Supporting Mental Health in Childhood Obesity

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When helping your children to lose weight, what things should you be cognisant of to ensure good mental health? Are there other things that might cause them problems that you need to watch for?

In Part 1 and 2, we went over dietary and lifestyle interventions. In Part 3, let’s go over some important psychological and emotional considerations to take into account, to improve mental health as you help your child lose weight.

1.) Manage picky eating

Picky eaters are one of the most common issues facing parents trying to implement a healthy weight loss diet in their children. I usually recommend a two-step approach for this.

Check for food sensitivities

First, make sure they aren’t actually suffering from any food allergies or sensitivities.

Children may avoid foods because it is causing them physical discomfort, and they might not be very vocal about it, or describe it in a way that may not sound like a food allergy or sensitivity.

With an allergy, the effects are pretty immediate, and shouldn’t be too hard to notice, with swelling, an itchy mouth, throat, and hives. You can also easily test for food allergies by doing an allergy skin prick test. Talk to your allergist about it.

For food sensitivities, you can ask them direct questions about stomach aches or pains after eating, or you also observe them afterwards, and see if they seem extra fussy, irritable, or annoyed.

Food sensitivities can also be tested through a food sensitivity test, although I don’t routinely recommend them for children, since food sensitivities in children can change very quickly.

Deal with picky eating

Second, once food allergies and sensitivities have been identified or ruled out, Some children will just be picky with their food, and you’ll have to implement strategies to deal with this.

Sticking to a set eating routine, allowing your children to choose from some healthy food choices, and involving them in the cooking of their own food, are some strategies I’ve seen work well.

2.) Keep food strictly as nutrition

Almost as important as the food your child eats, is the relationship they have with their food.

Keep food as something that provides them with nutrition and helps them grow, don’t use it as a reward or punishment.

This creates an unhealthy relationship with food, and may create emotional eaters or an unhealthy dependency on some foods, leading to poor eating habits.

To give you 2 quick examples of issues I commonly notice:

Forcing them to clean their plate

One is forcing your child to clean his or her plate. You’re basically telling them to override their body’s own fullness signals with the guilt of having leftover food. Respect your child’s appetite.

However, you can encourage your child to only take appropriate portions of food if they’re prone to wastage or overfilling their plate.

You can also encourage your child to stay at the table for the designated mealtime, even if he or she doesn’t eat. And there’s no need to prepare a separate meal for your child after they reject the original meal, since that might promote picky eating.

Rewarding behavior with food

Another issue is rewarding your children with food for making healthy food choices. When you promise them dessert for eating their vegetables, you send a message that vegetables are less valuable than dessert.

Reward them instead with praise and hugs. Tell your child that they are loved, special, and important.

That way they’ll feel good about making the right food choices, rather than being bribed to do so.

3.) Don’t guilt them for being overweight

Whatever you do, don’t guilt or punish them for being overweight. It’s really not helpful, and does not create good long term habits.

It can create problems with body image and increase the risk of your child developing eating disorders.

Giving your child the impression that there is an “ideal body type”, and that they fall far from the ideal can create self esteem issues, resulting in the development of unhealthy eating habits.

Teach your kids about self-acceptance, and look to build their confidence. Tell them you love them unconditionally, no matter how they look.

Shift negativity away from their self image, it will help them to be more open to you and express their feelings and give you feedback more accurately.

This will also help you to better tailor weight loss interventions to their specific situation.

4.) Don’t be too worried

Finally, you should always keep in mind that children will grow at different rates.

Just because they seem to be larger than their peers, doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll have a weight problem in the future.

Sometimes kids put on some weight before a growth spurt, and many children grow into their weight in adulthood.

I often suggest that instead of just looking at their weight, and perceived body shape, look at the diet they’re eating and lifestyle they’re living.

If your child seems to mostly consume chips, chocolate bars, and pop, and is very inactive all day, even if your child is only slightly overweight, there might still need to be a change in their diet and lifestyle.

However, if your child seems to be heavier, but is taller than their peers, is very physically active, and eats a good variety of healthy protein, fruits, and vegetables, you may not have to worry as much about their heavier weight. Instead, you can focus on educating them on nutrition, and help them to build a positive body image.

Summary

Overall, remember that children are constantly developing their view of themselves, and building a healthy self image is important to developing healthy eating and living habits that actually takes care of their body, rather than just what their body looks like.

So look to improve their habits and build their confidence, rather than just trying to get your child to an ideal size or shape as soon as possible.

It will better help your child to develop healthier, life-long weight management habits well into adulthood.

Learn more about

• Child growth charts
• Managing Diet For Childhood Obesity
• Managing Lifestyle For Childhood Obesity

See also

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  Heavy metals: an overview
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  IgG Food Sensitivity Testing
  IgG food sensitivity testing lacks good scientific evidence to support its accuracy and clinical utility, often leading to false positives.
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  Low FODMAP Diet: an overview
  The low FODMAP diet aims to reduce certain types of carbs that can cause bloating and gas. It can sometimes help reduce symptoms of IBS.