Changing Parental Behavior May Help Obese Kids Lose Weight

[Guest guest]

It's hard to help overweight children lose

weight<http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/brain-and-behavior/art\

icles/2011/01/25/changing-parental-behavior-may-help-obese-kids-lose-weight#>,

and keeping it off over the long-term is even tougher. But obese children

whose parents took classes on the importance of healthy

eating<http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/brain-and-behavior/art\

icles/2011/01/25/changing-parental-behavior-may-help-obese-kids-lose-weight#>and

exercise lost weight and kept it off for the next two years, according

to a new Australian study.

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Researchers said the study shows that targeting parents -- rather than the

children -- can help stave off weight gain in children aged 5 to 9.

" We believe it makes developmental sense to involve only parents, " said lead

study author Anthea Magarey, a senior research associate of nutrition and

dietetics, at Flinders University School of

Medicine<http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/brain-and-behavior/a\

rticles/2011/01/25/changing-parental-behavior-may-help-obese-kids-lose-weight#>i\

n

Adelaide, Australia, where the study took place. " It takes the stigma

away from the child and supports a whole family approach. "

The study findings were released online in advance of publication in the

February issue of *Pediatrics*.

For young children, parents play a huge role in their eating and exercise

habits, Magarey explained. The kids are still spending most of their time at

home and eating most meals at home. Parents buy and prepare food, and decide

what and how much kids can eat. They are responsible for providing

opportunities for children to be active and can set rules for TV and video

game use.

The researchers enrolled mostly mothers of 169 moderately obese or

overweight children aged 5 to 9 years in a six-month " healthy lifestyle "

course, in which parents were taught about portion size and reading

nutrition labels, being a good role model for their children and setting

limits. (Half of the parents also took a parenting course, although the

study authors found little difference between the two groups).

At the end of six months, children's body mass index (a measurement that

takes into account weight and height) dropped an average of 10 percent, as

did their waist circumference. Eighteen months later, the children had kept

the weight off, the investigators found.

In the United States, about 17 percent of children and adolescents aged 2 to

19 years are obese, a number that has been increasing since the 1970s,

according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

About 24 percent of U.S. children aged 2 to 5 are overweight, meaning they

have a BMI in the 85th percentile or above for their height and age. That

number rises to 33 percent among children aged 6 to 11, according to the

CDC.

After the healthy lifestyle sessions, parents said they felt more

comfortable saying " no " to their children's demands, setting limits on the

type of food the children could eat, limiting the amount of time they spent

watching TV or playing video games, and establishing consequences for

breaking the rules.

Parents assessed their own current eating patterns and set their own goals

for change, such as limiting TV to no more than two hours a day, doing more

active family activities and making small dietary changes that can go a long

way, such as eating more fruit and vegetables, using reduced-fat dairy

products and drinking fewer sweetened beverages such as sodas.

Kathy Kolasa, a professor of nutrition services and patient education at

East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C., said she does not believe

children have to be excluded from obesity prevention programs because of the

risk of stigmatizing them.

But making sure parents know about nutrition, portion size and how to make

sure their children are getting enough physical activity is critical.

" In my experience, there are plenty of parents who tell me they know what to

feed their kids and that they are eating healthy, " Kolasa said. " When we

analyze their diet, they are surprised that they are not following or

providing age-appropriate portions and healthy

foods<http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/brain-and-behavior/arti\

cles/2011/01/25/changing-parental-behavior-may-help-obese-kids-lose-weight#>for

their kids. "

As for the parents included in the study, their weight did not change over

the two years.

LINK<http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/brain-and-behavior/artic\

les/2011/01/25/changing-parental-behavior-may-help-obese-kids-lose-weight>

--

Ortiz, MS, RD

*The FRUGAL Dietitian* <http://www.thefrugaldietitian.com>

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