Healthy isn?t something you are or aren?t. It?s a hundred little things: eating a banana, walking in the park, putting a bandage on a boo-boo, playing tag, reading up on ways to keep you and your family well and safe. It?s a balance between living well and taking care, and you can start right where you are.
A blog by Christina Elston
Healthy isn't something you are or aren't. It's a hundred little things: eating a banana, walking in the park, putting a bandage on a boo-boo, playing tag, reading up on ways to keep you and your family well and safe. It's a balance between living well and taking care, and you can start right where you are.

Posts Tagged ‘childhood obesity’

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Type 2 Diabetes Toughest To Treat In Children

Monday, May 7th, 2012

Treatment with medications and lifestyle interventions that have been successful in adults fails in as many as half of children with type 2 diabetes, underscoring the need to get the childhood obesity epidemic under control and prevent the disease in the first place.

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing looked at 699 overweight children ages 10 to 17 recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. They found that treatment with medication commonly used to control diabetes in adults did not help almost half of patients maintain healthy blood sugar levels, forcing those children to begin insulin injections within a year. One in five of the children in the study had a serious complication such as very high blood sugar, and many were hospitalized.

Among various treatment programs, the study found that:

• Treatment with a medication called Metformin (also called Glucophage) alone failed 52 percent of children in the study.

• Treatment with Metformin plus a medication called rosiglitazone (brand name Avandia) failed 39 percent.

• Metformin plus an intensive diet, exercise and weight-loss program failed 47 percent of children. The intervention included a lifestyle coach and a family member designated for support.

Better treatment to manage type 2 diabetes in children is needed, but study author Terri H. Lipman, Ph.D., said prevention is key. “What we have learned is that the effect of the obesity-prone environment of these youths is even more difficult to overcome than we had predicted,” she said in a statement accompanying release of her study, which was published in May in The New England Journal of Medicine.

 

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Can the Neighborhood Make Kids Fat?

Thursday, April 12th, 2012

With nearly 18 percent of school-aged children and adolescents in the U.S. now classified as obese, health experts and organizations have increasingly been pointing to nurture, rather than nature, as a possible culprit. Specifically, they’ve been looking at where kids live for clues about why they’re getting fatter. And a study out this week suggests they’re right.

Researchers have found that children living in walkable neighborhoods with plenty of parks (with high-quality play equipment), lots of grocery stores and few fast-food outlets are almost 60 percent less likely to be obese than those living in areas without these perks.

A team from the Seattle Children’s Research Institute evaluated the nutrition and physical activity environments of neighborhoods in King County in Seattle, Washington, and San Diego County, California from 2007 to 2009. They then assessed the weight of 730 children ages 6-11, plus one parent for each, living in those neighborhoods.

They found that 16 percent of children living in the poorest nutrition and activity neighborhoods were obese – a figure in line with the national average – but just 8 percent of kids in active neighborhoods with access to healthier foods were obese.

“People think of childhood obesity and immediately think about an individual’s physical activity and nutrition behaviors, but they do not necessarily equate obesity with where people live,” says lead study author Brian Saelens, Ph.D. “Everyone from parents to policymakers should pay more attention to zip codes because they could have a big impact on weight.”

The study appeared April 10 in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

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Parents of Preschoolers: Take Your Kids Outside

Wednesday, April 4th, 2012

Kids (and parents) need at least an hour a day of physical activity – ideally spent playing outside – to stay healthy. But nearly half of parents of preschoolers don’t take their children outdoors daily, a study out this week found.

Even preschoolers in child care spend the majority of their time with their parents, so moms and dads are the biggest influences over their healthy behavior. Researchers from Seattle Children’s Research Institute found that computer and television time weren’t a factor in whether kids made it outdoors, but they did note several other traits that made a difference. Preschoolers had outdoor play with parents more often if:

They were boys. The study found that girls were less likely to play outside, and that mothers took their children outside more often (44%) than fathers (24%).

They had playmates. Preschoolers with three or more regular playmates were twice as likely to get outside every day as those with fewer playtime pals.

Their parents were white. Asian moms were 49 percent less likely, black mothers 41 percent less likely and Hispanic moms 20 percent less likely to take their children outside than white mothers were.

Their mothers exercised. Mothers who reported exercising more than four times a week were 50 percent more likely to take their kids outside daily than mothers who said they didn’t exercise at all.

The 8,950 families in the survey were part of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort (collected from 2001 to kindergarten entry), and represent approximately 4 million U.S. children. The current study appears in the April 2 Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine.

Lead author Pooja Tandon, M.D., MPH, says that parents should ask childcare centers about outdoor playtime, talk up the importance of outdoor play to friends, and make an extra effort to encourage girls to play outdoors. Even if you don’t get home until after dark, or it’s a bit rainy, a flashlight and umbrella are all you need to turn a walk around the block into an outdoor adventure.

Click here for tips from Dr. Tandon on getting your kids outdoors!

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“Active” Video Games Not a Cure-All For Inactive Kids

Monday, February 27th, 2012

Bringing home a shiny new Wii Fit or Dance DanceRevolution game for your kids won’t make their days any more active than if you’d brought them Mario Kart. That’s the finding of a study published today (Feb. 27) in the journal Pediatrics.

Previous research has shown that children in laboratory studies using “active” games – games that require players to move their whole bodies, rather than just buttons or triggers on a controller – can get the equivalent of moderate or sometimes even vigorous physical activity. But Tom Baranowski, Ph.D., a professor of behavioral nutrition at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, wanted to test the games under “real world” conditions, to see if receiving a new active game made kids move more at home.

Baranowski’s team selected 87 children ages 9-12 who did not already have a Wii console at home, and had Body Mass Index (BMI) high enough to put them at risk for obesity as adults. Age 10 has been pegged by experts as a critical window for increasing physical activity, because that’s the age where an obese child’s risk of carrying their weight problems into adulthood skyrockets.

Researchers gave all of the participating families Wii game consoles and necessary extras such as mats, controllers and balance boards. Half of the children were then allowed to choose an active game (Active Life-Extreme Challenge, EA Sports Active, Dance DanceRevolution-Hottest Party 3, Wii Fit Plus or Wii Sports), while half got to choose an inactive game (Disney Sing It-Pop Hits, Madden NFL 10, Mario Kart Wii, New Super Mario Bros. Wii or super Mario Galaxy). After six weeks, all the children were allowed to choose another game from the same group.

Activity levels for all children were monitored during the 12 weeks they had their games using an accelerometer, a device that’s worn to measure acceleration and exertion. Researchers found that the children using the active games were no more physically active during the study than those using inactive games.

“We were quite surprised,” says Baranowski. “We expected that we would detect a modest increase in physical activity during week one [among kids with the active games], which would be lost by week six, and detect another smaller increase in physical activity at week seven (after just having received their second active video game) which would also die out by week 12.”

Baranowski and his team theorize that children receiving the active video games either didn’t play them very intensely, or they offset activity from the games by choosing to be less active at other times of the day. “I would bet a little bit of both,” he says. “We have qualitative data that indicated the kids did play the games and enjoyed them, but obviously they didn’t play them intensely enough.” He explains that without actual instruction to play the games at a certain intensity level, or for a certain amount of time each day, kids didn’t get enough physical activity from the games to make a difference.

But he also notes something about the make-up of active games that could be getting in the way of extended play. “By themselves these active video games have little to no story,” he says. “Wrapping a story around these games also holds promise,” as a way to hold kids’ attention for longer periods. A colleague is working on research to test that idea.

Meanwhile, don’t count on a game to give your kids the exercise they need. “You need to do more than just purchase and provide your child an active video game,” says Baranowski, who suggests playing the game with your child on a regular basis (even daily), adding other activities like a nightly walk to the family calendar, or getting your child involved in sports teams at school or in your community.

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Kids Who Are Stressed More Likely To Gain Weight

Tuesday, January 31st, 2012

Nine-year-olds stressed out by chronic violence, poor housing, poverty and family turmoil are more likely to become obese by age 13 than those who aren’t – probably because these stresses erode self-control.

Cornell University researchers evaluated exposure of 244 children to nine different ongoing stressors, measured their height and weight at age 9, and measured their ability to delay gratification by waiting for a large plate of candy rather than having a smaller plate right away. Four years later, they evaluated the children’s height and weight again.

The children who were exposed to chronic stress were heavier than they otherwise would have been, the researchers concluded. Adults who can “self-regulate” are better able to follow healthy habits, and the study’s authors believe this is true of children as well. And there is evidence that parts of the brain that are sensitive to stress are also involved in helping us regulate our behavior and control impulses.

Previous studies have also linked stress to weight gain in children, and researchers involved with this study suggest that a multi-pronged approach – targeting all areas of stress rather than just one – is the best way to help these kids.

The study was published online Jan. 30 in the journal Pediatrics.

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Big Changes in the School Cafeteria

Wednesday, January 25th, 2012

Editor’s Note: Here’s a guest post from Deirdre Wilson, a colleague of mine and Senior Editor at Dominion Parenting Media.

School cafeteria food is getting a major facelift. For the first time in 15 years, the USDA has raised the standards for school meals eaten by nearly 32 million American kids each week day. It’s just one part of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act championed by First Lady Michelle Obama in her Let’s Move campaign to combat childhood obesity.

“As parents, we try to prepare decent meals, limit how much junk food our kids eat, and ensure they have a reasonably balanced diet,” the First Lady says in a statement about the new guidelines. “And when we’re putting in all that effort the last thing we want is for our hard work to be undone each day in the school cafeteria. When we send our kids to school, we expect that they won’t be eating the kind of fatty, salty, sugary foods that we try to keep them from eating at home. We want the food they get at school to be the same kind of food we would serve at our own kitchen tables.”

The new school meal regulations call for:

 

• Fruits and vegetables in school meals every week day;

• A significant increase in whole grain foods;

• Only fat-free or low-fat milk;

• Portion sizes limited to a total calorie count appropriate for the age of the kids served; and

• More focus on reducing saturated and trans fats and sodium.

 

The rules are based on recommendations from a panel of experts convened by the Institute of Medicine; they were also modified to take into account more than 130,000 public comments submitted when the regulations were first proposed. They won’t be easily implemented, however; the new standards are expected to cost $3.2 billion over the next five years, the USDA says, and are just one of five major parts of the Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act. Among the improvements still to come are:

 

• New restrictions on what can and can’t be sold in school vending machines;

• Increased federal funding for school meals (an additional 6 cents a meal) based on how much a school improves its meal program; and

• Training and support to help schools comply with the new rules.

 

The rules will affect the National School Lunch and School Breakfast programs, the Summer Food Service Program, and supplemental food assistance programs, including the one for Women, Infants and Children (WIC).

– Deirdre Wilson

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Junk Food In Middle Schools Not Key To Kids’ Obesity

Wednesday, January 18th, 2012

Pressure has been on schools in recent years to do their part in battling the childhood obesity epidemic – particularly by offering healthier school lunches and curbing sale of junk food. But a study out this week suggests the chips, candy and sodas kids buy in middle school doesn’t impact their weight at all.

In a largescale effort, researchers crunched data on 19,450 children participating in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, which followed a nationally representative sample of kids from kindergarten through eighth grade between 1998 and 2007. And their results surprised even the study’s authors.

When the students in the study were in fifth grade, just under 60 percent went to schools that sold junk food. By the time they got to eighth grade, over 86 percent attended campuses where junk food was sold. Researchers expected that this would translate to more overweight and obese students – but it didn’t. In fact, the percentage of students who were overweight or obese decreased slightly.

The authors were so surprised by the result that they delayed publishing the research, which appeared in the January issue of Sociology of Education, for two years while they reviewed the data. They released their report because:

1. It all added up. Researchers used several types of statistical models and measures to make sure their results were sound. “Even after looking at the data hundreds of different ways, we never found a significant relationship between competitive food sales and increases in children’s weight between fifth and eighth grade,” says lead author Jennifer Van Hook, who directs the Population Research Institute at Pennsylvania State University.

2. Past research was focused on food, not weight. In reviewing previous studies on the topic, Van Hook and her team looked at a 2004 study that found students who had access to a snack bar consumed fewer healthy foods and more sweetened drinks, and a 2005 study showing high school students were less likely to buy food from vending machines when there were fewer working vending machines on campus. But there were no studies directly linking increased sale of junk food at schools to increased weight in students. “Thus, our expectation that competitive food sales should increase children’s weight was not actually supported by prior research,” she says.

3. School isn’t that big a part of kids’ overall dietary picture. “Children eat only a small portion of their food at school, including junk food,” says Van Hook. Previous research found that just 6 percent of the soda consumed by children came from school vending machines, for example. Research also suggests that during their structured school day, kids have less time for snacking then they would at home. And finally, studies indicate that children’s eating habits and food preferences are largely established in early childhood, before they ever start school.

Based on her team’s findings, Van Hook says it will likely take the coordinated efforts of educators, health care providers, parents, business and government to truly reduce childhood obesity. “Schools can’t do it alone,” she insists. “Schools do not seem to be good at drastically changing a student’s weight, and the elimination of junk food sales in schools is unlikely to upend the child obesity epidemic.”

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Health-E Books: Eddie Shapes Up

Wednesday, September 28th, 2011

eddie-shapes-up1Apparently Ed Koch, mayor of New York City from 1978-1989, was a chubby kid. And while he finally overcame being “more than just a little overweight” in high school, the pain and embarrassment stayed with him.

With the help of his sister Pat Koch Thaler and illustrator Jonathan Hoefer, Koch has re-imagined his childhood experience for kids in Eddie Shapes Up (Sept. 2011, Zagat).

The story begins with young Eddie huddled under the covers, trying to convince his mom to let him stay home from school – and avoid heading out to the playground at recess. His mom says he has to go, and even after noticing that his pants are fitting a little tight, Eddie chooses a bagel with butter over cereal and fruit for breakfast, and requests plenty of cookies in his lunch.

At school, Eddie can’t keep up with the other kids on the playground, and they tease him and call him names. His two best pals, both leaner and more fit than Eddie, offer advice about good eating and invite Eddie out for a bit of healthy exercise. Eddie backs off the cookies, takes up jogging and jump rope, and by the end of the book is out there holding his own in a game of dodge ball – much to his pals’ delight.

The book portrays Eddie, through the illustrations and the text, as a likeable kid with a serious but fixable problem. Kids will understand Eddie’s love of cookies, and that he prefers books to soccer games. So they’ll also understand that all it really takes to change things for Eddie is a few more fruits and vegetables, and some fun time outdoors with his friends.

His transformation isn’t dramatic – say, from couch potato to soccer star – but realistic. The kid who wants to skip recess and eat extra cookies becomes a kid who can dodge a ball and asks his mom for an apple. He’s not skinny, but he’s thinner, stronger, and happier. And his story would be an inspiration to any kid with a few pounds to lose.

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Podcasting Kids’ Health

Monday, March 28th, 2011

kids-healthcastThe pediatric residents at the Indiana University School of Medicine are learning about children’s health – and for the past year they’ve been broadcasting helpful news and tips via their Kids Healthcast pediatric podcasts.

The half-hour audio segments are available free through the iTunes store, or at http://kidshealthcast.org. Parents looking for a hands-free way to catch up on topics ranging from transitioning babies to solid food, teen driving, seasonal allergies and constipation can listen on their iPhone, iPad or computer. The current episode, in honor of the first anniversary of Kids Healthcast, is entirely devoted to childhood obesity, with news about a healthy school lunch program, information about the impact of childhood obesity, and tips for parents facing challenges with their child’s weight.

The website even features a “Call Me” link that lets parents use Google to call in toll-free and leave a voicemail question for the residents to answer.

Check it out …

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Tips For Kid-Friendly Mediterranean Eats

Thursday, March 17th, 2011

Here’s a guest post from Dena Herman, Ph.D., of  the UCLA School of Public Health. She is a pediatric dietitian and Co-Director of the National Children’s Study for the Los Angeles-Ventura Study Center (NCS-LAVSC). Her concern about growing rates of childhood obesity and the challenge families face in improving their diets inspired these tips:

dena-hermanThe percentage of overweight children in the United States has reached epidemic numbers. In fact, one third of our nation’s kids are carrying too much weight as a result of a poor diet high in unhealthy fats and simple sugars and a sedentary lifestyle. Besides these much talked-about causes, experts believe there could be other, less obvious factors that influence the development of, obesity, but also diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure. Although more research is being done to gain a better understanding about these diseases, improving our children’s diet and helping them increase their physical activity will significantly reduce their chances of becoming obese and, if their Body Mass Index (BMI) is already high, will help them reach a healthy weight.

One of the best ways to improve our childrens’ diet is by following the Mediterranean diet, which consists in consuming healthy fats such as olive oil and nuts, lean meat, fish, whole grains and plenty of fruits and vegetables. Although these guidelines are widely known, most parents find it difficult to convince kids to consume these products because they are not as popular among their peers and parents do not always have the tools to prepare fresh foods tastefully. Nonetheless, there are plenty of ways to use these nutritious options to create delicious, quick meals and snacks that the little ones will enjoy. The following are a few tips to get you started:

- orange Encourage kids to eat fresh fruit instead of drinking fruit juice for a better source of fiber, which is often lacking in their diets. Have cubes of melon, grapes and other fruit choices easily available when kids come home from school and are hungry for a snack. In the summer, place fruit cubes in the freezer for a refreshing afterschool snack or blend up some fruit and freeze it as popsicles! You can also try giving kids “crudités,” which are cut-up vegetables consumed raw. Not only does the name sound cool but, when served with a creamy bean dip made from cannellini beans, these veggies will have them asking for more. Good options include grape tomatoes, baby carrots and sugar snap peas.

- Get the kids involved in what they eat and make your own trail mix. Ask kids to choose a few of their favorite nuts, seeds and dried fruits on the next grocery shopping trip. Home-made trail mixes are great for lunches and snacks, and packed with healthy omega-3 fatty acids that are excellent for healthy brain function and getting homework done quicker.

- fishFish is brain food – that is why they travel in schools. Try to include fish as part of a healthy family dinner at least twice a week. Fish such as mahi-mahi, cod or halibut make great choices. Experiment with flavorful Mediterranean marinades using herbs like oregano, basil and garlic as well as fresh lemon or orange juice. You can also slice and bread the fish into sticks and bake it in the oven – instead of frying it – for a healthy, kid-friendly dish.

- Sandwiches are easy school meals but they can get tiresome. Rev up the flavor and interest by spreading homemade pesto or tapenade instead of mayonnaise on crusty, whole-wheat, toasted bread. Finely slice, marinate and grill chicken or turkey breasts for a tasty alternative to deli meats.

- cupcake Who needs cupcakes for school birthdays? Surprise the kids by making delicious fruit skewers with a variety of fruits – and yes, you can dip the strawberries in dark chocolate for a phytonutrient punch they won’t forget. If your kids can’t pass without the cupcakes or other sweet treats, look for healthier, less processed options or dig for a lower-fat, lower-sugar recipe alternative and bake a limited amount.

- Work with your children’s tastes but try to expand their palates. If your kids’ favorite foods are pizza and pasta, try creating healthier versions of their favorite meals by making substitutions and adding vegetables or fruits. For example, substitute pepperoni in pizzas for barbecue chicken and add fresh tomatoes and garlic. Peas and pearl onions add taste and dimension to plain pasta but don’t forget to add the parmesan cheese. Eating meals as a family offers the opportunity for children to learn and experience new foods as well as eating memories they will never forget.

Remember, the goal is not to eliminate all treats and favorite foods from your children’s diet, but to teach them healthier habits, including moderation. If you have a busy schedule that does not allow you to make dishes from scratch, most supermarkets have a wide variety of healthy options, such as pre-cut vegetables and fruits or whole-wheat pizza crust, that will help you save time in the kitchen. For additional resources and ideas, ask your pediatric dietitian, visit an official healthy eating website (e.g., www.eatright.org) or just have fun with it and experiment! Your children’s health will benefit enormously.

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