Over the past 30 years, the rate of obesity in the United States has more than doubled for preschoolers and adolescents, and it has more than tripled for children ages 6 to 11. With obesity, children get introduced to health problems such as diabetes and heart disease early on and often carry these maladies into an obese adulthood. If this trend continues, obesity may soon top smoking as the nation's most preventable cause of death.

Reducing your children’s obesity is as simple as reducing your entire family’s intake of junk food and time spent with the computer or television. It is important that your children do not feel that they are alone in trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Supporting them in reducing their weight is as easy as planning physically active family outings such as hiking, biking or a day at the beach. However, you don’t have to go far from home to start, because reversing and preventing obesity is as easy as sharing a healthy prepared meal direct from your very own kitchen, and taking a walk after dinner.

Parents are the ones who buy the food, cook the food and decide where food is eaten. Even small changes can make a big difference in your family's overall health.

• When buying groceries, choose fruits and vegetables over junk
   foods high in sugar and fat. Always have healthy snacks available.
   And never use food as a reward or punishment.
• Limit sweetened beverages, including those containing fruit juice.
   These drinks provide little nutrition in exchange for their high calories.
   They also can make your child feel too full to eat healthier foods.
• Select recipes and methods of cooking that are lower in fat.
   For example, bake chicken instead of frying it.
• Put colorful food on the table: green and yellow vegetables,
   fruits of various colors, and brown (whole-grain) breads. Limit white
   carbohydrates: rice, pasta, bleached bread and sugar (desserts).
• Sit down together for family meals. Make it an event — a time to
   share news and tell stories. Eating in front of the television fosters
   mindless munching.
• Limit your children's computers and TV “screen time” to fewer
   than two hours a day.

Although obesity should be taken seriously, it is a personally sensitive issue. Many overweight children already feel bad about themselves because of low self-esteem, so it is important that you make sure that they know you love them unconditionally and are going to support them.
Offer healthy food to your children, but don't force it on them. Avoid trendy diets. Lots of times, simply maintaining a child's present weight is good enough - providing the opportunity for the child to grow into his or her pounds.

Your investment in time in your children is a long-term one, as it will pay big dividends throughout their entire lives. In our Valley, many families feel they don't have the time it takes to prepare healthier meals and exercise more. With late hours at the office, horrific commute times, multiple jobs and other activities, it is easy to run out of time to spend on shopping, cooking, sharing a meal and cleaning up, because is always faster to zip into the drive-through lane at a fast-food restaurant. There are ways to make fast food healthier. Check out our “Fast Food Survival Guide” link. Helping to set your kids on the path to a healthy future is one of the most important things you can do for them.

With more and more technology and entertainment that draws all of us indoors, not just kids, it’s important to encourage your kids to be active and spend time outside. Remember that children have incredible imaginations, so instead of investing in just a video game system, look at also getting them a bike or baseball glove. Get to know your neighbors and if they have children, encourage yours to play with other kids from the neighborhood. Not only is getting outside and being active important to their health, but making and playing with friends is valuable to their self-esteem and social skills that are critical for development.

Kids need regular exercise to build strong bones and muscles. Exercise also helps children sleep well at night and stay alert during the day. Such habits established in childhood carry over to their teenage years in maintaining healthy weight despite hormonal changes, rapid growth and social influences that often lead to overeating. The bottom line is that active children are more likely to become fit adults.