The Best Things You Can Do To Fight Childhood Obesity

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Article Title:

The Best Things You Can Do To Fight Childhood Obesity

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Article Description:

Sadly, America's blubber-welcoming lifestyle is affecting

our nation's children. Childhood obesity rates are on the

rise and so are the diseases associated with them. Now more

than ever, parents must actively watch their children's

weight.

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Distribution Date and Time: 2010-03-16 10:15:00

Written By: Hogan

Copyright: 2010

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The Best Things You Can Do To Fight Childhood Obesity

Copyright © 2010 Hogan

Parenting Fun 411

http://www.parentingfun411.com/

According to experts, over 60 percent of Americans are

overweight, 31 percent are obese, and nearly 4 million weigh 300

pounds or more. It's obvious that Americans are literally

“living large.”

This new found girth should surprise no one. Large portions of

cheap food are just a drive-thru away. Most of our hobbies

involve sitting in front of a video screen. And you'll be hard

pressed to find a job that doesn't have us tethered to a desk

and slaving away over a computer. As a society we eat poorly and

exercise infrequently.

Sadly, this blubber-welcoming lifestyle is affecting our

nation's children. Childhood obesity rates are on the rise and

so are the diseases associated with them. Now more than ever,

parents must actively watch their children's weight.

Parenting Fun 411 has compiled a list of the best things you can

do to fight childhood obesity. These tips will help you teach

your children the benefits of eating healthy and exercising.

Before proceeding, be aware that these tips are meant to combat

the fat, not to cure it. If your child is morbidly obese you need

to see a doctor. Our tips are still applicable but only after

your child has sought professional help.

Be A Role Model - Your kids follow your lead. So you must set a

good example. That means you need to eat healthy. You need to

exercise. You need to eat multiple servings of vegetables a day.

You need to get out from in front of the television. You must do

all the things you want your kids to do. After all, if you want

your children to fight off childhood obesity you must be fighting

obesity too.

Don't Compare - Don't compare your kids to other kids. It's

detrimental to both their present and future self esteem. You set

up your children for a lifetime of measuring their self-worth by

comparing it to others. Not all kids, even kids the same height,

are meant to be the same shape and/or weight. Everyone is

different. So do your kids a big favor and only compare them to

themselves.

Moderation - Getting your kids to fight off childhood obesity

doesn't mean they can never have a cookie or they can never play

a video game. What it means is they need balance in their life.

Instead of three cookies, they take one. Instead of spending all

day playing video games, they play for an hour. Living healthy

includes being happy and having fun, and sometimes that comes in

the form of junk food and sedimentary activities.

No Diets, Food Choices - You generally don't want to put your

kids on a diet. Instead you want to teach them about making smart

food choices that will stay with them over the course of a

lifetime. Teach them the importance of regular servings of fruits

and vegetables and the difference between proteins and

carbohydrates. Ultimately, you want them to know what they are

putting into their bodies and you want them only eating when

they're hungry.

Don't Reward Your Kids With Food - Rewarding your kids with food

will cause them to not only eat every time they're happy but

every time they're sad too. In fact, they will equate food with

strong emotions and that's never good. You want your kids to eat

only when they're hungry. Now, children inherently know that

they should eat only when their hungry. However, they lose that

ability because adults force them to do stuff like clean their

plate or eat when they are already full.

Include Your Children In The Meal Process - Assuming they're of

the proper age, and they have the inclination, include your

children in the shopping and preparation of meals. Take them with

you when you shop for produce. During your visits to grocery

stores compare the labels of healthy foods to junk foods. If they

enjoy it, have your kids assist you in preparing meals. That's a

great way to get them excited about eating healthy.

Find Enjoyable Physical Activities - As any adult can attest too,

doing exercises and jogging are boring. So to get your child off

the couch find something they enjoy doing-something that gets

their heart rate up and causes them to break a sweat. If your kid

isn't into popular sports like soccer or basketball, find

something else they like, maybe skateboarding or lacrosse. If

that still doesn't work it's time to get creative. If your kid

is a big fan of video games like Halo and Call of Duty maybe they

would like to try paintball. There's no excuse for your kid to

be on the couch and inactive.

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Hogan is a writer for http://www.ParentingFun411.com/

a website that offers parents a big directory of fun

parenting products and services. Also find a wealth of

original and very useful information for parents

http://www.ParentingFun411.com/blog/ and parents-to-be

such as the top things you can do to fight childhood

obesity: http://www.parentingfun411.com/blog/?p=12