Overweight child...advice please (baby, diabetes, snacks, activities)

[mlammons]

I have a son who is almost 5 and 68 lbs. He's 50 inches tall. My issue is that my ex husband will not stop feeding him junk! My son is naturally kind of a stocky kid but now he's getting overweight and it's causing me concern. His dad is at least 80 lbs. overweight now and I'm so worried my son is going to pick up his dad's eating habits and end up with serious health issues.

My ex recently moved to the same town and now lives about 10 blocks away and my son spends about 3 nights a week with him. Plus he spends his days with him on wkends. My kiddo started gaining when he began spending so much time with his dad.

I have tried to talk to his dad about this and he brushes me off and acts like it's not a big deal. What should I do???

[findinghope]

wow--that is a tough one. are there any activities they could both get into together that can help them lose weight?
a father son sports team?
maybe join some kind of gym together. indoor rock climbing. get them both a set of skates... they can still bond but over something more healthy. the tough part is that he is your ex--and so it might be difficult to convinve him i am guessing.

[RTTNFAM]

Have you talked about your concerns with his pediatrician? Maybe if you bring this up to the doctor, he can tell you whether your sons weight is considered a health issue at this time or not. If it is, maybe having the doctor say so will help your ex be better about what he feeds your son. In other words it won't just be you nagging on him (as most men see us do LOL) but it will be the doctors word of concern.

[calif]

It is time to start talking to your son about making healthy choices. Obviously your ex doesn't care as much about your little ones health as you do. If your son can start to say no to junk once in a while it would be to his benefit. I would also get a note from your doctor or have a joint meeting with the doc. Diabetes is becoming way too common in kids these days. Good for you for seeing what is going on and trying to stop it.

[tamitrail]

Yes, talk to your son. Get some kids dvds about making smart choices. Give him the power to make those choices when you are not there. I know we discussed this in both ds's K and 1st grade curriculum. Another thing to do is to make sure your son is getting a lot of exercise when he is with you. Get him enrolled in some physical activities, take walks with him, etc. Most importantly, YOU be his good example.

[mlammons]

Thanks to all of you

He will be seeing his pediatrician in a couple of wks for his annual check up. I'm going to ask his dad to come too.

We are very active when he is with me. We swim almost every day, he plays soccer, golf, runs and plays in the backyard. He's starting to lose stamina. I've noticed he runs out of breath faster and gets tired a lot quicker.

I think it will be difficult to get him to make healthy choices on his own. He has developed quite the sweet tooth and is constantly saying he's hungry (even right after he has eaten). I will get some DVD's and see if they have any impact. I sure hope so!

[RTTNFAM]

Originally Posted by mlammons

Thanks to all of you

He will be seeing his pediatrician in a couple of wks for his annual check up. I'm going to ask his dad to come too.

We are very active when he is with me. We swim almost every day, he plays soccer, golf, runs and plays in the backyard. He's starting to lose stamina. I've noticed he runs out of breath faster and gets tired a lot quicker.

I think it will be difficult to get him to make healthy choices on his own. He has developed quite the sweet tooth and is constantly saying he's hungry (even right after he has eaten). I will get some DVD's and see if they have any impact. I sure hope so!

Good luck and stick to your guns! Your child is worth it!

[kimba01]

Originally Posted by mlammons

Thanks to all of you

He will be seeing his pediatrician in a couple of wks for his annual check up. I'm going to ask his dad to come too.

We are very active when he is with me. We swim almost every day, he plays soccer, golf, runs and plays in the backyard. He's starting to lose stamina. I've noticed he runs out of breath faster and gets tired a lot quicker.

I think it will be difficult to get him to make healthy choices on his own. He has developed quite the sweet tooth and is constantly saying he's hungry (even right after he has eaten). I will get some DVD's and see if they have any impact. I sure hope so!

I can relate to the difficulty in getting them to make healthy choices. Of course kids want junk food. I know that sometimes I prefer it over a carrot! But, I would say have less junk food around and get "cool" veggies and fruits and have them cut up in baggies in the fridge. It is easier to grab then a whole cantaloupe or watermelon. Put them at his eye level. Get some baby carrots and use light ranch. You can even get vanilla yogurt to dip the fruits in. Lo-cal popsicles are good too.

Thing is, it becomes more about the habit of having something in your mouth then the hunger. Once it is a habit it is even harder to break. I am fighting this issue with my 14 yo daughter. It is even harder now. She did not have a weight problem when she was younger, but I do see that she has become lazier too. Do not let him get in the habit of eating in front of the TV or in his room.

Good luck, sounds like you are going in the right direction and the fact that you are concerned now is great. Awareness is the first step. You cannot control what your ex does. You can suggest but at least you can control what choices you provide him.

[Mainer61]

Can you pack him healthy snacks for at his Dad's house? Good eating habits have to start really early. DRAG his father to the doctor's appointment if you have to.

[tamitrail]

I have seen some changes in my 4 year old with some weight gain that my 7 year old does not have. They both HATE vegetables but I keep trying. I have resorted to just changing things in her diet without her knowing. Giving her fat free yogurt instead of ice cream, not putting butter on her waffles, changing to a low fat, whole grain waffle instead of the higher fat ones, etc. Small changes, but maybe you could do that when he's with you also and counteract some of what his father is doing.

Hopefully, his father will come to the dr appt and you can both get through to him. Another thought is maybe his father lets him eat like that because it's easier than preparing something healthy so maybe the suggestion to pack healthy snacks will help out.