Is Surgery An Option For Obese Kids
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over nine million children in the United States are now considered overweight or obese. But as more and more adults turn to various forms of surgery to deal with their obesity, the question arises whether or not the same medical procedures are suitable for children.
Weight-loss surgery can be an effective option for some severely obese adults who have been unable to lose weight using conventional weight-loss methods. However, as with any type of surgery, there are risks and potential long-term complications.
Perhaps more importantly, the long-term effects of weight-loss surgery on a child’s future growth and development are largely unknown.
Some parents are convinced that weight-loss surgery may be the only solution for their child’s obesity. However, there is no guarantee that your child will get down to a normal healthy weight or keep off the weight in the long run.
Dr. Armen Ketchedjian, author of the book Will It Hurt? A Parent’s Practical Guide to Children’s Surgery, cautions against this radical approach when it comes to pediatric dieting and weight loss.
“I don’t believe that this kind of surgery is necessary or practical for children,” says Dr. Ketch, as he is known to his patients. “I think that proper diet and behavioral modification are much more appropriate in this case. Teaching your child to follow a healthy lifestyle makes a lot more sense.”
Here are some tips Dr. Ketch recommends for parents who want to help their children lose weight and become healthier:
- Make sure the child is physically active every day
- Have the child plan and cook healthy meals with the parents
- Avoid trips to fast-food restaurants
- Stock the pantry with healthy snacks
- Avoid buying and keeping junk food in the house
Dr. Ketch’s book, Will It Hurt?, is intended to educate parents about pediatric surgery. It is an easy-to-read resource that will give parents, their children and their families the help and reassurance they need to make any surgical experience as stress-free as possible.
Listed in The Guide to America’s Top Anesthesiologists by the Consumer Research Council of America, Dr. Ketch trained at Cornell Medical Center with a fellowship at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and a pain management elective at Boston Children’s Hospital. He has worked to help develop new techniques in ambulatory anesthesia, taught medical students and residents and cared for more than 10,000 patients.
Keeping Kids Fit: How to Fight the Fat
by Pat Simpson
Not long ago, the Institute of Medicine’s Committee on Progress in Preventing Childhood Obesity released a report calling for a collective effort on the part of the government and public institutions to take more action in addressing the problem of childhood obesity in the U.S. Since then, numerous studies and news reports have focused on research findings showing how obesity can start as early as infancy.
My organization, Parents as Teachers National Center, is one national parent support organization taking these studies seriously and developing practical ways to help families fight back against childhood obesity.
We know, for example, that parents often underestimate their influence on children. So researchers at Saint Louis University School of Public Health tested “High 5 for Kids”, one of our programs that helps parents learn how to encourage their preschoolers to eat more fruits and vegetables. They wondered whether what the parents ate affected what their children ate and guess what? They found that it did! When parents ate more fruits and vegetables, their children did, too! How easy is that?
Learn to read your child’s hunger cues – Young children have an innate ability for judging when they are hungry or full. If your baby is full, she might close her mouth or turn away when food is offered. Toddlers may play with the food or push it away. If your child is still hungry, she will continue to open her mouth or look expectantly for more food. A child will usually eat as much food as she needs and will only eat more if she is encouraged or forced. Because children’s portion sizes are smaller, don’t offer too much food at one time. A good rule of thumb for portion sizes is one tablespoon of food for each year of a young child’s age.
Make eating a supervised social event – At mealtime and snack time sit down, slow down and focus on food and family. With fewer distractions your child is also more likely to stop eating when she’s full. Make mealtime pleasant and fun! Your child will learn to associate your attention and eating healthy food with enjoyment, leading to good eating habits down the road.
Exercise together – By playing with your child and including her in your exercise routine, you will teach her from a very early age that exercise is important. Go on walks, play together at the playground, stretch together on the floor. Not only will you and your child get some much needed physical fitness and bonding time, but this will also boost your child’s motor development.
Make a healthy lifestyle a priority for the entire family – Good nutrition and fitness is essential and beneficial for the entire family. Children learn how to behave by watching and imitating their parents. Be a good role model and let your child see you eating well and exercising.
For more child development and parenting information, visit www.ParentsAsTeachers.org.
About Parents as Teachers National Center
Based in St. Louis, Parents as Teachers National Center is the resource base and backbone of Parents as Teachers, a parent education and early childhood development program serving parents throughout pregnancy until their child enters kindergarten, usually age 5. The nonprofit National Center oversees more than 3,000 programs offering Parents as Teachers services nationwide as well as in several other countries. For more information about Parents as Teachers, visit www.ParentsAsTeachers.org.