Your Role in Childhood Overweight Elimination: Identifying Childhood Overweight

Your role in childhood overweight elimination begins with you being a good role model. To curb obesity in our children we must lead from the front and be consistent

Somebody once said that together we stand and divided we fall. This is a very weighty statement in the context of this discussion of your role in childhood overweight elimination. For us to win the war against childhood overweight and obesity, we must all resolve to pool together and bring up healthy children free from the scourge of overweight and obesity. This is very important because being overweight is linked to certain chronic health conditions which we can’t afford to let our children go through. You may not achieve this by leaning on your own understanding. And therefore seeking for professional help will be very ideal. Doctor Dalal Akoury is one of the few experts who are very experienced and are equal to the task. You can get to this great medical professional by scheduling for an appointment with her in her office at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center. She actually founded this facility primarily to offer her exclusive NER Recovery Treatment to everyone including other physicians and health care professionals through training, clinical apprenticeships, webinars and seminars. It may not matter your background but this is open to everyone including any qualified professional in all discipline.

It is important to note that childhood overweight can only be identified scientifically through the measurement of Body Mass Index or BMI. This can be calculated using kilograms (kg) and meters (m), or pounds (lbs) and inches (in). The moment BMI is calculated, it’s findings can be used to determine if a child is overweight or not, by comparing the BMI with the CDC growth charts for children of the same age and sex.

• Children who have a BMI at or above the 95%, percentile for age and sex are considered overweight.
• Children with a BMI that falls between the 85%-95% are classified as at risk for overweight.

And because children may not understand the root cause of the problem, it therefore becomes your role in childhood overweight elimination by consulting with pediatrician or your family physician to help you in monitoring the weight and the child’s growth. Screening for other health risk factors (such as blood pressure or lipid profile) may be recommended by your physician. Remember that the BMI is just an initial tool in a series of examinations required to determine if your child is overweight. Determining your child’s overweight or obesity is not something you do by just making observation. Therefore at no time should a child be diagnosed and labeled overweight by a parent, teacher, or other lay (non-medical) individual. Discussions concerning the child’s weight should occur only after reviewing his or her condition with a medical professional. And this is what we do best at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center under the able leadership of doctor Dalal Akoury. Talk to us today and allow us to not only help your child, but you as well.

Your Role in Childhood Overweight Elimination: Tips for Parents & Caregivers to Help Establish Healthy Eating Patterns with Kids

• Parents should choose what children can eat, (what foods and drinks are in the home, what foods and drinks are served at meals and snacks, what restaurants they go to, etc.) but among those foods, parents should allow kids to choose whether they eat at all and how much to eat.
• Fruits and vegetables, as compared to high calorie snack foods (often high fat and high sugar), should be readily available in the home.
• Serve and eat a variety of foods from each food group.
• Use small portions – child portions are usually very small, particularly compared to adult portions. More food can always be added.
• Bake, broil, roast or grill meats instead of frying them.
• Limit use of high calorie, high fat and high sugar sauces and spreads.
• Use low-fat or nonfat and lower calorie dairy products for milk, yogurt and ice cream.
• Support participation in play, sports and other physical activity at school, church or community leagues.
• Be active as a family – Go on a walk, bike ride, swim or hike together. Limit TV time.
• Avoid eating while watching TV. TV viewers may eat too much, too fast, and are influenced by the foods and drinks that are advertised.
• Replace high-sugared drinks, especially sodas, with water or low fat milk.
• Limit fruit juice intake to two servings or less per day (one serving = ¾ cup) – Many parents allow their children unlimited intake of fruit juice (100%) because of the accompanying vitamins and minerals. However, children who drink too much fruit juice may be consuming excess calories.
• Encourage free play in young children and provide environments that allow children to play indoors and outdoors.
• Role model through actions healthy dietary practices, nutritional snacks, and lifestyle activities. Avoid badgering children, restrictive feeding, labeling foods as “good” or “bad,” and using food as a reward.

Your Role in Childhood Overweight Elimination: Expert’s role in Eliminating Childhood Obesity 

Tips for Pediatricians & Other Health Care Professionals to Facilitate the Prevention of Childhood Overweight. Health Supervision Recommendations may include the following:

• Identify and track patients at risk by virtue of family history, birth weight, or socioeconomic, ethnic, cultural, or environmental factors.
• Calculate and plot BMI once a year in all children and adolescents.
• Use change in BMI to identify rate of excessive weight gain relative to linear growth.
• Encourage, support, and protect breastfeeding.
• Encourage parents and caregivers to promote healthy eating patterns by offering nutritious snacks, such as vegetables and fruits, low-fat dairy foods, and whole grains; encouraging children’s autonomy in self-regulation of food intake and setting appropriate limits on choices; and modeling healthy food choices.
• Routinely promote physical activity, including unstructured play at home, in school, in child care settings, and throughout the community.
• Recommend limitation of television and video time to a maximum of 2 hours per day.
• Recognize and monitor changes in obesity-associated risk factors for adult chronic disease, such as hypertension, dyslipidemia, hyper-insulinemia, impaired glucose tolerance, and symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome.

Like I had indicated before, the spirit is all about pooling together. In view of this, the following are some of the advocacy recommendations:

• As a professional help parents, teachers, coaches, and others who influence youth to discuss health habits, not body habitus, as part of their efforts to control overweight.
• Enlist policy makers from local, state, and national organizations and schools to support a healthful lifestyle for all children, including proper diet and adequate opportunity for regular physical activity.
• Encourage organizations that are responsible for health care and health care financing to provide coverage for effective obesity prevention and treatment strategies.
• Encourage public and private sources to direct funding toward research into effective strategies to prevent overweight and to maximize limited family and community resources to achieve healthful outcomes for youth.
• Support and advocate for social marketing intended to promote healthful food choices and increased physical activity.

The list is endless and I want to encourage you to be smart and get the first hand information from the experts by scheduling for an appointment with doctor Dalal Akoury today.

Your Role in Childhood Overweight Elimination: Identifying Childhood Overweight