!! I have an 8 & 10 yr. old who I worry about A LOT!! Both of them are very thin, active kids. However; my 10 yr. old daughter is starting to really fill her plate & loves to snack, snack, snack! I've noticed that her stomach is starting to get a little flat tire around the edges.

Here's what I've done: About an hr. after eating, I'll find her rummaging the kitchen looking for something to eat. I asked her to think about if she was "really" hungry or just wanting to put something in her mouth. She said she wasn't sure. I told her to get a drink & then if she still feels hungry to come back. She never came back!!

I don't ever want to mention the word FAT, OVERWEIGHT or anything about weight to her. I just want her to know that I love her for the wonderful little girl that she is. No matter what her weight is, I will always love her just because she's my daughter!!

I'm sure as she gets older & doesn't want to listen to me, it will get much harder. I am hoping my best weapon against my kids being overweight is that HOPEFULLY I can be a good example for her. I think the way I eat speaks waaaay louder then anything I can say to her.

[paula 4]

Jane, thats a great idea about the little baggies with the serving amount. Never thought about that one. Thats good!

Whats funny is I dont think that ANY of us keep junk food around our homes - esp. on a regular basis.

U]Our[/u] biggest junk food is ceral, but we also keep oranges, cheese squares, pretzels, wheat thins around as a staple. And soda's are only bought when one is sick, like sprite for a stomach bug. I dont even allow juicy juice drinks - too many calories and they drink the entire cartons in like 15 minutes. So we are big on Water. (poor kids - thats all they have)

We bought the type of fridge that has the Water and ice dispenser - that way they get water as needed and they think its cool to have a bit of independence by getting their own ice/drink.

I do allow sunny delight orange drink and milk. They dont abuse either one, so I think these are safe in MY home.

Alex,

It's a clear to me as the nose on her face that this is genetic in her, in a way that it is not in her sister

2 girls, both from same parents. One has the gene, other one dosent. Strange huh? My older sister and I were just like your two girls. She didnt have the "eat all the time" gene... i did and still do. (she is now deceased)

My girl friend has this "bargin" with her kids.

1 hour of exercise/outside play/anything NOT in front of a square. And they have earned 1 hour of square time.

1 for 1.

[Alexandra 55]

2 girls, both from same parents. One has the gene, other one dosent. Strange huh? My older sister and I were just like your two girls. She didnt have the "eat all the time" gene... i did and still do. (she is now deceased)

I don't think it's strange at all, actually. Recessive genes work that way, popping up in some members of a family and not in others. Catie also inherited her aunt's blonde hair and my blue eyes. Gillian got my brown hair and her dad's hazel-gray eyes.

Many people (I'm not saying you do, but many do) think that a genetic link means something should present in every member of a given family. That is just not the case. There are so many variables at work and so many gazillions of genetic possibilities. In the nature/nurture debate, though, it seems clear to me that characteristics present from birth are the ones that are mostly genetic in nature, and a constant urge to eat, in Catie, is one of them.

Interestingly (and happily), she doesn't seem to run to chunkiness just yet (at almost 5), so I'm hopeful that her body type isn't one that will sentence her to a lifetime of obesity. I guess I was the unlucky recipient of a double-whammy from my genetic Soup of components.

[Jachut 487]

This is a really hard thing. I also have 8 and 10 year old boys, as well as a 3 year old daughter and I worry about them, my 10 year old Fraser in particular.

My middle son Ewan is the worst eater, he would eat nothing but junk. Most nights he simply does not eat his dinner unless it is one of about 5 meals. He skips Breakfast if I wont let him eat crap Cereal, despite a lot of healthy choices on offer. He throws out his school lunch and wont eat fruit at fruit time. He doesnt eat any fruit at all actually. Ewan's incedibly active and think as a rake.

Fraser on the other hand loves healthy food but eats far too much. He is more inclined to sit inside on the computer/playstation. He's not fat yet but he's more "solid" than most of his friends - he's also much taller. I think he'll begin to have a weight problem in a few short years.

I do what I can. I buy and serve healthy food. We dont have a lot of junk in the house. We try to do as many active family things as we can. But it still comes down to the them in the end. Fraser's also horribly asthmatic and just doesnt have the aerobic fitness he should. He plays basketball and Aussie Rules football but he struggles and I think he tires running around outside playing.

I try to stop short of being a food nazi though. He has to make his own decisions and I bet vanity will win out as he enters adolescence and starts to care about girls etc.

[Vera 7]

We have great schools! In pre-school they're teaching Hunter that juice will keep you short and milk will make you grow.

Roxanne is in 3rd grade and even in 1st they were teaching them which foods help to make you think oppose-to sugar rush high fat foods that make you sluggish.

I have strict diner rules and serve lots of fish, fruits and vegis. Water is big thing in our house too.

All said I'm watching Roxanne develope my body shape and have been buying more organic trying to keep the hormones down. I'm glad my kids are very active, but I'm still worried.

[Julie* 0]

This is a huge fear of mine as I see me in my 5 year old daughter. She is slightly overweight now but always wants to eat.

We keep no junk in the house- none of us need it and I don't want want her to think that junk food is an acceptable snack. We have also started "exercising" together and I talk alot about how the foods you in your body are really important. Now she asks alot of questions about what foods do in your body. I hope that I can be a good role model to her and she doesn't have to fight the same battle as I have.

[paula 4]

even in 1st they were teaching them which foods help to make you think oppose-to sugar rush high fat foods that make you sluggish.

Wow - Vera. Thats what a school SHOULD do!

... just eats until she is full and stops.

Darcey, this is my 5yr old. Eats till shes full - then stops. LOVES veggie/fruits. Her "treat" at the grocery store is a bowl of fresh mixed fruit. She prefers this over candy. Right now she is in front of the tele with carrot chips. PLUS - she's my most active one (probably ADHD).

Regards to this - she is way bigger then Marcus was as at this age. Another strange gene thing.

question: do you think the frozen dinners (like W/W Smart ones) are 'safe' to give kids?

[paula 4]

We keep no junk in the house- none of us need it and I don't want want her to think that junk food is an acceptable snack.< /div>

Julie - I like this idea. Just like Jane saying that junk food is for "parties" only. You two get a high-five for this!

[Jachut 487]

I wouldnt feed my kids frozen dinners to be honest. The more food you eat that's in its natural state, the better and most frozen packaged food is full of salt and other crap that you just dont need. Whenever I make anything like spaghetti sauce or lasagne I always make for the freezer too. Takes virtually no extra effort and means there's always an easy meal on hand.

Mine go nuts for 2 minute noodles, the very thought of them eating those makes me scared they're going to drop dead of a brain tumour 5 minutes after they finish - chemical nasty crap. I try to keep it all as natural as possible and buy organic where possible despite the massive expense of organic fruit and veg.

My kids turn up their nose at supermarket fruit now, they always know when I've been short on cash. The organic stuff tastes so much better and it actually gets eaten.