my eight year old weighs 65 lbs and going up... skng. excer.

Greenbelle

Wed, Jun 29 2011, 11:24 am

Dear friends, please help if you can.
my little girl who is eight is gaining weight and I would like to stop this unhealthy process in a fun and happy way. unfortunately although she loves fruits and veggies, she is allergic to most of them, as well as all dairy and sensitive to wheat. All these foods cause her eczema, coughing and other immediate symtoms.
she has begun to gain weight and while I don't overdiscuss it with her or call much attention to it I DO want to begin walking with her every morning and I am also looking for a dancing/excersise class 5 days/week for children in brooklyn. Ocean Parkway and 18th ave. area.If anyone has any ideas or knows of a class or knows of someone who can lead such a class that I will organize I would be glad to know about it. I thought about something simple and fun like 45 minutes of simcha dancing.
please take a moment to respond if you can.
thank you.
hope is everything! : )

Barbara

Wed, Jun 29 2011, 11:30 am

While dancing and exercise is a wonderful idea for everyone, young and old, you should be aware that 65 pounds for an 8 year old girl is well within normal range - about 50th percentile by my calculations:

http://www.kidsgrowth.com/stag.....GW318

mummiedearest

Wed, Jun 29 2011, 11:35 am

I don't know about classes. however, if you have a dvd player, you should be able to get a simcha dancing instructional dvd. do it with her every day, you'll both have fun. you can even invite some of her friends to do it on a regular basis. make your own little class. does she have a bike or roller blades? those are great ways to get some exercise in. make sure to give her a healthy snack after she finishes.

I don't know if she actually needs to lose weight, but it's a good idea to incorporate healthy habits into her life at a young age. good for you.

Greenbelle

Wed, Jun 29 2011, 11:36 am

thanks Barbara, I am not saying that she is obese; merely that she is clearly gaining weight and for her height she is definately overweight and noticeably so.
I am not sounding alarm bells to HER; only privately in my own mind.

I'd like to incorporate lots of fun physical activity into her bais yaakov style sedentary, mostly indoors life style so that she can hopefully avoid obesity in the future and the pain and health issues associated with obesity.

amother

Wed, Jun 29 2011, 11:49 am

OP please don't obsess over this. If you do and eventually push it on your daughter when she gets a bit older it can lead to eating disorders.

PLEASE do it in a proper way

Mimisinger

Wed, Jun 29 2011, 12:06 pm

I would really talk to the doctor, I know a 5 yo who is 62 lbs. Now, he's tall for his age, but not overweight at all. I would def. talk to the doc and see what he says. And then, if he thinks she's overweight, then get her moving, but otherwise, don't make her crazy.

Raisin

Wed, Jun 29 2011, 1:20 pm

I think telling an 8 year old you need to join an exercise class or start walking every day is basically telling her she is overweight. I would try and get her to do dance or sports or swimming - things that are fun in their own right.

How about walking to school? If you drive her maybe have her walk instead.

DovDov

Wed, Jun 29 2011, 1:24 pm

I disagree.

Involving her in fun physical activities can only be good for her regardless of her weight. The sedentary Bais Yaakov lifestyle is bad for EVERYONE, skinny minnies included. Have you heard of normal weight obesity?

OP, so long as you're couching it as a fun Ima-daughter activity or a great opportunity to learn simcha dancing and meet friends from different schools, and NOT as a weight management tool, I don't see any harm whatsoever regardless of her BMI. On the other hand, I would not discuss weight at all with an 8 year old.

Also, the percentile thing is quite misleading. My four year old weighs 41 lbs. That's the 68th percentile. But he's 43 inches tall, which is the 74th percentile. His BMI is in the 54th percentile. NOT overweight.
His best friend is the same age but only 38 or 39 inches tall (judging by the height differential). If he weighed the same, his BMI would be above the 97th percentile, and he'd be classified as obese. If OP's daughter looks overweight, she is probably on the shorter side for her age.

momof2sofar

Wed, Jun 29 2011, 3:16 pm

Certainly don't have your perspective be about losing weight. It is healthy for the whole family to exercise. When I was a kid (probably arouund 10) I put on weight and had 2 skinny siblings. My mom put me on a diet. It was obvious to me even though she says she did it as dicreatly as possible. Well wouldn't you know it caused food issues and an eating disorder for me. My 2 skinny kids exercise. They see me doing it and want to join in. An active lifestyle is healthy for the whole family. If she sees you doing it she will want to also. I would maybe enroll her in a local swim class or dance class if she wants. Otherwise tell her you are going for a walk and ask if she'd like to join you. But don't focus on her weight. Focus on changing the whole families lifestyle to include exercise and eating right. Don't make her crazy. (I'm not suggesting that you are)

Greenbelle

Wed, Jun 29 2011, 3:41 pm

I appreciate all the input here and the care and concern.
Regarding her diet, she really does like all kinds of salads and fruit but unfortunately is allergic to most fruits, vegetables and dairy. She does not like proteins too much so she eats lots of potatoes, and other carbs which is why she is putting on weight.
We started walking today and she really enjoyed the time with me so now I just have to make sure that I really stick to it and walk with her.

shnitzel

Wed, Jun 29 2011, 3:47 pm

I think exercise is a great idea and any skinny kids you have should also get involved. Exercise is extremely important for physical health.

It is very common for kids right before puberty to put on a little pudge. They sometimes store it for a little bit before they hit their growth spurt which is earlier for girls than for boys so she may just be putting on weight because of that. You often see the 8 - 14 crowd looking quite chubby and the older and younger ones looking very slender.

aidelmaidel

Wed, Jun 29 2011, 4:04 pm

Greenbelle wrote:

Were her allergies diagnosed by a licensed medical doctor/allergist or were you informed of this from an alternative medical practitioner?

It is EXTREMELY rare to have a child allergic to most vegetables. I've seen severe fruit allergies, but vegetables? That sounds off to me?

She can get proteins from beans, soy, tempeh, fish, eggs, meat, chicken, there are lots of sources of protein.

There are also lots of yummy whole grains for carbohydrates that will last longer - quinoa, millet, kasha, bulgur, etc.

DovDov

Wed, Jun 29 2011, 5:19 pm

I think it's not that uncommon for people to have various degrees of allergic reactions to nightshade plants, which, if I remember correctly, includes tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, eggplants, and others.

I also thought it included white potatoes, so maybe that's not it. But there are widespread vegetable allergies.