Children May Gain Unwanted Weight in Summertime
If you think young children spend their summers running around and keeping trim, think again. A new study finds that kindergartners and first-graders put on more weight during summer vacations than during the school year.
Children are eating more and exercising less when they are out of the classroom routine, suggests the study in the American Journal of Public Health.
The extra pounds are not normal growth spurts: During the summer, children gain weight at twice the rate as during the school year, pushing some kids into obesity and making overweight children even heavier.
The study authors do not know for sure why kids gain extra weight during the summer, but they suspect that schools - with their vending machines and fattening foods - might not be the culprit after all.
"Our research indicates that people may have overstated the negative influence of schools on children's weight," says study co-author Brian Powell, Ph.D., a professor of sociology at Indiana University.
Dr. Powell and his colleagues examined a 1998-2000 survey of 5,380 children in kindergarten and first grade.
The children were weighed twice during each school year, and the researchers calculated their body mass index (BMI) - a ratio of weight to height.
The researchers then looked for patterns to see if the children were most likely to gain weight during the school year or during summer.
The children gained weight at a faster rate - double that of the rest of the year - during summer. African-American and Latino children, along with those who were overweight at the beginning of kindergarten, were most affected by the discrepancy.
"We're not saying all children are getting fat, but they're moving up," says Dr. Powell. "The extent of their BMI gain is troubling during the summer."
The researchers note that obesity among kids ages six to 11 has tripled in the last 20 years, to 15 percent.
They also point to earlier studies that found that five- and six-year-olds with above average BMI and BMI gains are at greater risk of obesity as adults.
Other researchers have found signs of weight problems among young children.
In a study released last year that covered the years 1988-1994, researchers reported that children aged two to seven consumed between 110 and 165 calories more than they needed each day, resulting in a weight gain not related to growth of almost a pound a year.
Some might assume that the weight gains found in the new study are just a product of ordinary growth spurts.
But such spurts should not be seasonal, Dr. Powell says. "Compared to the summer, schools reduce the problem (of weight gain), or at least buffer the problem."
The study authors were not able to pinpoint what it is about school that is better for children when it comes to weight.
But they suspect it has something to do with the controlled environment inside a school, which makes students eat and exercise at specific times.
"People criticize schools for having vending machines, but when you're sitting in class, you don't have the opportunity to get something out of the vending machine whenever you like," says study lead author Paul von Hippel, Ph.D., a research statistician at Ohio State University.
But kids at home can eat whenever they like. What should parents do?
"You need to think about reforms that are going to affect how kids behave when school is out after the bell rings, like nutrition classes that emphasize making smart decisions when you're home," says Dr. von Hippel.
Always consult your physician for more information.
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Eating healthy is an important part of a healthy lifestyle and is something that should be taught to children at a young age.
The following are some general guidelines for helping your child eat healthy. It is important to discuss your child's diet with your child's physician prior to making any dietary changes or placing your child on a diet.
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Eat three meals a day, with healthy snacks.
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Increase fiber in the diet and decrease the use of salt.
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Drink water. Try to avoid drinks and juices that are high in sugar.
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Children under the age of two need fats in their diet to help with the growth of their nervous system. Do not place these children on a low fat diet without talking with your child's physician.
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Eat balanced meals.
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When cooking for your child, try to bake or broil instead of frying.
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Decrease your child's sugar intake.
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Eat fruit or vegetables for a snack.
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For children over five, use low-fat dairy products.
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Decrease the use of butter and heavy gravies.
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Eat more lean chicken, fish, and beans for protein.
Try to control when and where food is eaten by your children by providing regular daily meal times with social interaction and demonstration of healthy eating behaviors.
Involve children in the selection and preparation of foods and teach them to make healthy choices by providing opportunities to select foods based on their nutritional value.
For children in general, reported dietary intakes of the following are low enough to be of concern by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA): vitamin E, calcium, magnesium, potassium, and fiber. Select foods with these nutrients when possible.
Most Americans need to reduce the amount of calories they consume. When it comes to weight control, calories do count.
Controlling portion sizes and eating non-processed foods helps limit calorie intake and increase nutrients.
Parents are encouraged to provide recommended serving sizes for children.
Parents are encouraged to limit children’s video, television watching, and computer use to less than two hours daily and replace the sedentary activities with activities that require more movement.
Children and adolescents need at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity on most days for maintenance of good health and fitness and for healthy weight during growth.
To prevent dehydration, encourage children to drink fluid regularly during physical activity and drink several glasses of water or other fluid after the physical activity is completed.
Always consult your physician for more information.
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