Being fat is not equal to being healthy

The idea of growing "vertically" and not "Horizontally" had shifted the traditional perception that a fat child is a healthy child. Do not fall into this very typical mistake that could cost your little one a lot both in childhood and adulthood.

The World Health Organization (WHO) have sounded an alarm and created a body called, ECHO Commission on Ending Childhood Obesity, to tackle this problem. WHO in its latest report indicated that the number of overweight or obese infants and young children (aged 0 to 5 years) increased from 32 million globally in 1990 to 42 million in 2013. In the WHO African Region alone the number of overweight or obese children increased from 4 to 9 million over the same period.

Measurement of overweight and obesity in children aged 5 to 14 years is complex, because there is no unified worldwide standards of body mass index.

It is shown that obese children are more likely to be obese adults, with greater disability and increased risk of premature death. In addition, overweight kids are showing signs of heart disease and diabetes in early adulthood years.

To avoid this, there are two steps you should take, one, ensure good eating habits for the whole family and secondly, increase physical activity, so as to find a balance between intake and energy expenditure.

Other measures to prevent childhood obesity are:

-Breastfeed as long as possible.

-Eat & preach a healthy diet: There should be great presence of fruits and vegetables, fish, lean proteins and reduced intake of fats and sugars. Avoid getting kid into the habit of eating junk food from a very young age.

-Watch Portion: Small & frequent meals are the key

-Beware of the beverages: Go in for healthy beverages in the form of low fat milk/low fat yogurt drink in place of soda drinks.

-Control TV viewing: Make meal time’s a family time and not TV time.

-Get your kid moving by keeping him involved in fun filled activities, like dance or sports.