10 tips to help your child overcome overweight
It can not be repeated enough, it is from childhood that one must adopt good reflexes to grow up and then grow old in good health. In addition to compromising one's physical health, the overweight of your child can cause a malaise that he will then tend to compensate with food. Through a balanced diet and adapted physical activity, here are some tips to help him get out of this vicious circle and preserve his health capital.
Do not make your child feel guilty
Your child He can see that he has extra pounds, his comrades make fun of him. It's your support he needs, to gradually change his habits and adopt actions beneficial to his health. He will not lose his weight in two days so accompany him so that the changes are lasting.
Help him to express his frustration
An annoyance, a frustration, and your child take refuge in the food to appease his anxieties. Fatty and sugary foods in particular are a source of comfort. To help him get around this deleterious habit, help him to express his feelings and offer him an alternative (why not get busy typing in a punching bag?).
Limit sedentary activities
Lack of activity is the number one enemy! For your child found a balance, it must reduce its food intake and increase its energy expenditure. Reduce time spent watching TV or on the computer for less than two hours a day. It is best not to leave the TV on during meals. Explain to him that the messages broadcast on TV are not necessarily good for him, it is primarily a marketing strategy to "sell".
Encourage him to move
Motivate him to do a physical activity, alone or with his friends, which he chooses himself. If he is embarrassed by his weight, an activity "reach" type swimming or cycling can allow him to start the sport smoothly with results on his silhouette quickly observable. An average of one hour of physical activity per day is beneficial: walk as much as you can with it, go to school or go shopping, and go up the stairs. On weekends and holidays, vary the activities: walking, cycling, scooter, rollerblading, ball games, etc.
Adapt your diet
A child must not eat more than he spends. Without being in a restrictive attitude and counting calories, balance meals by varying your diet. For breakfast, choose bread or non-sweet cereals, a dairy product and a fruit. A snack (a dairy product, a slice of bread and a fruit or a fruit juice) taken in the afternoon avoids snacking of all cookies in the cupboard. Serve vegetables at each meal, accompanied by starchy foods. Avoid sodas or other sugary drinks, and only offer water when your child is thirsty. Prefer non-fat cooking such as cooking steam or foil. Enjoy fresh yogurts and cheeses with sweet desserts and bread, rusks or sweet cereals with pastries. Limit salt in the preparation of meals and at the table.
Teach him to listen to the signals of his body
Serve a plate at your child without overloading it. Offer him an extra amount only if he asks for it, do not systematically reclaim it. Encourage him to eat slowly, chewing, so that his body has time to integrate the quantities ingested and to signify to his brain that he has eaten enough (it is satiety). Do not insist that he finish his plate if he is no longer hungry.
Introduce the notion of pleasure into one's diet
food must remain a pleasure for your child. Do not systematically ban foods that he likes to eat, at the risk of creating a sense of frustration. Once a week or occasionally, allow him a cake he likes or some candy. Keep pastries, ice creams and sugary drinks as much as possible for special occasions.To have a varied diet, have him participate in the preparation of meals and ask him to choose the fruits and vegetables he likes. Teach him to discover new foods in various forms and always taste the products.
Do not exclude it from meals
Make it as much as possible that it does not feel apart from other members of the family. Adapt the same meal to all, by dosing the fat. Do not give french fries child and green beans to another, this could cause injustice and frustration. Make a habit of eating all your meals family, at regular hours, sitting at the table.
Do not neglect his sleep
To grow well and be fit, a child must sleep well. Get him to bed early on school watches. Studies have shown a link between lack of sleep and weight gain: children deprived of sleep would consume more fat and sweet products.
Promote the normal development of your child
At homechild, the goal is not a loss of the pounds at any price but a stabilization of the weight, to favor a "normal" development. Restrictive diets, which are growing, can lead to serious deficiencies and developmental disorders. Your doctor will help you in accompanying your child and seek to determine the causes of overweight, for better care.
