Helping Your Overweight Teen
If you are overweight, there’s a better than 50% chance that your children are also chubby. It is also likely you want to help your children lose weight to avoid the same frustrations and pain you may have experienced because of your excess pounds. But what is the best way to go about it?
A new book by noted author, Anne M. Fletcher, MS, RD, LD who specializes in researching and writing about behavioral change, particularly as it relates to weight management, provide valuable insights into this issue.
Anne is not just another opinionated academic. She is a dietitian, mother of a formerly overweight teen, and a gifted investigator. She has faced her own problems with alcohol addiction and has written extensively about factors that create weight loss success for adults, overcoming smoking, and conquering alcoholism.
Anne got the idea for her latest book when her 13-year-old son shared his excitement about getting weight loss tips from a friend who had won the battle of the bulge. In that moment, it occurred to Anne that kids often ignore advice from parents and healthcare professionals in favor of information from peers. To find out what teens know about weight loss and what worked for them, Anne sent out dozens of detailed questionnaires to teens who had lost weight using reasonably healthful approaches and kept it off for at least a year.
Common Themes from Teens
Love me the way I am
Overweight people of all ages need to know that they are lovable just as they are. This is especially true for heavy youth who often experience a lot of negativity at school.
Be honest about my weight
Don’t tell me I look fine when I look fat for fear of insulting me. Don’t tell me I will grow out of it every time I say I want to slim down.
Don’t Just Talk; Walk the Walk
Overweight parents have often given up on winning their own weight loss battle but, with the best of intentions, they put pressure on their kids to conquer their weight issues. If you want your children to eat healthier, get rid of the junk food and lead a more active lifestyle yourself. Then, you can encourage your kids to join in with you. If you are a trim parent who keeps tempting foods in the house because they are not a problem for you, remove them for the sake of other family members.
Don’t Single Me Out, Help Me Out
If your child is the only family member with a weight problem, don’t keep special food just for him or her or serve the child a “special” meal. Instead, choose and serve healthy foods for the whole family.
Knock off the Nagging
Like all overweight people, heavy teens need to lose weight for themselves, not for a parent, coach, or physician. Your child knows that he or she is heavy and is aware of which foods are very caloric. When you see your teen making poor choices; don’t nag.
Let Your Child Make the Decision to Lose Weight
Let your child lose weight when he or she is ready to commit to the necessary lifestyle changes. If your child is not yet ready to change, you may want to create a healthier home environment for all members of the family by changing your food and activity patterns.
Support a Patient and Realistic View of Weight Management
When any of us chose to lose, it is natural to want to lose weight as fast as possible. Help your teen recognize that losing weight gradually is the best way to assure that the weight they lose is fat not muscle or body water, and losing weight gradually improves the odds they will keep the weight off permanently.
Keeping it Real
The media’s fixation with labeling size 2 actresses as fat can add to a sense of body dissatisfaction even after weight loss. Your teen may need help recognizing that losing weight will not turn him/her into a favorite movie or TV star. Teens also benefit from ongoing assurance that there is more to a person’s value than their weight.
Following these tips can help you and your teen achieve a healthier weight and more rewarding lifestyle.