need help creating a diet for an overweight 10yr old boy

[rez]

my little cousin is really overweight. I want to help him, but am not sure if the same principles that I apply to my diet would apply to him. He is starting to get knee and back problems because of his size

Ive lost 13kg since changing my diet...ie reducing carbs eating quality proteins fats etc..
does anyone know what advice I can give?

thanks
xxx

 

[Twiggy]

Seems to me that ten years old is a little too early for a strict diet -- He should be eating healthy, sure... Lots of veggies, not too much candy, pizza, etc... But he'll have plenty of time later in life to obsess about the details of macronutrient ratios and caloric needs... Why not let him be a kid in this regard for a while longer?

What is his activity level like? I assume he's pretty sedentary? It might be good to approach the problem from that angle -- try to get him interested in a sport or something... Maybe day-hikes on the weekends, maybe just try to get him playing outside more, away from TV/computers/video games? (Not sure how he spends his time, but a good portion of the ten-year-olds I know would never unplug if you didn't make them!)

This isn't to say that dietary changes wouldn't be helpful -- I just get the feeling that a BB/fitness style diet would be overkill, and no fun for the guy. What is he eating now? I'm sure there are some simple adjustments that could be made & would have a huge impact on his health.

 

[Debu]

Do you know what he eats right now? I knew a kid growing up that basically followed the eating every 2-3 hour rule, but he was eating tons of JUNK, alot of onigiri(rice balls) by itself no protein or vegys and grew up heavy. I think any kid will be turned off by a "diet" but if he is led in the right direction with a perspective of it being fun it might be easier.

 

[CN1]

his chunky butt needs to exercise also, jogging and calastenics, he needs to be eating something like this:

breakfast: one to two eggs, a piece of fruit, toast and 8 oz of milk
mm snack: vegetables of some kind
lunch: 1/4 lb of meat chicken fish or steak, veggies, toast, milk
afternoon: snack that is healthy
dinner: follow the lunch menu with some pasta and potatoes added

this can get him started in the right direction, and he needs to drink lots of water, fish must be eaten twice a week, due to the fat in it burns fat.

 

[Debu]

Rez - I just saw that the next Amanda Lewis show is going to discuss obese kids and how to help them. Set you VCR!!!

 

[ATrollFromTheFatBoard]

You guys eat pasta and potatoes?????

I always heard they were bad, and made one fat ... high glycemic, and all that kind of stuff.



Of course I do not doubt anyone here, just wondering what the story really is about these kinds of starches.

 

[Debu]

It's what you put on them. It you layer the potato with sour cream, butter and bacon, then it becomes a bad food. If you put some low fat cottage cheese and pepper it's a great food!

 

[keiko]

Hi! Kids needs carbs because they're still growing. I think a modified Isocaloric diet works well for most kids (it's waht I eat and what I cook for my family.)

But more than diet, kids need exercise. Does he play a sport? Ride a bike? In-line skate? Swim? Rather than curbing his cals., I'd gt him psyched about playing a sport or just playing outside. It's hard to pry kids aways from TV and computers, but it's worth it.

 

[rez]

ye he seems to be playing heaps of sport, baseball, footballand karate...i think hes started these recently...nonetheless hes doing them.

i would never dream of cutting carbs for a kid but it defineatly looks like diet to me...is parents arent overweight. I think he may be or have developed a sensitivity to carbs from having a bad diet in the past.

keiko..what Isocaloric diet do you recommend..could you be more specific?


thanks for every1s imput!!

 

[keiko]

I eat and feed my kids your basic Isocaloric -33% fats, protein, carbs. All carbs are complex carbs, most fats good fats (some animals fats for test. and estrogen production and cuz I love butter.)

Oatmeal for breakfast, I stir in flax seed meal, but the kids gag when they see me. I make their's with low-fat milk. Or low fat yogurt and fruit for them.

Lots of leafy and green veggies--they like 'em raw, fine with me. Brown rice, not white, sweet potatoes, not white. Pasta once a week, maybe. Pizza maybe once a month. Fast food maybe once a month. I just don't have chips, snacks, etc. around.

They eat lots of fruit, I don't. I try to limit juices--it's just sugar water. I'll buy diet soda once in a blue moon.

If we have dessert, it's home-made on on my cheat days. Otherwise, no-sugar, low-fat popsicles or fudge-sicles. I hate fake sugar, but a little once in a while isn't a big deal.

I read labels like crazy and cuz, I'm low-thyroid, and cuz my son is an adolescent, no soy products. Soy is very hard on the thyroid and I've read enough to be wary of it's estrogenic effects.

If he's active, he might just be waiting for a growth spurt. It's unlikely that a 10 year old has gotten very carb-sensitive.