childhood obesity

Childhood Obesity: 3rd in a Series

05/24/2019 by Julie RN DCES 39 Comments

Parents have the responsibility to provide a healthy environment for their children.

But what is involved in a healthy environment?

A clean house with a safe sleeping arrangement
Providing for good hygiene
Emotional support and teaching coping skills
A sense of family connections
Add your own, this list can be very long!

Our health is holistic in nature. Without good sleep, you will not cope well with the anxieties of life. Without good food, you will not grow and develop properly. One part affects another, which will affect their health today and into the future.

Little changes make a big impact over time

Little changes you make have a ripple effect over time. If you switch from whole milk to 1% milk, you save 45 calories per glass OR 135 calories in 3 glasses each day. This is 945 calories per week, which equals 14 pounds in a year.

One hundred calories saved each day equals 10 pounds lost in a year. When you buy reduced fat milk, you change your environment at home. Small changes like buying lower fat foods can make a big difference over time. Your children are dependent on what you provide, so it’s up to you to make these little changes.

When you buy healthier breakfast cereal, they will eat it
Or switch to whole grain toast
When you buy cookies with less sugar, they will eat them
When you buy low-fat chips, they will eat them
If you buy apples, with a little prep, they will eat them too!

Cut out 100 calories and reduce sugar

Remember, 100 extra calories each day will cause you to gain 10 pounds each year. Considering how small the 100 calorie snack packs are, you can see how it is easy to eat too many calories each day. That’s why most Americans are gaining weight every year.

It is easier to avoid the temptations in the grocery store than it is to resist eating it every day once you bring it home. This should be a whole family affair. Don’t buy something for your mate and expect your children to resist eating it. It is unrealistic to expect your children to resist eating something you have in the house.

Changing to a lower sugar diet may be challenging to the whole family. But to provide a healthy future, it is important for you to control the amount of sugar in your children’s daily diet. Work with your children to find acceptable solutions. Help them make good decisions about the foods you provide in your home.

Incorporate exercise

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently changed its recommendations for daily exercise. Never before have they recommended 2-year-olds get added activities. The CDC realizes that parents need to encourage children at a young age to “move their way”. Dancing is a good example. Put music on and it is natural for kids to dance. Find things your children like to do.

Included in the CDC’s recommendations is a limit on screen time based on age. Screen time includes television and computer games. Parents need to be aware of what their children are doing. Encourage them to get involved in activities.

Be the architect of your home

Children depend on parents to provide a good home environment. By keeping focused on their future, you will be motivated to do the right things.

For more information about the holistic nature of children’s health, download my free ebook. 👉 But before you download that, please make sure you’ve signed up for my email list! Anytime I put out a freebie, you’ll get a copy just for being on my list!

For more information about raising healthy children, please see my program, Kids at Risk for Diabetes.

Childhood Obesity: 1st in a Series

05/23/2019 by Julie RN DCES 2 Comments

Part 1: If you wait until they are diagnosed, it is too late.

This is the beginning. We call it obesity; children measuring over the 85^th percentile for weight given their age and height. We used to call it morbid obesity because it triggers chronic health conditions that can threaten your life. Weight problems in children can affect their future health, either more immediately or as they become young adults.

The difference between adult and childhood diabetes

When an adult is diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, they are told to lose 10% of their body weight and it may revert to prediabetes. This is not true in children! Type 2 diabetes progresses so quickly in children, many of them are put on insulin within two years.

Prediabetes in adults can last ten years or more. In children, prediabetes progresses into type 2 within 12 months. Plus, by the time they are diagnosed with type 2, their beta cells are already dying off. Type 2 in children, the beta cells can die up to 37% per year. This cannot be reversed with current medications. Hospitals can test to determine if the child has type 1 or type 2. But many of them need insulin as soon as they are diagnosed.

Puberty causes many changes

Weight problems accelerate during puberty. Children who may be above normal weight before puberty can quickly change during puberty due to human growth hormone. Their body grows and develops quickly during this time. Parents should monitor their child’s BMI (Body Mass Index) during this phase. (Note: I recommend parents use the CDC charts for BMI including waist circumference for a more accurate evaluation.) https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/childrens_bmi/about_childrens_bmi.html

If you see significant changes in their BMI, talk to your child about what they are doing.

Have they increased junk foods?
Are they eating out more?
Are they playing more computer games?
How has their daily life changed?

Daily choices now will affect their future

Encourage them to be mindful of how their daily choices are affecting their future.

Healthy living today will be the key to minimizing future health problems. Children’s weight over the 85^th percentile can cause problems like high blood pressure, which over time triggers other problems like heart disease and strokes. (Narasimhan, 2015)

Severely obese children (the 95^th percentile or more for weight) are at risk for serious health conditions like fatty liver disease. Fatty liver disease in children is linked to early-onset type 2 diabetes and multiple complications from insulin resistance. (Narasimhan, 2015)

Summary

It’s sad but true: research proves that if the parent waits until the child is diagnosed, the damage is already done. Please don’t wait!

Resources

For more information about how weight gain can affect your child’s overall health, check out this article I recently published.

For more information on healthy lifestyle habits in children, part 2 in this series talks about lifestyle changes!

For information about my program Kids at Risk for Diabetes, please check out my course for the whole family.

If you always want to be notified when I publish a new article or blog post, please join my mailing list using the form below!

References

Narasimhan, S. a. (2015, Jun 1). HS Public Access. Retrieved from Youth-Onset Type 2 Diabetes: Lessons Learned from the Today Study: https://www.ncbi.nim.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4319667/

Childhood Obesity: 2nd in a Series

05/22/2019 by Julie RN DCES 1 Comment

Part 2: Develop healthy lifestyles in children

Parents know in their heart when their child has a weight problem. They rationalize it by saying ‘it’s our family genetics’ or ‘they are perfect for playing football’. The truth is: if parents wait until their child is diagnosed, it is too late to reverse many chronic health conditions.

Healthy lifestyles start in infancy. We teach children to wash their hands, brush their teeth, take a bath and so many other important skills. Parents need to teach good lifestyle skills through puberty.

Have you ever had a two-year-old who was so excited (or hurt) that they could not speak clearly? Did you tell them to calm down but not tell them how? By telling them to take a deep breath, you are teaching them at a young age an effective coping skill. Taking several deep breaths can help reduce anxiety at any age.

Coping skills are not taught in school. When children are diagnosed with anxiety, they are often given medications. They can easily become dependent on these medications for the rest of their life. Parents need to teach a variety of coping skills to their children.

Do you teach your child how to slow down before going to sleep? Do you remove the video games, phones and other blue lights from their bedroom? Getting a good night’s sleep is important for good health.

Parents have many responsibilities

Parents have the responsibility to teach their children many good lifestyle skills. What are you teaching your children? What are you teaching by the examples in your life?

Parents can influence the future of their children in many ways. Through encouraging good study habits and rewarding good grades, we teach children the value of education. Encouraging our children to participate in sports, we teach children good sportsmanship and leadership skills. By doing things together we teach the value of family relationships. Parents provide environmental factors for successful young adults.

But did you know that the success of young adults is often influenced by their overall health? Eighty percent of overweight children continue to gain weight and are classified as obese in adulthood. Employers know obesity affects the overall health of the individual. Employers want to protect their bottom line limiting the number of employees with health problems. This will limit the opportunities that are available to them.

Take care of small problems before they become big problems

As adults, you know it is easier to lose 10 pounds than to lose 100 pounds. Weight problems slowly build up through poor choices. You are not suddenly 100 pounds overweight. Most people gain a little weight every year. That weight gain is normal in children. We want to believe kids will grow into their weight as they gain height. But it becomes really difficult for parents to know what is normal. That is why it is important to use the CDC’s growth charts. https://www.cdc.gov/growthcharts/index.htm

Your children will understand better when they see the changes in the graphs. Talk to them about changes you can make together. Their future may depend on it.

For more information about small changes you can make and how to impact your children’s future, see blog post Part 3, which will talk about creating your family’s environment.

Remember to check out my 30-day course for the whole family. And please join my email list on the form below so you’ll be notified of new posts and get all of my freebies!