Tag Archives: childhood obesity

Kid Fitness: Three in Ten Children Are Obese

That’s a terrifying number. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention the number of children with obesity in the 6 to 11 year old range has quadrupled in the last 25 years. The American Obesity Association says that three in ten American children are overweight with the highest numbers happening among Hispanic, African-American and Native American children. Obesity comes with it’s own particular health problems including heart disease and diabetes that can continue to affect them throughout their lives and there is a very real belief that obesity could soon top smoking as the most preventable cause of … Continue reading →

The Chocolate Touch — Patrick Skene Catling

“The Chocolate Touch” by Patrick Skene Catling is a funny children’s book about a young boy named John Midas who loves chocolate. He would rather eat chocolate than any other food in the whole world, and he won’t eat his regular meals. His parents have tried to explain to him that it’s important to have a balanced diet and that he really should have fruits and vegetables, but he won’t eat them. Consequently, every night he has to take a yucky vitamin tonic to offset some of the damage done by the sugar. One day while walking to a friend’s … Continue reading →

Kid Fitness: Myths about Overweight Children

Genuine concern exists for parents about the weight of their children. We hear a news story every single day about childhood obesity. We hear about what we need to be afraid of and in some cases, what we need to do as parents to protect our children. Today, I want to talk about some of the myths associated with overweight children. Childhood Obesity Needs a Quick Fix It would be nice if there were an instant fix to all fitness issues, especially obesity. It would be great if there were a fast answer for us much less our children. It’s … Continue reading →

Digital Dining and Public Schools: A Cool Way to Monitor What Your Child Eats

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Digital dining is becoming more and more popular for schools these days. What is so special about this type of dining program in school cafeterias? Digital dining allows parents to monitor and even restrict things that their child eats during lunch at school. Just how does this digital dining service work? There are a couple of different ways that schools have implemented this program for parents to better monitor what is eaten and ensure that the money they send for school lunch is actually being spent on school lunch. In Atlanta, Georgia the public school system is utilizing a program … Continue reading →

5 Things You Can Do with Your Infant to Combat Childhood Obesity

Generally speaking, fat babies are healthy ones. There is no need to put a pudgy infant on a diet. However, childhood obesity is on the rise and there are a few things you can do with your infant to combat the likelihood that he will end up obese: 1) Be a healthier mom. Studies show that if mom and dad are obese, baby is more likely to become an obese child. This has to do with lifestyle choices regarding eating and lack of exercises. Make no mistake: babies are smart and they don’t miss a beat! 2) Breastfeed. Although no … Continue reading →

Your Chubby Baby: Cute Roles or Dangerously Fat?

Of my five children, two of them have weighed in the 95th percentile up until about age 2. Interestingly, my oldest, who was exclusively breastfed, was the smallest at birth of any of my children and the fattest as a baby. The girl had triple rolls on her thighs! But eventually, like most normal children, she grew out of it and now she weighs just the right amount for her height and age. I had never given baby fat a second thought until I recently had a conversation with a mother in the park. She mentioned that she put her … Continue reading →

Why Overweight Kids are at Risk For Type 2 Diabetes

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According to the U.S. Surgeon General, approximately 13 percent of children age six to eleven years old, and 14 percent of adolescents twelve to nineteen years old are overweight. In the year 2000, a panel of experts from the American Diabetes Association estimated that on average, 20 percent of newly diagnosed diabetes in children was type 2, and 85 percent of these kids were obese. Type 2 diabetes was once almost exclusively an adult disease, but in recent years the numbers of children with diabetes type 2 is increasing at alarming rates. With today’s surge in video technology, kids are … Continue reading →

Should We Call Our Kids Fat?

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Well, the obvious answer to this question is no. When adults put labels on kids, it can cause psychological problems and it can also generate behavior that is not productive. A number of articles appeared in various papers today discussing this same question. Experts are asking whether or not it is okay for parents to tell their children or their teenagers that they are fat. The debate is over language that the government uses is too fuzzy and gentle and doesn’t cut to the heart of the matter. But the problem is – telling someone that they are fat or … Continue reading →

Heavier toys? Is that an answer?

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We are all aware of the health crisis that worries doctors with regard to obesity in American children. A new solution is being discussed in many newspaper articles – heavy toys. It seems that researchers at Indiana State University conducted an experiment on the effects of children playing with heavier toys. The results are at least interesting, though as a parent – I have my own reservations. In the study, they found that 10 children in the 6 to 8 range burned more calories, had higher rates of breathing and heart rates when they moved around 3 pound toy blocks … Continue reading →

The Good News & The Bad News

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) there is good news from the frontlines of the war on obesity. Personally, I dislike the term war on obesity – and battle of the bulge is just so much not better. Let’s just say that statistics indicate that the number of women considered obese has not risen since a 2000 survey. While women are still heavy or obese – there is stabilization of the number across the board. The bad news on the other hand is that the number of obese children rose from 14% to 17% and the number of … Continue reading →