‘Obese? Not My Kid!’

Ever see those lame bumper stickers on the back of old jalopies that say, “Parent of an Honor Roll Student” or “My Kid’s Smarter than Your Kid”? Something tells me that the poll I’m about to cite applies to these proudhearted parents.

According to a recent poll conducted by researchers from the University of Michigan, almost half of all parents fail to realize their obese children are, in fact, obese.
After collecting all the height and weight statistics of the children which were provided by parents, the researchers found that the rate of obesity among their sample of children hovered around the national average (17 percent), with 10 percent of the younger crop considered obese and a 15 percent obesity rate among those children between the ages of 12 and 17.

What really made this study interesting is when the researchers isolated the obese children’s parents’ answers from those whose children were not obese. For instance, when the researchers analyzed the answers of those parents whose children were obese (children between the ages of 6 and 11), a whopping 43 percent of those parents believed their children’s weight was “about right.” Only 13 percent of parents provided the correct answer, which was that their children were actually “very overweight” according to the researchers’ definition of what qualified as being obese.

Among the parents of older children who were also considered “very overweight,” a more respectable 31 percent of parents accurately assessed their child’s weight issues, while the majority (56 percent) replied their child was “only slightly overweight.”

Now, I’m inclined to believe that parents’ inability to see their children’s weight issues stem from the love they have for their children and not wanting to hurt their feelings or their self-esteem. But it’s more likely that these parents are simply misinformed on what qualifies as overweight and what qualifies as obese. The traditional – and in my opinion, most accurate – method of determining this is through the body mass index. It’s a relatively easy formula that provides a concrete number parents can use to determine where their child should be on the body mass index for his or her height.

To calculate your child’s body mass index, you simply take his or her weight and divide it by the height he or she is in inches squared (e.g. 110/652=.026). Once that is done, you take that answer and multiply it by 703. That is his or her body mass index (703x.026=18.3). If the BMI is below 18.5, your youngin’ is considered underweight (which can be just as dangerous as being overweight). If the BMI is over 30, he or she is considered obese. The range your child should be in is between 18.6 and 24.9. Of course, where he or she falls in that range depends on his or her height and weight. You can find BMI calculators online or by asking your doctor.

It’s important to remember that while the BMI is a generally accurate indicator, it’s certainly not fool proof. There are a number of athletes who get BMI scores over 30, but no one would ever suggest that they’re all obese. In other words, the BMI doesn’t assess how much fat one has. In those instances – which typically only apply to those children who are nearly out of their teenage years – fat calipers are quite accurate in determining the percentage of fat your child has.

No one wants to hurt a child’s feelings, particularly their own. That’s why it’s important to address a child’s issues with weight and food in a sensitive fashion so as not to exacerbate the issue. But ignoring it or believing that they’ll outgrow their weight problems is a flawed approach. Sure, they sometimes outgrow it, but by and large, you and your child are much better off addressing the issue when it arises. In other words, don’t “weight” it out.