Please help, my 7 year old daughter is obese! I could cry. :-(

[mummyloveslucy]

My daughter has always been tall, with her weight matching her height. Over the years, she's gained more and more weight. She is now 4 foot 5inches and weighs 84lbs (6 stone) Only 3 stone less than me and I'm 5 foot 6.

She eats healthy food at home. I cook every day. We do eat out a fair bit too and she usually has chicken nuggets and chips. Or carvary, with 2 yorkshires. She can eat an enormous.amount.of.food!.I.have.to.let.her.leave.the.table.feeling.a.bit.hungary.which.makes.me.feel.a.bit.sad.for.her.

She.isn't.that.active,but.we're.looking.into.ways.of.increasing.her.excercise. Eg.maybe.another.swimming.lesson.a.week.Longer.walks.or.another.activity.

She.does.have.problems.with.chronic.constipation.and.has.been.on.lactalose,which.is.like.6..5mil.teaspoons.of.syrup.a.day.We've.now.changed.her.to.Movicol,but.she.doesn't.like.it.It's.very.hard.to.get.her.to.drink.enough.as.well.

Any.advice.would.be.very.welcome.

Sorry.about.the.full.stopps.My.space.bar.is.playing.up.again..

I think you just have to encourage her to be more active without making it a big deal iyswim. Walk to the shops/school/take stairs etc.

Keep portion sizes realistic, i.e. not adult size.

Do you need to eat out so much? Can she have a healthier choice?

portion control
it doesn't matter if the food is "healthy" if the portions are too large. dd1 doesn't seem to have an off-switch with regards to her appetite, and would probably eat an adult portion if we let her. she has a tendency to put on weight though, so we keep an eye on things. I am always [shocked] at how little her friends eat when they visit, and have to remind myself that their appetites are probably more "normal". dd1 got used to smaller portions really quickly.

also. it's been easier to keep her weight down since we've been walking to school. a mile each way, every day, and we do it at a pace.

We.are.out.and.about.a.lot.of.the.time..She.is.home.educated.at.the.moment,which.possibly.doesn't.help..She'll.hopefully.be.going.to.school.in.Sept.

We.could.take.more.pic-nics.though,rather.than.eating.out.

What does she eat in a typical day?

What has made you post this today?
Is she worried about it herself or getting teased?
Do you have a family tendency towards being chubby at this age?and perhaps growing out of it later?
Is she due a growth spurt?
How do you get to school, could you walk?
Is there something you could do together ? eg Could you walk/run while she cycles?
Does she have school dinners? I had to stop my son having school dinners as he was getting overweight at Easter. Three months later and he is back to slim.
One thing, buy her roomy or A-line clothes. Wearing too tight clothes can only accentuate it and make her more self-conscious.

Breakfast-either.branflakes.with.1.teaspoon.of.honey..(won't.eat.it.without)
or.2.pieces.of.wholemeal.toast.One.with.penut.butter.(organic).and.one.lemon.curd..Spread.thinly.

Lunch-either.cheese.sandwith.on.wholemeal.bread.with.tomato.sauce,and.an.apple
or.chicken.nuggerts,chips.and.beans.(out)

Dinner- pasta.with.tomato.dolmio,or.equivelant,with.small.sprinkle.of.cheese. or roast dinner (No yorkshires at home)

Snacks-.yogart,.crisps.(at.grandmas)

To.be.honest,it.probubly.is.portion.size.and.the.fact.that.she's.always.hungry!.She.does.eat.a.lot.of.things.at.her.Grandmas.that.she.wouldn't.at.home.Eg-sweets.in.church,crisps,biscuits.etc.

I've.had.a.word.with.MIL.and.she.says.she's.willing.to.work.with.me.on.this.

Yorkshires aren't the only thing in a roast that can affect weight.

Think roast pots/stuffing/meat/gravy/honey parsnips yum all basted in fat before put on your plate. Bloody delicious but not the best meal for keeping weight down....unless you slimline it with boiled pots/veg/no gravy etc.

I would have a word with your mil and make sure she follows through with what she says. Its one thing saying she will, another following through and saying no thinks of my mil

Does she snack alot during the day?

Do you eat together as a family?

Today,we.went.to.the.doctors.to.change.her.Lactalose.to.movicol. She.was.wearing.a.top.and.trousers.and.every.time.she.moved.about,her.tummy,would.show.I.kept.having.to.pull.her.top.down.I.really.noticed.it.today.Possibly.because.her.age.9.top.was.skin.tight.DH.dressed.her.this.AM..

She.is.noticing.as.well!.She.looks.in.the.mirror.and.says."Look.at.the.size.of.this!!She.certainly.hasn't.got.this.from.me.I'd.never.comment.about.myself.in.this.way.She.also.has.learning.difficulties..(Not.sure.if.that's.relavent)

She doesn't seem to have much in the way of fruit and veg - maybe that contributes to the constipation problem?

What about drinks? It's easy to consume loads of calories through drinking fruit juice, squash etc. (Ds was starting to get a little podgy and I sorted that out by cutting right back on fruit juices and by reducing portion sizes. Oh, and if he wants a snack betwwen meals the rule is "fruit or nothing").

Id say it is portion control- I was amazed when I saw a program on the correct portion of pasta for a 7/8 yrold- it was much smaller than I give my dcs and I always worry they dont eat enough.

Does she eat any vegetables at all?

Looking at her diet, it would be a miracle if she didn't suffer from constipation.

I.always.eat.with.her..My.DH.works.shifts,but.always.does.when.he's.home.We.never.eat.unless.it's.at.the.table.(This.goes.for.snacks.too)

Lots of carbs there too. Bread, pasta etc. Can be blocking iykwim.

Have you considered she may have an underactive thyroid? Google the symptoms and see if she has any others, then ask your dr for her to be tested.
I was diagnosed when I was 12 after steadily putting on weight despite not eating a great deal ane being quite active. 2 of my main signs were constant constipation and chronic tiredness.

I know not everyone's weight problems can be explained by a medical condition, and some people try and use it as an excuse, but it is worth considering and at least eliminating.

This.is.just.a.snap.shot.of.her.diet. She.will.eat.carrots,but.the.only.way.she'll.eat.other.vedge.is.if.it's.made.into.soup.(similar.to.baby.food)with.some.bread..I.should.give.her.this.more.often.

Buy smaller plates, it will make a difference.

If you are following a recipe for four don't divide it by three.

Make sure she always has water to drink.

Do you think that she could have something like a Thyroid Problem? Constipation and weight gain could be connected,might be worth asking your gp for a blood test.

There.are.a.lot.of.carbs..I.agree.What.could.I.use.as.an.alternative? She.likes.rice.cakes.Are.they.better?

I think you need to start cooking at home and cut down on those outside meals. It's very hard to have a healthy diet if you eat out so much. It's not just that that the food would have more calories but the portions sizes would be bigger too. You can also give her more of a variety, so that you can cook healthy stuff she likes without having to just cut down on whatever she's having now and feeling hungry all the time. Is there a possibility of batch cooking and freezing? Then you don't need to cook everyday.

That should be the first thing to target. Food. Both the quality and the intake. Then of course exercise. Could you sign her up for some sport that she likes? Or do some activities as a family? It doesn't even have to be an organised activity. Does she have a bike? Could you all go out cycling?

Is she on meds for her learning difficulties? I'm asking as I know some of my students piled on weight when they started taking Ritalin as it affected their metabolism.

A good rule of thumb for portion control is to look at the size of your child's fist - the size of that is pretty much what is a suitable amount of protein (e.g. chicken or fish). Similar amount of carbs and the rest of the plate should be vegetables.

Like an earlier poster, I found that my child didn't even notice when I reduced portion sizes a little. (And thes days I always try to visualise his fist when dishing up).

I'd cut out the roast dinners. And cut right down on cheese. But it is unfair that some children can eat a lot and stay quite skinny. I think something like cereal for breakfast rather than the toast. And not chicken nuggets and chips for lunch. And pasta only once or twice a week. Baked potato sometimes. Or wholemeal pitta bread with filling. She doesn't seem to have much roughage in her diet which is probably causing the constipation. More fruit and veg. I know it's not easy getting DC's to eat a more healthy diet.