to think these people are in denial about their children's weight?

[Sops]

Our childrens' reception class has just been weighed and measured and we have had letters home telling us the results.
Yesterday two other mums asked me where how my ds scored (81st percentile) saying that of their two, one was 'on the top percentile of overweight' and the other obese. I made non-committal noises at this, and just said that they both looked pretty average to me, and in the end both mothers agreed that really it meant absolutely nothing and neither of the children really had a weight problem and they weren't 'going to take any notice of it'.
Is it just me, but if my children were assessed as overweight/obese at five I would be taking a long hard look at our lifestyle and making some significant changes.
Are they right to ignore it or should they take action?

Surely they are going iffy he kiddy version of BMI, rather than just purely on weight? No one would be daft enough to say 'oh yes, that lanky string bean of a child is overweight, because he weighs more than an average height 5YO'?

I do agree about some parents wanting the reassurance of these tests though, assuming they are done properly. It can be a question of perception which is highly personal and dependant on a lot of factors.

I looked at DS1 the other day and commented to DP that he was starting to put on some puppy fat, and I hoped it wasn't a sign of another impending growth spurt as he was already tall for his age and growing so fast he costs me a fortune! DP gently pointed out that if I looked at DS1 next to other kids of his age, he was about the same height and average build, so maybe I should compare him to his peers rather than his scrawny shrimp of a brother.

Given that DS2 and I are both stick insect sized, it is what i am used to so I took anything more than that to be a bit chubby (in DS1, not other peoples kids) when in reality he is the 'normal' sized one. That said, although DS2 has a visible ribcage, when measured with his weight & height he comes in as being ok and within range for his age.

OP you're right, of course.

But equally if your child is on the 81st per centile some might say your DC was boardering on underweight? I haven't a clue. I don't know because I don't know the classifications - maybe underweight is 99 percentile plus? No idea. But did the result make you question your lifestyle and your DC and wondered if your DC needs to eat a bit more? Or, like the women you're talking about have you decided that your DC is perfectly healthy and looks about average? Just wondering.

People take the National Child Measurement Programme so personally sometimes it never ceases to amaze me.

For those people (and there are always some!) who get all arsey and refuse to allow their kids to take part...how to you expect the Government to gather statistics and do something about the obesity epidemic?

They need this information to find which areas have the most obese children and why. They need to know how much money to put into doing something about this problem...and where to channel that money. They need to know if it's linked to poverty or other things.

If you know your own child is not overweight, what's the problem? Again, if you know your child is overweight, what's the problem in helping compile these important statistics in Reception and year 6?

OP ignore me, I'm talking out of my backside. I thought 81 was the lighter end of the scale for some reason - temp. lack of reasoning result of 4hrs sleep last night.

As you were.

Why did you say to the mums tht their kids look fine but then post on here suggesting that they are in denial?

Either the kids are fine, in which case yabu for such a provocative thread title on a non-issue, or they're chubby and you were dishonest to the mums but are now bitching on this forum. Nice!

I used to think the same....I would think that people were being lazy etc...but on MN I have read sad tales of Mums who's kids relly dont seem to eat that much....3 meals and some fruit....and they're fat.

I think it's not so clear cut....my DD eats a mad amount of food but is skinny...I know there are kids who if they ate that, then they would be overweight.

Because it's none of the state's business how much your child weighs! How would you feel if the state wanted to weigh you in your workplace as part of national program? And even if it was school is a place for education not for weighing children, ramming religion down their throats or other forms of stealth parenting. Children can be weighed at the doctors' when the parent is present to have a chat about the outcome. As if the government was capable of doing anything about the obesity epidemic anyway. It's just meaningless job creation and a waste of taxpayers money. Spend the money on better facilities in schools, including better school meals.

Do they not take height into consideration then ?? That's madness

My 9yo old ds weighs more than his 12 year old sister but he's also a lot taller than her. She's 6.5 stone and skinny as a rake, he weighs slightly more but according to these charts (I presume) he would be classed as obese

they do take height into account - as far as i can work out, it's a basic BMI measurement

I don't think my boys had one of these tests, he's always been at a SN school tho so may be different, and he has his height and weight monitored at his hospital apointments or maybe parents are only contacted if their child is overweight ? DD had one done and we didn't hear anything back so I presume all is fine

My 2.5 yr old is deemed obese. My DS was at that age, too, despite eating like a bird and being extremely active. At 6 yrs old he is extremely tall and skinny, and I can tell just by looking at my DD's long limbs and big feet that she will be, too.

A bit of common sense and perspective needs to be applied here. Even the nurse who told me that my DD is 'technically overweight' said she wasn't worried as DD is so tall and from tall stock (I am 6 foot myself and not overweight).

If my then 5 yr old dd had weighed 1 lb less I wouldn't have received the letter informing me she was overweight and at risk of heart disease in later life.
I feed her the same as her twin brother who is skinny, but her body type is different. She's grown in the past year -a lot- and is now just within normal weight range. I haven't fed her any different or made her exercise any more than she does (she's on ther go all the time)_.
I know that some people in my situation would have panicked and placed their child on an inappropriate low fat adult diet and given them sugary low fat processed food snacks. That's what worries me about this mass generalisation.
I took dd to my gp and health visitor and school nurse-all agreed she was fine.
Treat each child as an individual and look at their history-my dd hadn't changed percentile since she was a premature breastfed baby-so even though her weights on a different line to her height , that's ok for her.
She's beautiful-solid,n ot wobbly and stronger/faster than her brother!

"A friend of mine had a letter home about her 5 year old daughter being obese she is very tall I would estimate the size of a 7 year and average build."

These letters are based on weight, height and age and compared to other children of that age, It's the ratio of height to weight that is measured not just the weight. To go into the overweight section the child will be on the 93rd centile for bmi for her age. A child can be 1 and half stone lighter or heavier and still be within normal range.
My DD was on 50th centile and I still got the letter to say she was within normal range so everybody gets the letter.

"cause it's none of the state's business how much your child weighs! How would you feel if the state wanted to weigh you in your workplace as part of national program? And even if it was school is a place for education not for weighing children, ramming religion down their throats or other forms of stealth parenting. Children can be weighed at the doctors' when the parent is present to have a chat about the outcome. As if the government was capable of doing anything about the obesity epidemic anyway. It's just meaningless job creation and a waste of taxpayers money. Spend the money on better facilities in schools, including better school meals."

Are you paranoid or somethng, health care at school has been going on since time inmemorium. We had the nit nurse, eyes, teeth and veruccas checked at school,
Why take up doctors appointments, making parents take time of work taking children to appointments when it can be quickly and efficeintly in one place. Some parents just don't care and wouldn't take their child to appointments. Some parents however wonderful don't pick things up ie my sister turned out to be very short sighted picked up at a school appointment. She didn't know any better as she thought everyone's sight was the same as her, and nobody in our family wore glasses, .

What is wrong with the government collecting statistics on weight etc so they can actually do something about it if a problem starts showing up.

Zimm - the NHS have always carried out weighing/measuring/eye and hearing tests in schools.

In fact it was probably far more intrusive in the 'olden' days. My mum used to dread the weigh ins because I was so under weight and she would get a phone call from the school nurse about it.

I also had a measles(?) injection at primary school. We queued up in the gym hall like a production line. I remember some of the 'big boys' fainting. They had to lie down with their feet up on a bench while we walked past them!

Oh FFS, BMI does not correlate with health. Let them live their probably healthy lives free of your judgements.

Most children I have seen assessed as overweight or obese are fat. I think so many children are overweight now that people lose an accurate idea of what an average child should look like. Those skinny children are the ones who are the weight they should be.

And soem children can be active, eat the same as siblings and still be overweight. Unfortunate for those children, but some do need less calories despite doing the same level of activity, as other children.

When mine were 5 this wasn't being done. For that reason I declined when dd was 11 on the basis that: there was no previous weight to compare to; it was not the business of the state; and actually because dd was very well developed and if I put in her height and weight for an 11 year old, she came out as obese but if I put it in as a 13 year old (which was the age in line with her development she did not).

Two other points: at 5 dd was chubby (we are not dainty fine boned people - although the dh and I are within our BMI's). A month later she was very very ill and lost 14lb - thank goodness she was chubby. She's almost 13 now, 5'4", 8 stone and a size 8.

On the whole a waste of time.

i reuse to letmine be weighed or measured after school nurse called me in and was worried about dd being so small .erm she has always been small she is un der paed she has lun g condtion that affects her.

So do not let them near ds3 erm yes he is tiny .I know he is

Where are all these children who are obese according to BMI, but who are apparently the perfect weight and ave not an ounce of fat on them? I think we have lost sight as a nation of what a healthy weight looks like, for adults and children.

I think it can be who works it out and need schecking they are looking at height/weight ratio

rather than using age as a guideline

But most children I know whose parents describe them as solid are fat. Parents can be real poor judges of whether their child is fat or not. Children don't have to be billy bunter's to be overweight. And as parents we are not helping our children by denying there is a problem.

lesley33-cutting calouries is fine as long as a child isn't then going hungry (obviously go with a sensible amount of fat/sugar and processed food). If a child is naturally weighty then thats how they are. They can up their exercise as they grow. But it isn't just about weight, if the skinny child is eating a bad diet their body is going through the exact same damage as the overweight child. The evidence is there to prove that you can recover totally from being obese as a child with no harm done. The focus should be on good eating habits, not body weight. I worked in stroke care, it is a very misunderstood and ignored area of healthcare and not one that is linked top weight. Children need to be taught how to make good lifestyle choices.

hmm dd is classed as underweight , but she is full of energy and eats high calorie yet she came home worried as school have to keep warning dc of dangers of eating fatty foods and being over weight

Ds3 is smack on bmi of 16

ds2 2 is underweight but anyone can see that and he has gastro issues so no suprise

I do think you also need to look at when the average was remeber kids are taller and heavier and at 12 there such a differance some still look like kids some like adults etc