Babies Need To Watch Their Weight Too, Study Finds

There is nothing cuter than a chubby baby, right? Nope, stop, drop that chubby little leg.

A new report from the National Academy of Science says that chubby babies and hefty toddlers are at risk of becoming overweight children and obese adults.

The Washington Post reports that about 10 percent of American children between ages 0 to 2 are overweight, while nearly 20 percent of kids ages 2 to 5 are as well.

Research shows that many parents and caregivers don't realize that a chubby baby means risking obesity later in life. so the report encourages parents to take their little one's love of cookies seriously and as early as possible.

“It’s not always easy to tell. There are chubby babies who are doing fine, but there are babies who are so chubby they are at risk. Just looking at them doesn’t allow you to make that distinction," said the report's author Leann Birch, director of the Center for Childhood Obesity Research at Pennsylvania State University.

It's more than just poor nutrition, according to the report, lack of sleep is also factor causing children to become over weight. Not surprising, since it's the same for adults.

The report also recommends that kids need at minimum 15 minutes of physical activity every hour, and that children ages 2 to 5 should limit their TV and computer use to less than two hours a day.

Lastly, the report recommends that doctors should encourage more women to breast-feed since it has been shown to reduce the risk of becoming overweight.

All helpful information for parents who want what's best for their kids, but it's a fine line one researcher told paper:

“The focus from a very young age on the need for a child to ‘not be fat’ serves only to increase the already-vast number of young people suffering from eating disorders.”

Comments

[dpgaff]

07:12 PM on 08/20/2011

Babies are suppose to be chubby. So are children between the ages of 8 and 11. Whenever a growth spurt is due, the child needs to increase eating. It is a myth that skinny babies will be skinny adults. It is also a myth that skinny people live longer.

[kathleens]

01:46 PM on 07/19/2011

At three months old, my daughter was in the 10th percentile for height and the 90th percentile for weight, having ingesting nothing but breast milk for all of her 90 days. She was quite the butterball!

She's remained at the 10th percentile for height her entire life, but has slowly, consistently slimmed down, until now at 16, she's at a normal, healthy weight. But honestly, she was heavier-than-average through most of her childhood.

What this article needs to point out is that it's good eating habits, and not weight, that parents should be concerned about. We never allowed food in front of the tv, unless it was fruits or vegetables. We never, ever ate in fast food restaurants. We went outside every day, rain or shine. We talked about "good, healthy food", and never about calories. We allowed treats at parties and other special occasions, but didn't keep them around the house on a day-to-day basis.

I really hope parents don't get the wrong message about this study. We don't need more kids with horrible body images.

[William Anderson LMHC]

09:06 AM on 06/27/2011

We need more research to establish the facts. I know a lot of babies are encouraged to eat when they don't want to. We need to know more about what we are doing wrong that makes babies become overweight and stop it. I got overweight as a kid eating what my parents wanted me to eat, and then I was put on diets. That's when things got really bad and I became an obese kid who became an obese adult. Thank God I discovered how to solve this problem. Obesity can surely be solved. However, it would be so much better if we did not create the problem in the first place. We need to clearly identify what we are doing that creates obesity, with babies, with kids, and with grownups, and change it.

William Anderson, LMHC
Author of 'The Anderson Method - Secrets of Permanent Weight Loss'
Website: www.TheAndersonMethod.com
Blog: http://theandersonmethodblog.wordpress.com/

[Tulka2]

06:28 PM on 06/25/2011

What is missing here is the well researched and documented fact that breast fed babies who are chubby will get skinny as they become toddlers.  Bottle fed babies often keep the fat.  This is important to know and say.  Go to the La leche site and read this:

http://www.llli.org/nb/nbnovdec00p204.html

[Stephanie Elise]

05:02 AM on 06/25/2011

Perhaps responsible parents would avoid giving their offspring processed, inorganic foods altogether. If the whole family adopts this 'no brainer' approach to nutrition, everyones health & body weight is sure to benefit!

Since poor nutritional status often leads to decreased sleep quality and quantity, its no wonder we are breeding fatter, unhealthier insomniacs who are splitting images of their parents.

What a viscous cycle.

[Alan Greene]

07:42 PM on 06/24/2011

One simple tip for parents? Let every child's first grain be a whole grain. And let every child's first food be a real food.

Most babies start on the processed white flour that we call rice cereal. It's become the dominant source of solid food calories for the entire first year.

I can't think of a good reason to continue this 20th century practice with no evidence to support it. Time for a change! http://EZ.com/WhiteOut