Dictionary For Dads

Weight management in children has become a big problem especially in the United States. One in five children between the ages of 6 and 17 suffers from childhood obesity. Being or becoming overweight  effects children and teens in many ways. It usually has  a large psychological effect on the child or teen as well as major health issues which are associated with childhood obesity. In addition childhood obesity often leads to teenage obesity and adult obesity. So in order to prevent this fathers need to  act now to treat childhood and teenage obesity. Nobody wants to be called a fatty at school so let us give you the information you need to try and prevent that.

Childhood and Teenager Obesity is clinically diagnosed as greater than 90th percentile for weight for height; or greater than or equal to the 95th percentile Body Mass Index (BMI), age and sex specific.

• Obesity in early childhood can lead to adult obesity.
• Genetics and family environment play a role in childhood obesity.
•  The terms "obese" and "overweight" often are used interchangeably.
• Technically, " childhood or teenage obesity" is the upper end of being over weight.
• The gold standard is becoming the body mass index (BMI), since this is also used for adults.

Teenagers and children need help in developing better eating habits and exercise routines to prevent obesity. These changes need to be structured by parents in the household. Do not blame your child or be derogatory or judgmental towards them, just help them.

Behavioral Modification Plan:
This plan should take in to consideration how much a child eats, what they eat and how much physical activity they are engaging in. This plan should be measurable an have indicators of goal attainment. This plan should be for a identified amount of time such as thirty or ninety days. This plan should have short term goals which are attainable and realistic. This plan also should have long term goals which are generally twelve month goals.

Get It Started: You and your child need to agree that there is a weight problem and you are both committed to tackling the problem by working together. Both you and your child need to commit to this.

Identifying Goals:                                                                             Set attainable goals that the child can comprehend and achieve. This may include one behavior such as taking soda or other sweet drinks out of their diet. In addition, make sure you do not ask your child to do anything you are not willing to do yourself regardless if you are over weight or not. They need support and mentor ship. Thats right you are going on this mission with them.

As these goals are reached provide your child with a positive reward which includes a physical activity such as a trip to the zoo or roller skating rink. You need to be creative in setting up your rewards and be careful not to put the child into a situation he/she is unable to achieve at his/her body weight.

Once the initial goals have been reached and rewarded set new goals which may include cutting out all white breads, cookies, cakes, candy, or ice cream. Again after a few weeks of doing this provide your child with reward which involves physical activity.

All the short term goals should be structured consistent with the long term goal. If the child loses sight of the long term goal your plan will not be effective. The best way to describe this it say that your long term goal is to  lose 40lbs this year. Structure it out so that the child does four short term goals of losing ten pounds every ninety days.

The household needs to be supportive and consistent with these goals in order to have any success with treating childhood obesity. So make sure when you go food shopping not to buy items that are not healthy. If you do, you are sabotaging your child’s efforts because these will be triggers for your child to indulge. Focus on getting more lean meats, veggies, whole wheat breads, and fruits and nuts. Avoid fad diets and stick to the calories and a provide balanced meals with adequate portions.

Implement some healthy activities into the family’s daily schedule. This will give you more time to spend with your family and will be good for all involved. You could put up a basketball hoop to play ball with your child a couple of times a week. You could implement after dinner walks around the neighborhood or go on a bike ride together.

Make sure your child is an active and contributing member of your household by assigning chores. These jobs are all physical and have a lot of benefits to them as highlighted on our chores page.

It is no surprise that we have seen a large increase in childhood weight with the onset of Xbox, Play station, Game boy, and Computers. This is in addition to television which is also a major contributor to childhood weight problems. That said you need to make some changes in the household which dictate how much time a day can be wasted in front of these contraptions. This is going to be a tough one but excluding homework children should not spend more than one hour per day in front on these devices. So if your child spends 30 minutes on the computer then they are only allowed 30 minutes more in front of any of the other devices. This is very important.

Be patient and supportive as you continue to make healthy choices for your children. If the child gets off track be supportive and get him/her back on track. The changes you make may take some time to get use to but be patient and remember progress not perfection.

Change is a difficult concept especially with all the stress of life going on. You child is more likely to realize his or her goals if their dad is there working together with them and providing support and mentor-ship. So do not give up dad they need you to hang in there with them for the long haul. Over time these old habits will be replaced by healthy alternatives which will serve both you and your child over a lifetime with healthy weight.