Overweight and children: knowing the problem to face it better
According to the 2010 national OKKIO survey, 22.9% of Italian children are overweight, while 11.8% are obese. The peak is reached in Campania, where the percentage of overweight and obese children reaches 48%.
To address the problem, it is important to know and understand the causes first . The baby's body tends to maintain a constant weight / height ratio over time during growth. Forcing the excess or defective feeding this balance breaks and you can undergo an underweight, in case of insufficient nutrition, or overweight, in case of excess food.
This second eventuality is the most frequent, not only because in our society the problem of excessive nutrition is that which occurs most often, but also because the organism reacts differently to the increase and its reduction.
In fact, there is a strong defense against weight loss, because the body experiences it as a threat to survival, while the defense mechanism against the accumulation of caloric reserves is weak ; this also happens in the adult, which is why it is easier to put on weight than to lose weight.
Do overweight children go on a diet?
Pediatricians advise against putting overweight children on a diet ; in the growth phase the objective must be to restore balance by guaranteeing a normocaloric diet and offering the child the possibility of disposing of excess calories . Therefore, on the one hand it is necessary to take care of the diet and on the other to increase the energy expenditure with physical activity . In some rare cases it may be necessary to intervene with a low-calorie diet, for short periods, but this can be established by the pediatrician: diets are dangerous in adults and even more so in children.
Therefore, the solution to being overweight in children is not just in nutrition. Children spend hours and hours sitting at school desks and, often at home, after having done their homework, spend the afternoon in front of the television or attached to tablets, computers and consoles. Instead, they should move; run, jump and play outdoors . Certainly, in our society, it is not simple. Children spend more and more time indoors and less outdoors, but one solution must be found: for example, you can invite the child to choose an extracurricular activity that encourages movement, one that he likes, so that he can be motivated to attend it consistently.
It is not necessary to force him to devote himself to competitive sports or which do not meet his taste; the choice, to be successful, must be made together with the child, respecting their attitudes and desires. Associating physical activity with a healthy and balanced diet makes it possible to lose fat mass in particular and helps the child maintain the results obtained over time. Moreover it generally has a positive effect also at piscological level; it helps the child to let off steam and to release tensions, those tensions that he might unload on food.
How to choose the most suitable sport for your child?
The problem of overweight in children is therefore dealt with by modifying the life habits of children and often also those of adults, adopting a healthier lifestyle and food.
Healthy food should not be imposed and should not become a compulsion; it is necessary to educate children to eat well, so that they interiorize healthy eating habits and make them their own, so that they can be maintained throughout the course of life. Healthy physical activity, performed with pleasure and on a regular basis, will do the rest.
How children should eat
What does healthy eating in children mean? How should children eat? The rules to follow are more or less the same as in adults. They can be summarized as follows:
- Never skip breakfast, which must be light but rich in nutrients.
- Right balance between carbohydrates, proteins and fats.
- Five servings of fruit per vegetable a day.
- Avoid carbonated and sugary drinks.
- Limit the consumption of snack foods and industrial biscuits, often too rich in fat and sugar. To satisfy the child's golistà , better a nice simple homemade cake.
- Variety in the diet and care in the preparation of meals.
