Help your child make healthy choices.
Ask the doctor to screen your child for obesity.
Your child’s doctor or nurse can tell you if your child is at a healthy weight. If your child is overweight or obese, ask the doctor or nurse to help you find a weight-loss program for your child.
Look for a weight-loss program that includes counseling to help kids:
- Make healthy choices about food
- Get more physical activity
What about cost?
Obesity screening and counseling are covered under the Affordable Care Act, the health care reform law passed in 2010. Depending on your insurance plan, your child may be able to get these services at no cost to you.
Check with your insurance provider to find out what’s included in your plan. For information about other services covered by the Affordable Care Act, visit HealthCare.gov.
Put at least 60 minutes (1 hour) of physical activity into your child’s day.
It doesn’t have to be 60 minutes all at once – it can be shorter activities that add up to 1 hour a day. Fun activities that children do on their own are best. For example, playing tag is a great way to get moving.
Be sure your child is doing different types of activity, including:
- Aerobic activities, like running, skipping, or dancing
- Muscle-strengthening activities, like climbing playground equipment or trees
- Bone-strengthening activities, like jumping rope or playing basketball
Find out how much physical activity your child needs.
Make getting active a family project.
Get more ideas on how to increase your family’s daily activity.
Limit screen time.
Keep inactive (sitting down) screen time to 2 hours or less a day for kids age 2 and older. Exercise TV shows or video games where your child moves around are a better choice than inactive screen time, but most of them do not count as physical activity time.
Shop, cook, and plan for healthy meals.
Buy and serve more vegetables, fruits, and whole grain foods. Here are some tips and ideas:
Get more tips for smart food shopping.
Eat healthy.
You can be a role model for your child by making smart food choices. Plus, a healthy diet can help protect you from heart disease, some types of cancer, and type 2 diabetes.
Start the day with a good breakfast.
Skipping breakfast can make kids hungry and tired, and it may lead them to snack on junk food later in the day. Give your kids whole-grain cereal with fat-free or low‑fat milk and fruit instead of sugary cereal.
Make healthy snacks.
Snacks give kids important nutrients and help control hunger between meals.
Sit at the table and eat together as a family.
When families eat together, children eat more vegetables and fruits and less junk food. Plan healthy, affordable meals and enjoy them as a family. Let children help pick out healthy foods, prepare meals, and set the table.
Make sure your child gets enough sleep.
If kids don’t get enough sleep, they are at higher risk of being overweight or obese.
- Teens need at least 9 hours of sleep each night.
- School-aged and preschool children need 10 to 12 hours of sleep.
- Newborns sleep between 16 and 18 hours a day.
Set a bedtime schedule and remind your child when it’s time to get ready for bed. Get more tips on helping your child get enough sleep.
Share these Web sites with your kids.
These safe Web sites can help children learn about healthy habits.