Your obese 12 year old son has a belly-overhang of ten inches What is the fastest way to get rid of this?

Answer 1

At age 12, kids are eating (#1) what their parents put in front of them; (#2) what they chose on their own to eat, based on what their parents have taught them over the last 12 years. When kids are obese, the entire family has to get involved to cut calories from the daily diet. You'll all have to start with small steps and build good habits. This wouldn't be a diet...It would be a change in lifestyle to help strengthen bodies and maintain health.

Have each member of the family write down what he/she eats every day (MEASURE your food - cereal, liquids, etc.) I've done this recently - I'm surprised how much extra I eat throughout the day. When I saw it in front of me, I knew what I needed to cut out.

There are tons of Web sites with recipes for better meals - more nutritious, with less fat and simple sugars.

The entire household will need to find activities to do together - bike riding, walking, swimming, etc. - that help you move more, thus burning more calories in the day. This means you'll all have to drink more water to stay hydrated (stay away from soft drinks that don't fuel the body and add extra unnecessary calories.) You can try some Crystal Lite, but definitely don't let that be your only liquid throughout the day. Also, chewing sugar-free gum (like Extra...) helps fill in the gaps during the day when you would normally be eating.