Should Children Do Diet?

Some children there are overweight or even obese. This condition is sometimes leave parents confused about whether their children should go on a diet or not. Should children go on a diet?

Diet is usually interpreted as an effort to lose weight by restricting calories or certain foods. But children do not need or should not do so.
This is because children are still growing and evolving. During that time he needed many kinds of healthy foods to maintain optimal growth and development, as quoted from Kidshealth, Thursday (30/06/2011).

child-overweightBeing overweight can indeed cause health problems. But the children could endanger his health if you do something drastic like skipping meals or deciding just eating some particular food.
If the child does need to lose weight, then you should visit a dietician who can explain how to reduce calories safely and the child can still get all the nutrients it needs.

One important thing is do not give pills, special drinks or other liquids that claim to be able to lose weight quickly, because children still need a healthy and balanced menu for growth.
So, children do not need to go on a diet but can be replaced with a healthy and balanced diet to meet all nutritional needs, and involve more physical activity.

Some things parents can do to help children have a healthy body weight are:

  • Knowing how many calories needed by children every day, so that parents can provide healthy food for children as needed and still give children fruits and vegetables.
  • Not consume more than 1 serving of sweetened beverages like soft drinks, sweetened milk, sweet tea, fruit drinks or sports drinks, but give lots of water to keep the body hydrated.
  • Starting a healthy diet for the entire family, and parents can be a good model for children
  • Get used to eat at the table together and not in front of the television, as well as limit the time children in watching television, playing video games or sitting at the computer.
  • Do not use food as a reward for the achievement of children, especially fast food.
  • Take time to be active together, like walking outside, cycling, jogging or dancing together in the house.

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Posted in Mom & Kids

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