When it comes to assessing the health of your child, having them weighed at the doctor is a part of the routine assessment. Tracking a child’s weight can be very important, especially at a young age when a newborn or infant is expected to gain weight at such a rapid velocity and has critical growth and developmental windows that if they miss, they cannot recover from. Keep reading to learn more about our topic “is it okay to help kids lose weight” with 5 risks you need to be aware of.
But what if your child surpasses the “normal” weight category? Should you intervene? Adults are recommended to lose weight by healthcare providers all the time, so does the same apply to children? In this article I will explain how children’s growth is measured, how to interpret this information, and information on what may happen if a child is expected to lose weight.
How do we measure children’s growth?
Pediatric growth charts by the WHO (World Health Organization) and CDC (Center for Disease and Control) are used to track a child’s growth from ages 0-18 years old.
How do I know if my child is growing appropriately?
Most children tend to grow along the same growth curve or percentile. For example, you might notice a trend that Sarah’s typically plots around the 70-75th%ile. If she were to deviate from this percentage, especially suddenly and drastically, it would raise a red flag.
There are nuances that may cause a child to change “curves” such as during puberty, you may observe their height-for-age or weight-for-age to jump up to a different %ile and that %ile may become their new normal. This is very common.
I recommend talking to a healthcare provider when interpreting growth charts. It can be tricky and we are here to help!
Risks of Recommending Weight Loss to A Child
Increased risk of development of an eating disorder
Dieting is the #1 “gateway” to developing an eating disorder.
Child likely to return to an even higher weight
Caloric restriction is interpreted by the body as “starvation” because the body cannot decipher that you are intentionally eating less. In the vast majority of people, the body will implement multiple physiological processes that lead to weight regain (often surpassing the initial weight). This is a survival mechanism because the body wants to protect the individual in case this “famine” won’t happen again! Ending up at a higher weight is not inherently a bad thing, but the point I’m trying to make is that weight loss in a child is likely not sustainable.
Increased risk of body image concerns
This might be the first time a child is aware that their body shape/size is being critiqued and may cause them to think about their own body more, and in a negative way.
Growth problems
If a child is successful in short term weight loss, it could lead to growth issues including stunting. Childhood and adolescence is a period of growth where a human needs a surplus of calories!
Medical Trauma
Being told to lose weight at such a young age can often be internalized to a child as the belief that “something is wrong with my body.” Whether subconsciously or consciously, the child will remember (and likely vividly) that this message came from a medical provider and has the potential to then be generalized to all medical providers.
What to Do Instead of Implementing Weight Loss
Offer your child all foods
Including fruits, vegetables, carbohydrates, protein, and fat. Do not restrict any types of foods because this may send a message to the child that there is something “wrong” with their body if they are not permitted to eat all foods which can lead to eating disorder behaviors such as bingeing or restricting.
Movement
For any child, no matter body size, movement is vital and can help to regulate their hunger/fullness cues. Movement does not mean a strict, regimented program. It can look like playing at the playground or swimming at the pool.
Talk to a dietitian
If you’re finding it challenging to tolerate not intervening with your child’s diet and exercise more, talk to a dietitian! It is completely normal to be concerned about your child and want the best for them, and we can help guide you as to how to handle conversations about food, bodies and movement to set your child up for a positive and mindful relationship with all of these.
Final Thoughts On Helping Kids Lose Weight
Thank you for reading our resource on risks with helping children lose weight. In short, my answer is “no.” I would not recommend a child lose weight. It often doesn’t work and leads to more harm than good. Instead of focusing on a child’s weight as an indicator of health, let’s ask them how they feel about themselves and their body, observe how much activity they engage in, offer them nutritious food, gently offer them guidance on how to fuel their body’s, etc.
We are here to support your family in developing a healthy relationship with food
Courage to Nourish is a group of eating disorder specialized dietitians. We have in person locations in Alexandria, Virginia, Columbia, Maryland. and College Park, Maryland. We offer virtual services across the state of Virginia, Washington DC, Pennsylvania, and Colorado. We offer individual nutrition therapy. As well as support groups. We would love to guide you in building a better relationship with food.
Contact us for more information. And to schedule a discovery call. Also, sign up for our client or clinician newsletter!
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Haley joined Courage to Nourish because she shares an anti-diet, weight neutral philosophy in her treatment strategies and she wanted to work in an outpatient setting to foster deeper connections with clients focusing on helping clients repair their relationships with food
and their bodies. To learn more about Haley and her practice style, click here.