Combating Childhood Obesity: Five Healthy Tips for Parents

posted on: Monday January 13, 2014

Raising healthy children in today’s supersized and super busy world can be quite the challenge. From huge restaurant portions to disappearing gym classes, packed schedules to video games and social media, quick and easy has become the norm for many families. But recent studies report that an alarming 5% of U.S. children and teens are severely obese, putting them at risk for serious health problems, like Type 2 diabetes, asthma, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. Fortunately, there are many things parents can do to prevent their children from facing these health problems. David Oliver, DO, an osteopathic physician from Ocala, FL has five easy tips for healthy parenting.

Tip #1: Approach Healthy Eating the Right Way

“How you discuss a child’s eating habits can make a huge difference in helping them make the right decisions,” says Dr. Oliver. When talking about nutrition, explain that healthy foods make their mind and body strong. “Kids tend to respond to that competitive edge. So whenever the opportunity arises, talk to them about the choices they can make to choose healthy foods; during grocery shopping, making dinner, and at restaurants,” HE/SHE says. And when you’re shopping for food, let them choose the healthy foods they like for meals. “The key is to give children some ownership over healthy meal decisions, which will make them more likely to make those same decisions in the future,” says Dr. Oliver.

Tip #2: Stay on Track with Healthy Snacks

It’s not just about healthy meals at breakfast, lunch and dinner. “What parents have available for snacking on in between meals is just as important,” says Dr. Oliver. Parents should try to focus snacks on maximum nutrition from fruits, low-sugar cereals, low-fat dairy products, vegetables, grains, and lean, unprocessed meats. Dr. Oliver recommends keeping plastic containers of cut-up fruit and veggies on a low shelf in the fridge so kids can easily see them. Other healthy snacks under 100 calories include:

• Apple wedges with whole-grain crackers
• 1 tablespoon almond butter spread on celery
• Low-fat string cheese
• Frozen bananas, cherries or grapes to substitute sugary desserts

“Treats are fine in moderation, but limiting high-fat, high-sugar, or salty snacks is best,” Dr. Oliver adds.

Tip #3: Get the Whole Family Moving

“Children and teens need 60 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity most days of the week and every day if possible,” says Dr. Oliver. “Physical activity strengthens bones, decreases blood pressure, reduces stress and anxiety, and increases confidence and self-esteem.” To integrate more movement into your family routine, Dr. Oliver recommends scheduling family physical activity time on a regular basis, like hikes, bike rides and active games. Grab some pedometers and see who can reach 10,000 steps first by the end of the day or plan a day for everyone in the house to do yard work together. If you set exercise goals for the family, Dr. Oliver recommends that you keep them modest at first so children don’t see exercise as punishment.