Don’t Be In Denial: 8 Signs That Your Child Is Overweight

Your child is obese, but you don’t know he is or you are probably living in denial. Some parents hope that their overweight looking toddlers will stretch and grow out of their baby fat. In a few cases, some toddlers do outgrow their baby fat but in most cases, they don’t. If your child is obese or overweight, this means that they are carrying excess body fat. If nothing is done about this, the extra weight that they are carrying may cause problems for their health.

1. If your child snores, this can be a sign of extra fat in the neck.

2. Being overweight or obese does run in families. It is thought that 5 out of 10 children who have one parent who is obese will become obese themselves. And 8 out of 10 children who have two parents who are obese will also become obese themselves. This may partly be due to learning bad eating habits from your parents as a child.

3. A child is obese if their weight is more than 20% higher than the ideal weight for a boy or girl of their age and height.

4. Rather than engage in physical activities, your child spends more time watching television and playing video games.  Children should be made to engage in vigorous physical activity.

5. If your child’s tummies and thighs are chubbier than most kids’ their age.

6. A child who is addicted to food, eats 2 or more times kids his age and would rather drink soda or juice instead of water.

7. If your child is easily exhausted while engaging in a physical activity other kids find easy to do like running around, climbing the stairs, hopping or jumping, etc.

8. If you are secretly concerned about your child being overweight, then he probably is.