Over Weight Son

Updated on February 07, 2007
R.A. asks from Wyoming, MI
13 answers

I have a almost 2 year old, and he weighs 40 pounds. He is tall for his age. But he is over weight. I watch closly what i give him, and how much i give him, but it does not seem to help. Someone please help me. His father has morbid obesity, and i am terrified that my son will follow in his footstep.

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So What Happened?

I took Ryan in on Tuesday for his 2 year check up. He weighs 42 pounds, 13 ounces. Doctor said he is the weight of a normal 5 year old. So I have to really watch what kinds of foods he eats, and what he drinks. He is only allowed 1000 calories a day. Well thank you to all. You really helped. I will keep you updated on how he is doing. We go back in April for a weight check, and i have a referal for a nutristionist.

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C.W.

answers from Saginaw on

Well I don't know what you've tried besides feeding him less but you can also try doing actvivities with him like leting hime go outside and run around even though its winter bunddle him up! See my daughters 22 months old and she's so active that she only weighs 24 pounds and has actually lost a pound since I had last weighed her! So I think being active might just work!

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R.W.

answers from Jackson on

I have a big son too, He's 4 and weighs just under 60lbs. He looks a bit overweight with a pouchy tummy but he's also just a BIG kid overall, tall (size 6 pants!) with broad shoulders and thick bones (big head too!)

you may want to talk to your Pedi/family Dr. about getting a refferal to a dietician. And also about thyroid testing as well as a Metabolic screening to rule out hypothyroidism which could cause excessive weight gain, or another Metabolic problem which could explain it as well.

otherwise really push the fresh veggies, and fruits, and be reasonable with the rest Good whole grains, and lean meats.

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T.C.

answers from Detroit on

I am not an expert but it sounds like he is not burning off the calories he in takes and his body fat. I don't know about you but even if i burn off my daily calorie intake it is very hard to burn off my bodies fat. I would sugguest that you get him involved in activies. My daughter will be 2 in april and she has started to pack on the pounds also she is in the 90% in weight class. but she has stoped growing in height. I have started to teach her to pick things up and put them away ( one thing at a time) and since there is no snow yet I have put there ( my 2 year old and my 4 year old) coats and hats on and let them play outside. You might want to also start fixing heathy meals and snacks for him. I know how expensive it can be to get fresh product when there out of season, but when spring hits think about buying it and also frezing them. hope i gave you something to think about.

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M.F.

answers from Detroit on

Go get the book Sugar-free Toddlers by Susan Watson. Introduce healthy eating now to shape your sons tastes for life. You have the opportunity now to program him to crave healthy foods instead of processed, etc.. Make sure you give him chances to be active. Have his Dad read the book and ask for his support in making sure he doesn't let your son eat whatever when he is with him.

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A.C.

answers from Lansing on

Going through the same issues with 4 yr old she weighs 71 pounds, we eat out only 1 time a month and I limit sugar. I take her to the doctor next week for a thigh roid condition I am scared but want a answer to all the gaining. So I know what your going through.Stay positive.

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D.K.

answers from Lansing on

It sounds like he needs to be more active. Limit the amount of TV time he gets. Get him running around outside, or involved in activities. I know that the YMCA has activities for younger children.

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S.S.

answers from Detroit on

At such a young age, it shouldn't be too hard to establish healthy eating habits. As an adult who was the overweight child, I can offer this advice, don't make it about him. It will single him out and cause issues. Personally, I would change how the whole family eats, I would not keep "junk food" in the house and make it an occasional treat. I would buy more fruits and vegetables, eating them yourself will help set a good example.

Another good option would be keep track of how much and what he eats in a normal week. Write it all down and talk to your pediatrician and possibly a nutritionist about it. I would not try to cut down his portions of healthy foods at this age without that professional guidance.

Good luck, taking care of this now will lay the foundation for a healthy life.

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A.S.

answers from Detroit on

I have the same problem. My daughter's two. She's 38 in. tall and 40 lbs. The problem she has is she's a snacker. She picks at her food, doesn't really eat meals, but then she wants to snack all day long. I've been getting her low-fat crackers, she really loves those fruity cheerios. And since she always wants whatever mom has, I've been eating better and losing weight also. Bonus! Since we are on assistance, we don't have alot of money. I buy frozen fruit or fruit from a can. If I buy fresh it doesn't get eaten fast enough and goes bad. Frozen fruit is better, but if you get canned buy low fat or no sugar added. We make silly faces with fruit and veggies. Try to make it fun. As for exercise, since we're limited on funds we go for nature walks and find different colored leaves, rocks, whatever. Or we walk up to the park, or the local elementary (after school hours) and just play.

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N.W.

answers from Detroit on

My nearly three year old was a chubby baby and only recently started thinning out. He is now 34 lbs and average height. He is considerated at a normal weight- but I still worry sometimes. We take tumbling and will be starting soccer soon for exercise. I limit any juices and candy, junk etc. My son loves grapes and fruit and would live on them. I would talk to your Doctor and have his BMI checked- which is really what you need to be concerned with and then plan out a diet for him. Kids can only eat what we allow them and usually don't miss what they don't know. (Which sometimes means we can't have the junk either:))

Good luck.

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S.N.

answers from Saginaw on

How tall is he? You might discover through checking his BMI that he is fine. Of course, if you can see that he is overweight by looking, I guess I would also suggest alot of activity.

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J.G.

answers from Detroit on

hello
he is only 2 so you train his eating habits early! and just make sure you keep him active very active.fruits, juicers so you can make pop cicles ice cubes together. put them in a cup and eat them like ice ( it make's a cool snack), dance to music.
this are things i did with a borer line obest child i had wen i was a in home child care provider

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A.P.

answers from Detroit on

R.,

When I saw your request, I knew that I had to answer this one because this request hits home for me. My son was born just under 7lbs at birth, I guess you could say an average baby..no over weight or under weight problems. Well, since birth he has been a picky eater, but he loved his milk. He loved it so much you would have thought that I had a cow in the back yard. I continued to give him whole homogenized milk until one of the daycare workers asked me "what was I feeding my son"? I politely told her that he loves milk. She told me to quickly get him off the whole milk and probably none at all. Well, I did notice him gaining a little weight, but I didn't know that it was that noticeable to others. At this time, he was about 4 yrs old. I made an appointment with his Peds and she too told me to stop giving him whole milk. I know now R. and I tell everyone I meet that milk is good for a lot of things and I also know that too much of it is harmful.

Well, I did stop the milk and really my son now doesn't care for milk. However, it seems like I went from one habit to the other and the substitution was those kool-aid juicers. R. and everyone reading this...Not Good! I knew something was wrong because eventhough, I was monitoring his weight he just wasn't slimming down enough. I was trying so hard to monitor his weight after the milk. While at a doctors appointment, I had asked the assistant to take this blood pressure, it was 123/82, I was shocked because I thought it would be lower than that. Well, the same week I reached for one of the juicers and just turned over to look at the amount of calories in one serving and it was 150 for one pouch. To my amazement and surprise,of course, I started doing the math. Let's say, counting an entire day from mid-morning until bedtime a child has 6 juicers. R., that's 900 calories - just with juicers! Not counting food and other snacks. I couldn't believe it! I felt horrible R.. Now, I buy juicers now that have 10 calories and he only gets (2) a day and the rest is water. Now his blood pressure is 113/40 and I feel great and so does he. My son is now 7 yrs old and I do have him in activities and I still monitor his food intake.

I hope I have helped you and other mothers. R. please talk to his pediatrician about your concerns.

Sincerely,
A. P.

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K.C.

answers from Detroit on

My son was overweight (22lbs at 3 months) but now he is slimming down (35lbs at 22 months).

I make sure he gets a LOT of physical activity each day. If he doesn't go to daycare I take him to the gym with me where they have a really cool play area for the kids. If you take him to places like Caesar's Palace or Chuck E Cheese for fun, he should get good exercise there. Try to get him to play so hard he sweats - every day.

Also, I do not have any junk food in the house, at all. When he's at home or with me, and wants a snack, we have bananas, cheese, or other fruit. No crackers! No Wonder Bread! If I make him a sandwich, it's on wholewheat bread (remove the crust). When I make pasta, it's wholewheat pasta.

For treats, I make smoothies. I buy frozen bags of fruit at Sam's Club, add some milk, and blend it in the blender. He loves it and it's got a lot of fiber in it.

It might be a hard transition at first to get the junk food out of the house, and he may miss a few meals. At my house, if he doesn't like what I made for dinner, than he doesn't eat. I don't go and make him mac & cheese because he doesn't like what I prepared. He's missed a couple of dinners in the past year, but amazingly, he's taken a liking to vegetables.

You might try putting cheese on vegetables at first. After awhile, he'll learn to like the vegetables.

Another thing is "dip." Kids love to dip their food. I can get my son to eat healthier things if I offer them with some sort of dip (ranch, ketchup, etc.)

Good luck!

My son like canned wax beans (Dole) and canned green beans.

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