Why Diets Fails: The Shocking Truth About Childhood Weight Gain

As the weather cools down, physical activity is limited, decreasing the amount of exercise. However, the number of children getting overweight is increasing as they eat meals and snacks as much as they want, using their growth phase as an excuse. The number of fat cells increases until puberty. If obesity persists at this time, the number of fat cells does not decrease even if you lose weight later, leading to a physique that gains weight easily. We looked into how to prevent childhood obesity, which tends to lead to adult obesity.

Be cautious when the weight is more than 20% of the average standard weight of peers

As a child grows, significant muscles develop, and physical activities such as walking and running increase, decreasing baby fat. Until the age of 3, the first rapid growth phase is completed, which can form the basis for height growth. However, if they follow adult eating habits after age 3, weight gain becomes prominent. If a child weighs over 20% more than the standard peer weight for height in the age group from infancy to adolescence, it would be classified as childhood obesity. Although the fat naturally comes off during infancy, chances of regaining may happen, and continuous observation is necessary.

Childhood obesity surges due to the coronavirus and cold weather.

Childhood and adolescent obesity is noticeably increasing as the time spent at home due to the coronavirus increases. Above all, it is essential to improve the lifestyle habits of children and adolescents and manage them in the long term. With no in-person classes and no school attendance, outdoor activities have significantly decreased, leading to noticeable weight gain in children. Especially at times like this, efforts should be made to reduce food delivery, consume fruits, and snack healthily.

Avoid eating processed food.

You should quit eating sweet and salty stimulating food. Among the things that give a sweet taste, the most dangerous is liquid fructose, which has a different metabolic process, so it does not stimulate insulin secretion or make you feel full, so you tend to have it more. If a child drinks soda or juice daily, it is best to quit it first. Also, fast foods and instant foods should not be eaten at all.

Exercise regularly

Appropriate exercise is needed to consume the energy accumulated in the body. For obesity management, it is good to do aerobic exercise consistently, about 3-5 times a week. Our muscles are divided into “slow twitch” and “fast twitch,” and it is good to increase “slow twitch” to burn fat efficiently. If you grow slow twitch, your muscles consume energy even when not exercising. It would be best if you mainly did aerobic exercises such as walking and running to increase slow twitch.

Childhood obesity can lead to early puberty when left untreated

If your child is obese, you should also pay attention to their growth rate and secondary sexual characteristics. Usually, if you are obese, you are often tall and have a good physique, but as you grow taller, your bone age also increases, resulting in the growth plate closing early. If there are many fat cells in the body, the secretion of gonadotropic hormone increases, inducing sexual development, and the height growth also ends early, so the final height at adult age may be smaller than expected.

Avoid juice or soda from a very young age

Research shows that if you drink fruit juice before the age of 1, you are more likely to drink a lot of sugary or carbonated drinks later. Children exposed to fruit juice before age 1 were more likely to consume more of it later and tended to drink less water than those who were not. Experts advise children not to be given fruit juice from infancy to develop healthy eating habits.

The first 2-3 years of age are the most important

Ages 2-3 are the most crucial since they are the time when parents have the most significant influence and before lifestyle habits are formally formed. The ages of 2-3 are the time to go to daycare. There is an old saying that baby fat will come off later. Still, research results have shown that it increases the onset of adult diseases such as metabolic syndrome and is associated with premature mortality in adulthood, so they should be careful from a young age.

It can lead to various complications

Childhood obesity brings about various problems during the growth period as well as complications. It can cause complications of childhood obesity, such as childhood diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, or a fatty liver, or inhibit emotional development due to shrinking interpersonal relationships and self-esteem due to an obese appearance.

The parent’s role is the most important

If one of the parents is obese, more attention should be paid to their child’s growth management. Obese children overeat, prefer fatty meals, eat rapidly, and frequently eat a lot in the evenings compared to children of average weight. It is good to eat each meal regularly, change the cooking method or help to eat slowly and enjoyably, and gradually reduce the number of meals. Also, it is good to encourage various physical activities rather than just playing games at home.

If one or more of the parents are obese, will the children also be obese?

One out of six children aged 2-3 is obese or overweight, and one or more of their parents are obese. In other words, the obesity and overweight of children are influenced by the obesity of their parents. Age 2-3 is a time when parents have a lot of influence and lifestyle habits are formally formed, so it is necessary to pay attention to children whose parents are obese at an early age. If obesity is not improved at this time, the chance of leading to adult obesity can reach up to 80%, which is a very high probability, right?

By. Shin Young Jeon