I'm a Certified Eating Disorders Registered Dietitian (CEDRD) with a master’s degree in dietetics and nutrition. My passion is helping you find peace with food - and within yourself.
find it fast:
Body Image
eating disorders
exercise
fear
intuitive eating
recovery
health
food & drink
science
October 9, 2015
I've worked with many parents who are worried about their child's weight. And why wouldn't they be – not only does our culture obsess about it, but often times their pediatrician does too. What's frustrating to me is the lack of understanding by physicians of adolescent growth charts.
Most docs carefully track growth during infancy as a way to ensure that the baby is developing properly, but by the time the child has reached adolescence the growth charts are often either abandoned or ignored. And this can be a huge problem.
For example, if a child's weight has always been at the 95th percentile on the growth chart, it's unreasonable to call that child overweight and flat out dangerous to recommend weight loss. But parents don't know this. All they hear is their child's doctor saying that he/she is overweight. And then the well-intended parents tend to do some of the most detrimental things possible by putting the child on a diet, restricting their food, making shaming comments about weight or forcing the child to exercise. This poor child has now been set up for a lifetime struggle with food, weight and body image.
The normal amount of weight for an adolescent to gain is higher than most people realize. Remember, they are still growing all the way into their 20's, and the increase in weight includes increased height, muscle, body fat, and bone density. Attempts at losing weight or preventing weight gain during this time can be devastating and interfere with healthy development.
Female
Male
Source:
Herrin, M. (2007). The Parent’s Guide to Eating Disorders. Carlsbad, CA: Gurze Books.
I'm a Certified Eating Disorders Registered Dietitian (CEDRD) with a master’s degree in dietetics and nutrition. My passion is helping you find peace with food - and within yourself.
We help you tidy up your home so you can move from overwhelmed to overjoyed. Different methods and Pinterest hacks have been tried but it’s still not sticking. You are not alone, and we are here to help!
find it fast:
body image
eating disorders
exercise
fear
intuitive eating
recovery
health
food & drink
science
WEBSITE BY SPEAK SOCIAL AGENCY
Be the first to comment