How can my child lose weight?

"This is baby bacon!
As soon as the little ones start to crawl and run
that grows together very quickly … "

Either way, we parents calm down when our own children in baby age are a little like the good Buddha. In fact, there is a lot to be said about this statement, because most baby pounds actually vanish with growth as you grow and you can actually watch the once fat children lose weight. For example, "overweight" says little about how a toddler or even an adolescent might look later. You also become aware of this when you look at the range of percentiles in the examination booklet. Weight differences of 5 kg at one and the same age are completely harmless, even for small children, and this with a height of just 75 or 80 centimeters.

Still "normal" as a baby, later cause for concern

Later, in childhood and in young years before puberty, obesity or even a possible obesity is becoming an increasingly important topic of discussion and, in some cases, a serious problem. Because, in addition to the social effects that obesity can have on children, such as bullying, overweight children also pose major long-term problems, especially in terms of health. The soft bones and joints are heavily stressed by the overweight and can deform permanently. Diseases (for example asthma, diabetes or high blood pressure) that actually tend to occur in adulthood are much more common in overweight children. Last but not least, parents of affected children reproach themselves and ask what they could have done in the past to avoid being overweight today.

Now, as the saying goes, the child has already fallen into the (probably very nutritious) fountain and allegations are of little help. Now the question is more important: "How can my child lose weight and be as healthy as possible?" It is important at this point to provide parents with help and to point out some solutions that have the potential in the long term to help the child lose weight.

BMI in childhood? What are meaningful values?

The so-called body mass index, or BMI for short, tries to determine the optimal weight by relating weight to body size. There are not ideal-typical values, but rather standard ranges in which the weight is rated as optimal. With regard to children and adolescents, however, these values ​​should still be viewed critically: The growth process and hormonal changes can lead to clearly visible fluctuations in body weight, which should not, however, be equated with chronic obesity. For example, if a child is in a kind of "growth break", it may well be that it gains a little weight in the short term. If the growth spurt follows somewhat late, these reserves are sorely needed and quickly run out. Weight loss can take place again within a very short time and, according to the BMI, the short-term excess weight will disappear again.

Only when the weight gain over a long period of time despite Parents are encouraged to actively intervene in the event of steady growth or even lack of exercise and obvious malnutrition.

Balance between diet and exercise

Of course, there is no denying that eating at a younger age can increase the risk of long-term obesity throughout life. However, children in particular – as long as they are still in the growth process – have the advantage that the weight can be reduced quickly and effectively without having to start diets and excessive sports programs that are not typical of children and which deprive the child of their quality of life. The modern media and the extensive facets of early childhood entertainment (such as television or children’s tablets) make a significant contribution to ensuring that children no longer adequately pursue their child’s play instinct. If parents manage to get their child excited about new areas of interest in which exercise is of central importance, they will be surprised at how quickly and easily the child can lose weight with a lot of joy in new exercise options. The problem of the former overweight will soon be a thing of the past without the topic of food really coming to the fore. Incentives for active leisure activities and strategies to direct the child’s interest in a movement-oriented hobby or sport can be:

Lose weight through proper nutrition

In terms of nutrition, there are different areas that influence whether a child increases or decreases.

The usual culprits for rapid weight gain:

  • Sweets
    Weight gain from sweets is probably the most obvious option. Children experience sweets as something positive from an early age. They are used by parents, acquaintances and relatives as a reward or even a bribe. Parents should therefore closely monitor their children’s sugar and fat consumption without pronouncing any basic prohibitions. As parents, it is important to keep an eye on your child’s snack, actively monitor it and, if necessary, reduce it inconspicuously.
  • snacks
    Many parents always tend to offer small meals. But the constant availability of food also encourages children to access it, who may not be hungry at all, but only feel an appetite. What is less of a problem in lean children is really difficult in overweight children. Of course, you should always maintain regular meals to avoid hunger attacks and to rule out an unhealthy metabolism. Sweet and fatty snacks or sweets outside of these meals should remain the exception, especially for children who are already overweight. If parents still want to be armed against hunger at all times, fruit and vegetables should be on offer. Long-term satiating foods should be part of the main meals, because mostly it is the foods that make you particularly fat due to their high calorie density.
  • unhealthy main meals
    While snacking can sometimes be refused, the regularity of the main meals should not be affected by restrictions. Only the type of food preparation and the type of food can be changed to support the child’s necessary weight loss process. Carbohydrates and fats in particular help to gain weight quickly or to become fat. Dishes based on these substances are therefore rather counterproductive and should therefore be less on the plate if you want to buy them. Healthy alternatives with a low percentage of fat and a high percentage of vegetables, fruits and protein products such as fish and white meat, on the other hand, help children to lose weight quickly because they are much lower in calories.

Parents as role models

We parents often forget an important part of the way parenting works: chewing. Children learn a variety of behaviors simply by copying parental behavior. That means: To animate a child, to exercise a lot and to eat healthy, it is not enough to just preach these things. It is much more important to eat a healthy diet yourself and to demonstrate every day that exercise is part of everyday life.

Pressure and insults – not here!

Constantly telling a child that it is too fat and fat or that it may be offensive because of its overweight is not only mean, but counterproductive. A child who does not feel accepted by his or her family as it is is more likely to withdraw even with positive changes in everyday life than to consider them as good. We adults too know also use the food phenomenon as a kind of substitute satisfaction. This behavior there is also in children. They react to rejection or punishment by eating food or sweets in secret.

Can children lose weight with diet products?

Even if the pharmaceutical industry already offers a large selection of child’s diet products and food supplements, these should not be used as a lump sum so that a child can lose weight.

For a healthy weight loss in a family environment, weight loss products such as shakes, pills or even a complete lack of food are absolutely nonsensical.

What is important for the later health of the children is not a short diet, but a long-term switch to a healthy diet and sufficient exercise.

Stay natural and act with common sense

If a family wants to support their child in losing weight, they should avoid falling into extreme behavior. Parents should ensure regular eating habits through fixed meals. It is important to control the consumption of sweet and greasy sweets without basically prohibiting them. We all know that children are particularly drawn to what is forbidden. The children’s active leisure activities should be supported. In severe cases, when parents feel that they are unable to get the problem under control themselves, they should contact professional nutritional counseling who can show other alternative ways of losing weight. A hospital stay or a medical diet should always be the last resort. This also applies to heavily overweight children and adolescents.

RELATED ITEMS

Like this post? Please share to your friends:
Christina Cherry
Leave a Reply

;-) :| :x :twisted: :smile: :shock: :sad: :roll: :razz: :oops: :o :mrgreen: :lol: :idea: :grin: :evil: :cry: :cool: :arrow: :???: :?: :!: