By Cindy Brown

Becoming a parent is an ecstatic feeling in life. As a child grows, parents guide them through life’s lessons in hopes that they don’t face any struggles growing up. Unfortunately, there are times that no matter how much we prepare; those struggles are waiting just around the corner. Parents often realize very late that the lines have been crossed and their child was being bullied.

Today, the problem of children obesity has become so endemic in the country that kids have shorter life span than their parents. According to the report by the American Heart Association about 1 in every 3 children is overweight or obese. Many children today are inundated with risk factors for heart diseases like high cholesterol, high blood pressure, high triglycerides, raised insulin, obesity, physical inactivity, low self-esteem and depression.

Despite such facts, many parents feel uncomfortable while talking with their children about weight. In fact, a survey of WebMD/ Sanford Health found that parents of teens find it more difficult to talk about the weight with their child than discussing about drugs, alcohol or smoking. Such issue is heightened by the fact that there are limited resources available to help parents respond to their child’s growing weight. They search in local libraries or go online to obtain information but end up in getting something basic like eating less and exercising more.

However, weight loss is not a good approach for most young children since their bodies are growing and developing. They should not be put on a diet unless a physician supervises for medical reasons. A restricted diet never supplies the energy and nutrients needed for normal growth and development. Following are some simple but effective things to follow for preventing obesity:

1. Small changes in eating habits pave the way for success: Parents can easily prevent childhood obesity by providing healthy meals, nutrition and daily physical activity. Healthy meals provide nutrition for growing bodies while increased physical activity reduces health risks and helps weight management. You should plan sensible portions and focus on overall good health rather than a certain weight loss.

Stay tuned for part 2 of this article shortly…..

– Cindy Brown is the owner of Educare, a social voluntary organization, which offers youth development programs, Leaderships workshops and life-skills education. She is also a professional writer with science background and specializes in writing informative articles in various niches.