Overweight children

[netherlee]

My OH owns a small clothes shop that has lots of childrens stuff (schoolwear, brownie/cub, sports, fashion clothes etc.). He said recently he is rather irked at the number of parents who comment that they have to buy larger sizes (eg age 9-10 for a 7 year old). Sites like M&S are similarly strewn with such comments. The sizes are all in line with average sizes of children or slightly bigger, but of course he doesn't retort that the real problem is the child is overweight. He has also had at least one child needing a smaller size because they are very healthy (usually a very sporty child who is careful with what they eat). Its a lose lose.

So are we BU to think parents should just watch childrens health a little more rather than moan to shop staff just doing their job?

[3monkeys]

Aren't you all lucky to have nice thin children! And before you all say I'm touchy, I am. But she's healthy and fit and a fabulous goalkeeper!!

[sleepyhead]

Well that's great 3monkeys and your dd sounds fab, but surely you see it would be as crazy for shops to base their size 11 on your dd than it would be to base their size 6 on my ds?

An average size isn't a judgement, nor is it a target. It's just a size.

[delilahlilah]

Sleepy - did you read the thread title?

[sleepyhead]

Yes I did. It bears only a cursory relationship to the actual op. Which was a whole two paragraphs of extra reading for people to do

[LineRunner]

My DD's taller than me.

Get over it.

[TheOriginalNutcracker]

One size is never going to fit all is it ? It is daft to think so imo.

Oh and please don't assume that it is always down to diet either. My ds is 10 and in age 12 clothes. Yes he is overweight, but thats because of medication he is on.

[cantspel]

Even if a 7 year old is so tall that they need clothing labelled for an 11 year old they still wouldn't fit as they would also be a lot wider and so too baggy?

Maybe we should scrap sizing by age and go back to the good old days of C&A where you bought by height.

[3monkeys]

You're absolutely right sleepyhead. But to go into a shop and not be able to buy her anything that fits is miserable. I don't care if she gets an age 14 but in Next, I can't get the clothes anywhere near her. There should be clothes to fit slim kids and clothes to fit big kids, then we'd all get a choice

[Bunbaker]

"There should be clothes to fit slim kids and clothes to fit big kids, then we'd all get a choice"

Hear, hear. M & S do trousers in three lengths for adults. Why can't they do the same for children? And why can't they do sizes rather than ages?

[Sirzy]

M and S do skinny for, normal fit and a bigger fit for kids trousers in some of them but not all. So do next.

[Feminine]

I've had to read your posts twice op because I wasn't sure where you are coming from.

First I thought you were being mean, then just having a moan...now I'm thinking you are having a pointless whine.

Your post is peppered with a few spikey bits too...so I'm I'm afraid!

[Bunbaker]

DD isn't allowed to wear skinny style trousers to school. More's the pity because they were the only style that fitted her properly without huge gathers at the waist. Normal fit are way too big. I got Next slim fit for DD as they were the best fit available at the time, but still had to adjust the elastic on the waist, resulting in those unsightly gathers.

Now that she is a bit bigger an adult size 6 is a perfect fit.

What I don't understand is why clothes manufacturers think that 12 and 13 year olds are much wider than adult sizes 6 and 8.

[cantspel]

Sirzy m&S skinny fit school trousers still just used elastic to take in the waist with a slightly slimmer leg so you still end up with the bunches of extra material around the bum. And for this privilege of looking like a sack of spuds you pay more than normal trousers.

[cantspel]

M&S standard size school trousers for a 15 year old are a 30 inch waist.

My son has a 26 inch waist so that is a lot of extra material to hang around his bum

[bruffin]

Don't get me on blazer sizing. Why do they only go up in chest size.
Thankfully Ds 6th form now. But to got a blazer to fit a 6ft teenager you have to buy 40 inch chest. Ds is only 38 inch chest. Its difficult enough to fine a long 38 suit for a man.

[Mammagaga]

Really??? My 16month old is in clothes aged 2-3 yet the health visitor is concerned he's underweight... My 4 year old is in 5-6, and my other children are all 2 sizes above their age, they're so slim their bones stick out. They eat healthy and are all involved in competitive sports... YABU and tbh your clothes are probably sized wrong if you have that many people coming in complaining about sizes!!!

[harryhausen]

I find comments left by other parents on a website like M&S really helpful.

My dd is 8. She's fairly tall. Not overweight but has a ^really^ womanly bum, like a juicy pair. I find I have to order a size up for height and bum shape. I wouldn't complain about it though. It's just shape isn't it? So when someone leaves a comment like "size comes up small so order a size up" it's helpful to me to order a size 10. Even this is wildly experimental though as the sizes differ so much.

I know a lot of kids. I honestly only know one who I would consider obsese. I don't know where all the FAT children are either?

[harryhausen]

I mean ^age^ 10.

[Dawndonna]

Actually, in some cases it is like saying 'people on benefits should get a job'. Perhaps you would nip into your local hospital, have a chat with the kids in the allergy units, the asthma units and the ones that have to be careful not to pick up anything due to their immune systems being fucked one way or another. The steriods can increase weight significantly and yep, guess what, those kids still play sport, go to dance lessons, whatever. Try thinking before posting.

[cupcakemumma]

Totally unreasonable. If you and your husband are so irked about this then you should consider changing the nature of your business to goods not involving clothing and not children. There is no such thing as 'normal' or 'average' when it comes to people, especially growing children. You are being terribly judgemental too at parents.

Evidence - I am one of three. I was a 'larger' child, though ate the same healthy balanced diet and was just as active as my two bothers who were leaner than me. Was this my parent's fault that I was overweight?

Got to say, part and parcel of working in retail is being directly involved with customers and learning from their comments to benefit your business. If this 'irking' anger at customers continues on this you'll bet they could begin to sense it.

[steppemum]

I do actually know where all the fat children are. Last summer when my dcs school did their concert, all the year 6 children came on stage to do their bit. They were almost without exception overweight. I can remember being quite shocked.
In reception the children are small and skinny, but by year 6 they are overweight.

My kids don't fit any sizes. ds wears size 10-11 trousers and size 13-14 tops to get the length in body and arms. He is skinny.

dd1 is curvy. She is not overweight, but has a bum. I cannot get good trousers for her, they are all too skinny, but when I can find them she looks fab in slim fit.

dd2 is skinny and long legged. But even so all girls trousers are too hipster shaped so unless I choose carefully she shows a builders bum (all be it a skinny one )when she bends over (why are girls trousers made as hipsters - she is 5!)

[musicposy]

I got so fed up when mine were younger that they made children's clothes so wide. Everything fell off and by the time trousers fitted round the waist, they were up to the knee. DD1 at 11 was in an age 6-7 skirt just to get it to fit round the waist - with the result the school complained it was too short.

My children are not ridiculously thin. They are more padded than I was as a child, for definite. So why not make some clothes for normally sized children?

Now they are teens DD2, 13, is in a size 6 and DD1, 17 is in an 8 and clothes finally fit at last. OP, I think YANBU.

[steppemum]

C&A sold clothes by height because they were from Europe. In Europe they sell children's clothes by height not age.

But in Holland the clothes for a certain height are always slimmer and longer in the leg and arms than same height clothes in UK. The Dutch tend to be longer legged and longer arms for same height than us

[MoleyMick]

My three year old is a stocky, tall boy with chunky legs and broad shoulders. Threads like this are horrible and make me so worried for him.

[threesypeesy]

Yabvu my dd1 is 9 very tall 5ft and slightly chubby those who judge are idiots as there may be reasons ours she's just been diagnosed with an eating disorder !! Incredibly worrying and heartbreaking (she's eating in secret and not food ahead gets at home)

Dd2 is tall skinny and all legs shes8 (thanks to mmeasurements for a flower girl dress) has the body size if 4year old!!

Every child is different and have reasons why (ok some are clearly over fed on crap) but not all, clothes sizes can vary widely in shops