814-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 20,1985
S a
JUX
Should parents wony over
PITTSBURGH - What about
“baby fat?” Is it cute and
something a child is likely to lose
as he/she grows? Or are we
promoting a fat adult when we
ignore an overweight child?
The answers to these questions
are the subject of several research
studies. There are some well
founded theories and some
evidence that can help put the
issue into perspective. Judy Dodd,
a registered dietitian with Dairy &
Nutrition Council, provides some
help for parents concerned about
the overweight child.
First, consider that at one time a
fat baby or child was considered to
be a healthy child. This was the
child who could survive the stress
of diseases. The belief traces back
to the days when diptheria,
typhoid, dysentery, and even
common childhood diseases such
as measles took their toll of
thousands of children. Today we
immunize against many of these
diseases and still others are under
control due to better sanitation.
The result is that the effects of
childhood illnesses are generally
less devastating. Extra calories,
stored as fat, are no longer
necessary to withstand such
illnesses.
Another consideration is
knowing something about children,
how they grow, and how to in
terpret their “size.” Weight or
height are not the major concerns
when evaluating a child. The
concern in children, as in adults, is
evaluating that child against his or
her own growth pattern. Body fat,
not just weight should be
measured.
Children follow growth patterns
established by heredity, stage of
development, and environmental
factors. Some children will always
look heavier and taller than their
friends and even their brothers and
sisters. It is a higher percentage of
body fat than would be normal that
signals a problem. And all of these
factors are compared to standards
for someone of that child’s body
build and developmental age. It is
this type of “overfat” that is the
health risk for both children and
adults.
Sometimes the tendency to be
overweight appears to be a family
trait. Bruch notes that a child with
one obese (moderate to severe
overweight) parent, has a 40
percent chance of becoming an
obese adult. When both parents are
obese, the risk of obesity increases
to 70 percent. The question is how
much of this is due to genetics
(body build or inborn tendencies)
and how much is due to social and
environmental factors?
Although it is likely that true
“baby fat,” the characteristically
shapeless body of the young child,
will blend into the well-defined
body of the adolescent, there are
some steps to take while waiting!
One of these steps is determining if
a child is truly “overfat.”
If you have reason to question
your child’s growth patterns,
discuss it with your physician.
There are health professionals,
(ii
•ggr
including registered dietitians,
who can work with the family and
the physician to assess the status
of the young child.
Along with the standard weight
and height, there are some simple
body measurements that will
estimate body fat content. These
are non-invasive.
Along with these measurements,
there should be a professional
review of food intake and an ac
tivity level assessment. Finally
there are series of medical tests
that check metabolism and
measure hormone levels, should
this be necessary.
Prevention
It’s never easy to survive in this
weight conscious society as an
overweight person, but for
children and teens, it may be a
gg
£Vi
baby fat?
crisis situation.
Excessive weight is a health
risk. It is a complicating factor in
such diseases as high blood
pressure, diabetes, and heart
diseases. For the child, being
overweight in childhood may have
as the major health risk an in
crease in the likelihood of
becoming an overweight adult.
Add to this the loss of self-esteem
and added weight becomes a
major health problem!
According to dietitian Judy
Dodd, a child who is obese (defined
as a condition of being overweight
by 15-20 percent more) develops
sturdy bones and muscles to
support the excess weight. Thus it
is possible that as the child
becomes an adult, there will be ,
more lean body mass (muscle),
and body fat than is found in the
average person. People who are
obese as children appear to be less
successful at weight reduction as
adults in part because of the body
build developed during childhood.
Research studies indicate that
overfeeding in the early years may
stimulate the production of fat
cells. The result is an abnormally
high number of fat cells, each with
the ability to grow in size. With
weight gain, the cells increase in
size as more fat is added; with
weight loss, the size of the cells
decrease but the number of fat
cells remains steady. This higher
number of fat cells can complicate
weight maintenance throughout
life since the cells are there ready
to “fill” with fat.
One area which may be con
trollable is the environmental and
social factors which are a part of
the tendency to be overweight.
Mrs. Dodd points out that one
common point of agreement is that
the goal should be prevention of
obesity or at least control of
weight. For the child it means
m
programming in a weight control
oriented lifestyle. Eating patterns,
food choices, and exercise are
components of this lifestyle. Here
are some suggestions;
- Children would be encouraged
to develop the sound habit of eating
in response to hunger cues rather
than responding to social cues.
This means that a child should be
able to know when to stop eating
because he or she is satisfied
(full).
- Food is an important part of
sociability, but plan events around
nutrient dense, low calorie foods
rather than feasts! Offer raw
vegetable or fruit and a low calorie
yogurt dip rather than coldcuts
and chips!!
- Start early to build positive
food habits. Resist the temptation
to use food as a reward for good
behavior or to keep children quiet.
Often food is used as a pacifier,
especially when away from home.
Offer non-food rewards for
behavior and achievements.
Remember, verbal praise and
smiles are less expensive rewards
that satisfies the need to be
recognized!
- At the first indication that a
child is truly “full” let him stop,
without the struggle that often
follows. The tendency to encourage
Patience by
the Bucketful
Warning: If you follow me, you
will be in the slowest line! I think
that I should probably have a T
shirt with that message written on
the back for anyone who steps
behind me in a line. I guarantee it
will be the slowest one (at least
that is what it seems like to me)! A
few weeks ago I had a car full of
teenagers and was in a line of
traffic that took three hours to go
three miles. By the third hour, my
patience was depleted.
Patience is the name of the
game, and one in which I must
improve my average. A Co-worker
once related to me a visual image
of receiving a bucketful of patience
each day. Each of us gets a fresh
bucketful each morning that must
last for the whole day. No one gets
more than one bucketful, and none
can be saved for the next day. The
goal is to use up as little as
possible. If you can visualize a
bucketful of patience it is easy to
understand what someone means
when they say, “I’ve just about run
out of patience!”
The biggest problem with this
bucket of patience is keeping it
intact. Sometimes we have leaks in
the bucket. Do you “lose” patience
when someone drives slower than
the speed limit-in front of you;
when your child takes 20 minutes
to dress himself; when an elderly
person climbs the stairs slowly
while you wait to rush by. We each
have our own “leak” in our
bucketful of patience.
I’ve also discovered that for
some people, summer humidity
and loss of patience go hand in
hand. Sometimes our leaky bucket
is purely our own fault and results
from over-scheduling, poor
planning, and fatigue.
The next time you find that you
are “running out of patience” try a
time-out. For example, if you have
eating beyond the comfort zone
discourages the development of
satiety. It encourages children to
continue to eat beyond comfort to
either gain praise or avoid
harrassment. This is the same
person who as an adult eats to the
point of discomfort!
- Serve child-size portions, not
adult size portions. Children can
always be offered seconds. In the
meantime, it helps children leam
to “size up” or visualize portions
that are reasonable. Large por
tions may encourage an unrealistic
expectation of portion size and as
growth and development slows,
large portions continue. Add to this
the fact that some children are
overwhelmed at very large por
tions and may choose not to eat!
- Offer variety and introduce
new foods, especially those which
are lower in calories and nutrient
dense. Survival in today’s mobile
society require a flexible attitude
to new foods. And, such options as
unusual fruits and vegetables,
whole grain and variety grain
products, yogurt and low fat dairy
products, and the alternate protein
products of beans-legumes are
healthy food choices. Variety in
preparation is also important since
stir-fry, mexican and oriental
(Turn to Page B 15)
By Michelle S. Rodgers
Berks Extension
Home Economist
become exhausted from
referreeing the children, actually
call a time-out. Each family
member goes to a separate area
for the designated period of time.
Five minutes is generally long
enough to refresh your bucketful of
patience. Then get back together
and calmly work out the solution
together.
Or, if you find you have “lost
your patience” while waiting in
line at the grocery store, calm
yourself by calling a time-out.
Instead of muttering and shooting
fire at the person ahead with 100
coupons, use the time for your
personal benefit. Take several
deep breaths, hum a favorite tune,
roll your head from side to side to
relax your neck muscles, or
analyze the fashion trends of the
other shoppers. We have to work at
patience, because for most of us it
does not come naturally.
I’ve noticed that we seem to loss
our patience most often with two
types of people: family members
and people we don’t know at all.
That may seem like opposites but
is understandable. Close friends
and family members know us well
and generally accept our behavior
as it is. Strangers that we see only
once in a lifetime have never seen
any other behavior and probably
don’t care. Isn’t it embarrassing to
tailgate the slow driver in front of
you, only to pass and find out it is
your neighbor? Now you worry
about the impression you’ve made.
Patience is a gift we can give to
family, friends and strangers.
Patience. You can’t see it or feel
it, but you sure know when you
have a lot and when you’ve run out.
It’s there to use when you really
need it, if you work to stop any
leaks. I have been wondering,
though, do parents get, larger
buckets than everyone else, or do
they just plug leaks better?
Penn State ti an affirmative action equal