How do I approach the subject of an overweight mindee?

[TheBreastmilksOnMe]

And do I?

I have a 20mths old girl I care for 3 days a week (same age as my DS) and I have concerns about her weight. She is very heavy, solid, and although the same height as my Ds, weighs much more than him and doesn't fit into the same age clothes.

Her mother and father are on the large side, mother moreso so I expect it's only natural that she may have weight problems too.

How do I go about this? I feel as though I should say something, tactfully, but I don't know how, or even if I should. I feel it's unfair on the little girl and it is easier to sort it out sooner rather than later.

I would be very very careful how you approach this if at all. I know many solidly build babies that are much less solid once they start running around a bit and burning off energy. have you seen her Red book? Do you know how she rates on the centile chart?

My DD has always been between the 91st and 98th percentile and in certain clothing looks downright chunky. But when seen at hospital last week we were specifically told she is healthy for her percentiles.
I mention this because only 2% of children her age would be bigger than her so she really stands out in her class - she was a seriously chunky baby so you might have thought she was overweight too; and had you said something to me I would have been devastated.

If you are providing healthy meals when the child is with you and promoting helathy lifestyles in your practice then that is a good model the parents can adopt if they need advice.

Not trying to sound preachy, just not wanting you to offend any parents

I don't think you should say anything, unless they bring it up themselves.

I really wouldnt say anything at all. My DS was a big, chunky baby but has slimmed down to an absolute whippet of a thing as he has stretched out and become more active. My DD is a chubby baby who loves her milk and grub, but I have no doubt she will also slim down as she gets older. Be cautious.

Best not to say anything

We CMs already build lots of fresh air and active play into each day, and the healthy eating thing that we are supposed to adhere to works in the child's favour

You are lovely to be concerned

I would not mention anything. I would just make sure that my meals and snacks are healthy and well balanced and give her plenty opportunities to run around. I guess this sort of thing would have been pointed out to the parents when they go to weigh her plus they can probably see she's chunky. Any remarks you do will be received as if you were pointing the finger at parents and they would get offended. I know I would.

20 months? What do you want them to do, put a 20 month old on a diet?

Jesus. Leave it alone. She's who she is, she's not even two yet, leave the fat shame till she's a bit older.

I don't think you should say anything; I think your role as CM is to ensure that you give this child a healthy lifestyle while she is in your care.

my daughter was chunky untill recently, she had a milk allergy and something about her body retained fat, she is now slimming down at 2 1/2, her mother will know she is chunky, leave it for now. wait till the child is older

Don't say anything, it's not your business, and she's a baby fgs!

actually Jareth it IS a cms business in as far as the common assessment framework and every child matters outcomes. We should have practices in place that "keep children healthy" and help them to "stay safe". It is also our responsibility to work with parents and other professionals as regards childrens wellbeing.

So OP asked a reasonable question, lets not flame her for it

I was just riled that she's worried a 20mo might be overweight. I think it all depends exactly how overweight the girl is. I just thought it was a bit early to be worrying abotu weight, even if she is pretty large.

I know plenty of 1-2year olds that all vary hugely in weight. My son's 'best friend' ( ) is huge, , in 3-4 clothing despite being 2.5yo, yet he's not overweight at all, so i completely agree with your earlier post. My little boy is skinny as anything, and in an opposite situation the CM may view him as underweight, when he's actually on the 50th centile, just very clim (no idea where he puts it )

clim?
slim, obviously

I can see why you would want to say something but tbh, If you told me you thought my child was fat I would be beyond furious and you would lose a customer.

As long as you are providing healthy food and giving her plenty of time for running around then I don't think there's much else you can do.

Thanks for your advice girls because of it I've decided not to say anything but just keep on doing what I do which is provide healthy meals and snacks and keep her active.

Jareth and tortoise- yes, it is my business as her well-being is my priority. A toddler can be overweight, of course they can. Just being 20mths old does not make them exempt from weight problems which can set them up for a future of health problems and poor eating habits if it carries on. When you bring the weight issues of her parents into the picture then it's apparent that they don't have a very healthy lifestyle, which is already affecting their daughter, yes, even at her age.

I cared for an under 2 once whose mobility had been restricted by her weight. Her mother and GP were fully on board and on the case, so I didn't have to say anything. There is chunky, which is normal for many children this age and really overweight, which is not at all good for them. My DD was a skinny baby, but I have not seen many others like her (1 or 2).

How do you know how much she weighs?

My DD is 21 months, at 20 months she weighed around 12 kilos and was on the 75th centile, but she's on the 98th for height.

My DD is well built but by no means overweight.

it is none of your business

no, she's a childminder - her job is to mind the child while its parents are at work

the child's overall health and weight is her parents' concern, not the childminder's

Greensleeves - I'm sorry, but you're wrong. We have a specific obligation to be concerned about children's health and growth. It is most certainly part of our job, as dictated by Ofsted.

it isn't your job or your place to tell parents what to do or how to raise their children.

This child is a baby fgs. It would be hugely inappropriate for you to tell the parents that she is overweight.

Feed her healthily and take good care of her while she's with you. That's your job.

I agree with greensleeves, def won't be using a childminder if what HSMM says is true

"We have a specific obligation to be concerned about children's health and growth"

This is designed to ensure that YOU don't stuff her full of iced gems and fanta. It is not a mandate for you preach to parents because their child is bigger than yours.

Greensleeves - I'm afraid it IS our business, when EYFS came in this became even more important, our training has made it very clear that we HAVE to deal with awkward situations if it's in the CHILD'S BEST INTEREST. I'm not saying I'd say anything about this particular thing but if we have a concern, we are not allowed to just 'ignore it'. A nursery got in a lot of trouble a little while back for waking a sleeping child because the parents didn't want them to sleep past a certain time/for more than X time. Ofsted gave them a slap on the wrists and told them that they have to put the child's need before the parents requests! Now I disagree with this (well, depends but I'd need more info!) but please don't simply say 'it's none of our business' when we can get in trouble for ignoring things. It's so hard in this job at times and the OP was just asking for advice.

OP - if you're really concerned, maybe speak to your Early Years advisor for advice? Maybe a healthy eating leaflet with your next newsletter might help?

And how does the op know the baby is overweight? Has she weighed her? Checked her red book? Is she medically trained to diagnose her as overweight?

I cant see any reason why a cm would need to know a childs weight apart from for car seat safety and even then its mostly common sense