Hi to all moms,
My 5 year old son is overweight. He was asked to lose 20 lbs by April (if possible). My son is asthmatic. He is on and off Prednisone (steroid). I feel bad because I have tried cutting out juices and junk food. He does not eat much. I am working out with him 3 times a week. I am thinking of getting him to join a swimming class. Can anyone suggest anything?
Thank you
Liz
Hi My name is M. And I have the same problem with my son he's 7 and is over weight because he is also an asthmatic, What I try to do is keep him busy and limit the amount of junk food and sweets. I try to give him fruits and natural juices,and i try to get him into some sports making sure he doesn't over exort himself.It's a good idea getting him into swimming.Hope my advice is usefull and Good Luck.
Hi I'm T. single mom of a 9 & 10 yr old, son & daughter. I can give you some recommendations that may become lifetime changes.
1. eat more veggies-mainly green: if you started from when he was able to eat baby food that shouldn't be a problem. if not, begin gradually.
2. 100% juice-look for juices that are 100%, no added sugar or preservatives. You could even try organic juice
3. HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP-its in everything we eat. Its SUGAR,pali and simple! The best way to avoid this is organic foods. But there are packaged foods that don't contain it. You have to really look.
4. healthy snacks-graham crackers are really good to snack on. Also baby carrotts with ranch dressing (low calorie/fat)Paul Newman's brand of snack foods are excellent.
5. BE ACTIVE-don't let the TV babysit your son. He sould be watching no moe than 2hrs a day. Go outside, run around. Let him be a boy. Its good you're getting him involved in diiferent activities as well as educational ones. The parent mag Brooklyn Parent is excellent & free.
6. get plenty of rest- he should be getting an average of 10-12hrs of sleep per night. It souds like a lot but remember he's growing and he's not an adult.
Does anyone you know or do you smoke? Smoking around children is one of the leading causes of children getting asthma. For the sake of his health & yours no one should smoke in your home & around your son, remember second hand smoke is a killer.
I don't mean to sound like a doctor. I hope I was some help.
Hi E.-
Being your son is only 5, you dont want to make him too food conscious, so involving him in activities is a great idea. Swimming is great, along with dance and karate.
One thing for sure is get him out to play often..let him run around as much as he wants...I have the opposite problem, my son is so hyper that he's too skinny, he wont gain weight!!! But I also have him in Judo classes, which he loves and they make him work out to fun excercises, so he's skinny, but strong. Make sure you give him lots of water, if you give him juice, make sure it's made with splenda. Try to keep him away from rice and bread and pasta..lots of meat. By the way, I forgot to add the the prednisone definitley contributes to the weight, but if you do your part...it'll help a somewhat and at the very least, prevent him from gaining more. I was on prednisone for 2 yrs and gained 60 lbs...it was horrible, so maybe you should try an alternate medication. good luck.
hi E. my name is M. and i wanted to respond to your note the reason your son may be over weight is from the prednisone medication i myself am asthmatic and have seen what that medication can do to you my brother was over weight himself when he was on the medidcation and was very hyper.you may wanna ask the doctor if they can change his meds to something a bit less stronger.i'm guessing he is a chronic asthmatic if they have him on that huh?
