India ranks second in the world for Childhood obesity. 41 million kids in India are overweight or obese, this includes ~14.9 million children aged 5–9. So childhood obesity is not starting with rebellious teens; it is starting as early as 5 years of age. Childhood obesity has shocking causes and very simple fixes for busy parents. Let’s discuss one by one.
Causes for childhood obesity
Pampering by parents/ grandparents/ family
Yes, as a dietitian, I have experienced that this is the number one cause of childhood obesity. The family of kids keep saying, let’s feed the child whatever it wants, he will learn to eat healthy when he grows.
Well, sad news is that if the child is not habituated with healthy food from childhood, they will never learn healthy eating in life. If the child has already developed picky eating, you might need counseling to improve the habit.
Cesarean Section
A lot of the urban population is planning a C-section for delivery. Unfortunately, it’s a major surgery and has many side effects. One of them is the child at risk for pre-adolescent obesity. Research has shown time and again.
Surgery should be opted for when there is a clinical need, but elective surgery is not a great idea. One might say, it’s easier, trust me it’s not. In case you are scared of the pain, there are other measures like prenatal yoga, a healthy diet during pregnancy and an epidural injection during labour.
Low Birth Weight
Another shocking reason. A lot of studies have shown that an infant born with birth weight lower than 2.5 kg is likely to develop obesity early in life. This phenomenon is largely driven by “catch-up growth”. When small babies experience rapid weight gain in early infancy, it often programs their metabolism to store fat, raising long-term cardiovascular and metabolic risks.
Nutrient Deficiencies
Common nutrient deficiencies associated with childhood obesity are Protein, Vitamin D, Iron, Zinc, Magnesium, Vitamins A, C, E.
No, no, don’t rush for supplements. These deficiencies happen because kids with picky eating usually consume more empty calories and not nutritious foods, and then the deficiencies cause hidden hunger. This hidden hunger makes them have cravings. Also, Indians never say no if a child is asking for food. Gol-matol bachcha acha lagta hai na.
Babies look cute when chubby
Baby fat will go away; let the child eat. That’s the biggest myth. Baby fat goes after the child is 1 year old and the child starts walking. This development makes the child very active, and this is followed by a period of rapid growth and development. Baby fat should go away at this age. In case a pre-school child is so-called “chubby”, then I am sorry to say, the child is suffering from childhood obesity.
Low physical activity
Urban India has a very common pattern of providing toddlers with mobiles/ tablets and middle-schoolers with laptops. The screen has snatched the playtime.
One might argue, we don’t have parks nearby, where would the kids play? As a child, I didn’t have a park nearby. We used to play inside the house, with a ball, skipping rope, table tennis on dining tables, and lawn tennis in the sitting room. Jumping around in stairs, cycling in the evening in the parking area before the cars came back from offices.
If you don’t give screen, kids will find a way to jump around.
There are many more; it will be easier to explain in a counselling session, and the discussion should be held specific to your child, since getting scared with lot of possibilities is very overwhelming for parents.
Simple fixes for busy parents
Take Help: If you are both working parents, you CANNOT get by without help. Take help. If you can hire cleaning staff, cooking staff and every kind of person who can let you spend your extra time (time apart from office) with your kid. Ask for help from grandparents too. They are fond of their grandkids, bank on the opportunity.
Be the right ideal: If you want your kids to eat healthy, you have to set the right environment.
No Ultra-Processed Rule: Be strict about this; no one should be allowed to gift your kids with unhealthy stuff. NOT EVEN GRANDPARENTS
No Screens: Yes they might make the home bit messy, yes they might sometimes get hurt. It’s ok. Give them opportunity to play and jump around. Give props which will make them active. If you have a park nearby, please find time to take them.
Introduce balanced meals at an early age: If you are eating healthy balanced meals, the kids will follow. Some foods they would initially reject. They are new to Earth, it’s ok, everything is new to them. Give them rest, let them try a maximum of two new foods in a week, let them get used to them. Once they get familiar with the taste, move on to other new foods.
Some kids do not like two textures together; they will have chapatti/ paratha with vegetable preparation, but soft rice made pulav should not have crunchy veggies in the recipe. Try to prepare meals with similar textures and do not mix two kinds at one meal.
Every parent might have a specific challenge, as every family is unique and so is every child. You are most welcome for personalised counseling session with me.
