Why are our kids becoming obese?

The Washington Post has been focusing on childhood obesity the past couple of days. From "Fat School" to "Fat Home," there are articles on extreme ways to help children lose weight, how schools are trying to make a difference, and roadblocks to success.

In yesterday's paper, the lead article in the Health Section was about the Wellspring Academy, a very expensive school (yearly tuition is more than Harvard!) which admits kids as young as 11 who are at least 30 pounds overweight, but usually more. The average reported weight loss of kids who attended the Academy in California was 81 pounds.

In today's paper, the Post discusses how local schools are trying to prevent obesity - by offering healthier options for lunch, such as salad and fruit. And by teaching them how to objectively measure how hard they exercise - with pedometers. One local Dean of students, "Mr. Bobby," has even pledged to lose 100 pounds by the end of the school year and has a weigh-in in front of the students every month. The children's section of the paper gave interesting facts about nutrition and weight. For instance, did you know that 25% of Americans eat fast food at least once a day? Or that one-third of American kids and teens is obese?

An important point made in many of the articles is that parents, who sometimes blame schools for the obesity problem are, in many cases, contributing to it or even causing it. I have seen lunches brought from home which are similar to those described in the paper today - consisting of chips, cookies, sugared juices, lunchables of processed cheese and crackers, and on and on. Then there are the snacks they bring from home - from candy to brownies to bags of chips. And I read a study mentioned in the Post which found that children gain more weight during the summer than during the school year.

Interestingly, 40% of parents with obese children ages 6 to 11 think that their kids' weight is fine.

The Post provides some helpful tips on how to control your child's weight. I have summarized a few below along with some of my own:

1. Limit the amount of fat per serving the 3 grams and the amount of sugar to 12 grams, while looking for a minimum of 4 grams of fiber per serving in cereals.
2. Look at the ingredients in a products and make sure that sugar isn't the first or second ingredient listed.
3. Try to get your child moving every day - start with 20 minutes and increase to an hour.
4. Encourage your children to help you cook healthful, tasty meals.
5. Eat dinner together every night, and model good eating habits.
6. Pack well-balanced lunches and snacks.
7. Look for serving sizes that are 40 calories (low number of calories per serving) to 100 calories (moderate number of calories per serving). Those that are 400 calories or more are high.
8. Limit TV use, as greater use is correlated with greater weights.
9. Watch what you eat in front of your children and after they go to bed. Just like you, they have eyes in the back of their heads!