By Bob Otieno
Being overweight can affect your child’s self-confidence. According to child experts, the extra kilo is a risk factor for diseases like diabetes and high blood pressure. To prevent obesity in a child, help them adopt a healthier life cycle.
Here are tips to help a child stay fit and maintain good health:
Make food fun
Food and eating time should be fun for your child. To make it so, do not participate in the preparation of food alone. Involve the minor by having them choose the fruits and vegetables that they want to eat. Teach them how to discover new good foods in different forms and products they can enjoy without risking their health.
Help them manage stress
Stress can lead your child to take refuge in food.
The enticing fatty and sugary foods in particular can act as a source of comfort. To help overcome this unhealthy habit, help and teach them how express their feelings and offer other alternatives.
Motivate them
A little motivation will always do. If they feel embarrassed by their weight, motivate them to join physical activities such as swimming, hiking, leisure cycling and nature walks.
You can encourage them by also joining them or including their friends. This can be done during free or leisure time instead of always leaving them sedentary glued to that favourite cartoon.
On weekends and holidays, create a variety of fun activities for them. If you can, pay for their camping trips during holidays.
Don’t ridicule
When you notice that your child is getting over weight, don’t laugh or ridicule her. Instead, support them by teaching and showing them the importance of good health. Your child will definitely emulate your actions.
Teach them table manners
Encourage your child to eat slowly and systematically so that her body has time to include the use and meaning of her brain that she had eaten enough. Do not insist that she finishes her plate when she is already full. This will be a clear indication to her that the plate must always be empty after meals.
Encourage good sleep
To grow well and fit, a child should sleep well. Teach them to sleep early especially when school is in session. Many studies have demonstrated a link between sleep deprivation and weight gain; sleep-deprived children consume more fat and sugar.
Promote healthy development
In children, the goal is not the loss of kilos at any given price, but to grow with a stable weight, which promote normal growth. Strict diet can lead to serious deficiencies and development that can cause various diseases. Seek the help of a health care provider if the
