Childhood Obesity: Health & Wellness

Settling into Homes

It’s an epidemic of global proportion not taken seriously enough. No not COVID-excess weight and obesity in children.

Many in health care consider the situation a public health care emergency. Roughly one in six youths are experiencing obesity, according to the newest available data from the National Survey of Children’s Health. The report shows that in 2021-2022, alone, 17.0% of youth ages 10 to 17 had obesity. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that roughly 14.7 million U.S. children and adolescents between the ages of 2 and 19 are impacted by childhood obesity.

Among the 10 U.S. states with the highest obesity rates in 2024, U.S. News & World Report places Louisiana third at 40 percent.

Obesity alone is not the only concern, as it often leads to a litany of problems down the road including insufficient growth and development, Type 2 diabetes, respiratory and heart problems, high cholesterol, high blood pressure – and more.

The thing to remember – and we know this but forget in the rat race of life- is that most of a child’s life is a reflection of what goes on at home. So consider the following:

Biggest Contributing Factors

The Task at Hand

The goal is to PREVENT, so that you don’t have to take care of the problem. But, don’t lose hope; researchers have found that is easier to get children who are overweight to a healthy range than it is to get kids who are obese to that point.

Handling a Sensitive Topic

When starting conversations with your child about their weight, you want to reduce the stigma they may already feel, by using – or not using – certain words.

An interesting (and rare) study done in 2021 focused on children of varying races, sexes and weight status, ages 10 to 17, asking their preference for weight or body-related words. More than 45 percent of the children participating in the survey did not want to hear the descriptions of chubby, plus size, large, curvy, big, heavy, thick, big-boned, gaining too much weight or even unhealthy weight in regards to their weight status.

 The most preferred terms overall were “healthy weight” and “normal weight.”

Start Them Young

• Introduce a variety of vegetables, fruits, grains when children begin eating solid foods.
• A child’s willingness to eat a new food increases with repeated exposure to it.  So be patient if your child refuses a new food on the first try.
• Replace at least 30 minutes of screen or TV time with a nature walk, biking or some other family activity.
• -Encourage your children to participate in food preparation. At least one study showed that kids ate more of a food they prepared themselves. Start with something easy like a salad, oatmeal cookies or grilled cheese sandwich cut into the shape of a star with a cookie cutter.
• We offer these easy recipes for starters: