school nurse letter

[devonshiredumpling]

got a letter this morning rom the schoolnurse service to say that after being weighed my dd has been catergorised as severely overweight. we also got a leaflet saying that her diet could be better (she has at least seven portion of friut and veg) we also need to increase her activity level but since moving to the country we cannot get her out of the garden and off her bike ,she is tall for her age at 122.8 cm and she weighs 29.9kg but you cannot see any fat on her she is five .any help would be good aibu to feel peeved about this (she is five and half)

Second that Sirzy along with thirsty rather than hungry.

I give my 1 yo dd a snack mid morning and 6yo ds gets a mid morning snack at school but simply because they wake and have breakfast at stupid early times. other than that one very small ( slice of toast or piece of fruit for ds, half a banana or half a slice of toast for dd or maybe a small yoghurt) they only have their main meals. I sometimes give pudding after tea but not always as ds gets pudding at school so doesnt need a sweet treat at home aswell.

That I dont disagree with Isafix, my plates are normal sized though - maybe what some consider to be side plates As several of us have said she needs proper advice from one person, not the splattering you get on here.

The plate comment was not personal to you toby :) was a generalisation that many people plates are now bigger than plates use to be - this has been researched and published and is out there on the web for all to read if that interested and bothered.

It will be one factor amongst many that a dietician will explore with op and dd if she decides to go down that route for professional advice.

Of course a child fed off a side plate won't be hungry! A 5 year old needs nowhere near the amount of calories an average adult does, more like 1400-1500 a day.

don't adult women also need about 1800? That isn't a big difference at all.

the problem is that in most cases the adults are overeating probably off massive plates.

The NHS recommendation for an adult women is 2000. A petite or sedentary women might need 1800.

I've just checked out my plates.

We have

18 cm
23 cm
27 cm

We mainly use the 23cm ones for meals but the 27cm ones are the 'proper' dinner plates. The 23cm ones fit in the dishwasher better. 18cm is what I consider a 'side plate' but I would only use it for a bit to toast or cake or something.
When I visit my Mum I can't get over how tiny her cups are.

Surely it depends in the age of the child? My 6 yo would prob just about be satisfied with a side plate of food. My 9yo would not. Both are on the low side of the healthy BMI range. We don't do the whole pudding after dinner thing though. Maybe that's why some people recommend smaller portions for the main meal?

Op that does sound overweight.

Can you see her ribs, collar bones etc? You should be able to. Children are not supposed to be stocky.

I am often told my kids look skinny, but according to the paediatric Dr we have seen (for an injury) they are actually a healthy weight and slim as children should be.

I would keep a detailed food diary, including all drinks and snacks to see exactly what calories she is having.

And go to your gp and they can assess and refer you if necessary.

Here are average required calories for different ages, for those of normal weight. Values for adults are assuming average height, so only a very rough guide (e.g. sedentary 5' 3" woman aged 55 probably needs < 1500 cals)

Overweight children are frequently tall too, but may have much more fat and less muscle than parents assume. This Paper from 2006 describes the issues well and recommends helping overweight DC to build their muscles.

The NHS recommendation for an adult women is 2000. A petite or sedentary women might need 1800.
NO, NO, NO

Everybody has a different calorie need depending on their age and height - its called the TDEE
www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

I am 5'5" and my TDEE is 1523 - that is all I need to ingest in a day to stay the same weight.

Dd ( nearly 8) still uses the plastic plate from her toddler set. Its about the size of a side plate.

Those are what my dc used ;)

Puddings after each meal are completely unnecessary.

OP, I think you're in denial about just how much your DD is eating - either portion sizes or snack wise.

Today my DD (7yo) ate:
Breakfast: porridge.
Lunch: homemade lentil soup and crusty bread.
Dinner: boiled gammon, mash, broccoli, carrots and boiled beetroot.
Snacks: grapes, carrot sticks, apple and sweet popcorn (we went to the cinema and that was her treat).
She only drinks water as she doesn't like fruit juices or cordial.

I'd definitely recommend seeing your GP and getting some advice on your DD's diet and activity, because something doesn't add up - as I said before she is slightly shorter than my DD and 10 Kg heavier!
Your DD weighs the same as an average 9.5yr old and the average height for that age is 136 cm. Good luck, I hope you take on board the well meaning comments and seek further help and advice from health professionals.

Just had another letter through the post they got her details wrong she is 19k and not 29k they apologized feeling better now

Phew! That's a relief for you.

Still feeling livid at them as I knew she had no fat on her yes you can see all the right bones

wow! I would be livid!

I would be annoyed as well big difference there. Dd1 is 17kgs and the same age I was flabbergasted that anyone would need to be told s child nearly twice her weight was over weight. My flabber has now been ungasted. It is weird how the noticed the mistake after they sent it out, had you queried it?

19 kg sounds perfect

Yes I did query it.

I'm impressed that they sent a letter or even noticed their mistake - these things must happen all the time. I think that the first thing to do for anyone getting a letter like that is to redo the measurements.