Are Your Children at a Healthy Weight?
Author: Shannon Miller Lifestyle
Just as important as it is for you to maintain a healthy weight, it’s also important for your child to do so (and there’s ways you can help).
- Over the past 2 decades, the number of obese children and teens in the U.S.has been on the rise.
- Childhood obesity may lead to health complications like heart disease, Type II diabetes, asthma, sleep apnea, and social discrimination.
The good news is that there are things you and your family can do to keep this epidemic out of your home.
Healthy eating habits are a must when it comes to keeping your child at a healthy weight. Make the following a priority with your family…
- Eating fruits, vegetables, whole grain products
- Consuming low or non-fat dairy products
- Serving reasonably-sized portions
- Drinking lots of water and limiting sugary beverages
- Keeping sugar and saturated fat items to a minimum
Special treats that are loaded with fat or sugar should only be eaten sometimes – this way they maintain their true status as a “treat” rather than becoming an everyday indulgence. Try the following low-fat, low-sugar items that are 100 calories or less:
- Medium size apple or banana
- A cup of blueberries or grapes
- A cup of carrots, broccoli, or bell peppers with 2 tbsp. of hummus
Eating isn’t everything. Encourage your kids to do some sort of moderately intense physical activity for 1 hour on most days of the week, such as:
- Brisk walking
- Playing tag
- Jumping rope
- Playing soccer
- Swimming
- Dancing
In today’s world with all of the gidgets and gadgets available, it might be hard to keep a kid from sitting around watching tv or playing video games, but it’s important to limit their couch potato time so that there is plenty of time for being active!