Fitness Health

How to lose Weight?

As a parent or other caregiver, you can do a lot to help your child reach and maintain a healthy weight. Staying active and consuming healthy foods and beverages are important for your child’s well-being. You can take an active role in helping your child—and your whole family—learn habits that may improve health.

How to Identify Weight Problem in Kids

Being able to tell whether a child is overweight is not always easy. Children grow at different rates and at different times. Also, the amount of a child’s body fat changes with age and differs between girls and boys.

One way to tell if your child is overweight is to calculate his or her body mass index External link (BMI). BMI is a measure of body weight relative to height. The BMI calculator uses a formula that produces a score often used to tell whether a person is underweight, a normal weight, overweight, or obese. The BMI of children is age- and sex-specific and known as the “BMI-for-age.”

BMI-for-age uses growth charts created by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Doctors use these charts to track a child’s growth. The charts use a number called a percentile to show how your child’s BMI compares with the BMI of other children. The main BMI categories for children and teens are

  1. healthy weight: 5th to 84th percentile
  2. overweight: 85th to 94th percentile
  3. obese: 95th percentile or higher

Weight Loss Tips for Kids
1. Calorie CountYou should not eliminate calories from the kid’s diet at random because they give energy and have other essential health benefits. You need to know exactly how much calorie your kid needs for proper growth. Anything more than that will hinder weight loss. The amount of calorie that a child needs varies according to his age, gender, BMI, activity, etc. Don’t stress the child by daily weight checks at home because it deviates on a daily basis are natural.

2. Low-Glycemic DietGlycemic Index (GI)- The ability of carbohydrates to raise blood glucose is referred to as GI. Studies suggest that low-glycemic food keeps one full for longer because it takes time to digest or gets digested at a low pace and blood sugar also stays stable. They also have more fiber and are less processed or refined.You don’t need to totally eliminate carbs from your kid’s diet. All you need to do is select low or medium-glycemic carbs like broccoli, carrots, apples, berries, beans, nuts, peanut butter, yoghurt with honey and fruits, milk, cheese, pineapple, sweet potatoes, banana, dried fruit, pasta, high-fibre cereal, brown rice, and ice cream. Avoid high-glycemic carbs like corn, potatoes, white rice, French fries, chips, juice, jam, sweet and frozen yoghurt, bread, pancakes, waffles, pizza, popcorn, instant oats, and refined forms such as maida.

3. More Fruits, VeggiesGenerally, you can add more vegetables and fruits in many colours to your kid’s diet. Serve whole fruits rather than fruit juices. This is because juices have less fibre compared to whole fruit as it loses its fibre content and addition of sugar if done, adds to more calories, while whole fruits are more filing and fibre-rich that is good for digestion. However, not all fruits and veggies are good for weight loss. Some may be high glycemic, that we have discussed in the point above.

4. Daily Exercises/SportsExercise or some sports activity for at least 60 minutes daily is recommended. Start with 15-20 minutes daily and increase the duration gradually. Make it entertaining by including your child’s peers or organising dance and music sessions, running with a pet dog, a family swimming session, etc. This will encourage the child to participate enthusiastically. Some of the good exercises for kids to lose weight are:
1.Gymming
2.Swimming
3.Cycling
4.Dancing
5.Running
6.Roller-skating
7.Aerobics
8.Any kind of sports after school

5. Good SleepIdeally, kids need 9 to 11 hours of sleep and teenagers need8 to 10 hours of sleep. Early and good sleep is essential for proper growth and metabolism that helps maintain their body weight.

What Are the Dangers of Fast Weight Loss for Kids?

To begin with, approach the subject of weight loss with care and sensitivity. It should be an open dialogue that addresses weight-related concerns and insecurities of the child. It is seen that many kids, especially girls, try to experiment with weight loss on their own. This could be unscientific and harmful. Watch out for that and educate them.

Please note that your kid may have some underlying health condition causing weight gain like Cushing’s syndrome, hypothyroidism, medication side effects, etc. Please consult your pediatrician before you begin their weight loss journey.                           

                                                                                                                   

THANKYOU FOR READING

BE STRONG BE SAFE

GOD BLESS YOU ALL

Subin Joshua
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Author: Hi there, my name is Subin Joshua, and I am a Medical student. I grew up in a family of teachers and know that being a social worker is my calling. My passion for helping others has been evident in my involvement in helping the poor and needy for the last three years. Through those experiences, I have learned to interact with a diverse group of people, which has increased my ability to relate to others.