Virtual Guide Gives Tips on How to Discuss Obesity with Kids

Strategies To Overcome and Prevent (STOP) Obesity and the Alliance for a Healthier Generation have partnered to bring parents a virtual guide with advice on how to talk to kids about obesity.

Obesity, weight, and healthy living are becoming a necessary topic for parents their kids. A recent Web MD survey found that 22 percent of parents find the topic an uncomfortable one to breach, and with 17 percent of children overweight, it is an issue that should be addressed.

On Sept. 25, STOP and Alliance released a new Internet guide aimed to assist parents in talking to their kids about the tender issue. Alliance chief executive officer Ginny Ehrlich, Ed.D., states in a press release, “We set out to develop a guide to help children deal with obesity. During the process, we realized the great need for a guide that lets parents and caregivers know they are not alone.” The virtual pamphlet walks parents through talking about uncomfortable situations that arise with children regarding their weight, such as BMI confusion, cultural differences, negative body images, and bullying at school as well as within the family. It focuses on how to bring up the issue in a compassionate manner and address issues that parents might have with weight bias from another parent or teacher or parental obesity.

Studies show that approximately half of children aged 9-11 were ‘sometimes’ or ‘very often’ dieting. While being overweight is a health concern for parents and kids alike, not eating can be just as harmful as overeating. Both the Alliance for a Healthier Generation and STOP have co-released a web resource called Weigh-In about talking to your kids about healthy lifestyles and obesity. With 19 percent of parents thinking that having ‘the talk’ about obesity as being their doctor’s job, Weigh In offers earnest advice on how to address this issues sensitively with your kid, and it is all about honest answers to tough questions, driving home the main point that, “Acknowledging the barriers is the first step to overcoming them.”