Obesity is a rising problem among children and teenagers. Many parents may have the misconception that the chubbier the child is, the cuter or healthier he is.
In fact, a study in 2017 by the Health Promotion Board (HPB) has found that 7 in 10 children who are overweight by 7 years old will remain overweight into their adult years. This puts them at greater risk of developing life-threatening cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.
Childhood obesity can also cause breathing, sleep and joint problems, as well as mental health issues such as low self-esteem and depression.
Unhealthy weight gain in children is usually contributed by poor eating habits and reduced physical activity.
How to help your child aged 1 to 3 years achieve a healthy Body Mass Index (BMI)? Follow the steps below…
- Avoid introducing your child to sweetened beverages. This includes malted drinks, probiotic cultured milk and fruit juice concentrates (e.g. blackcurrant-flavored). Encourage your child to drink water to quench his thirst.
- Swap formula milk for plain, fresh milk as it contains less sugar. Children above 2 years can have low-fat milk.
- Screen time
- Avoid long periods of screen exposure (watching TV, tablets, mobile devices or computer). Excessive screen time promotes sedentary behaviour, and can affect your child’s well-being in many ways. Refer to our chapter on ‘Managing Screen time’.
- Sedentary time
- Limit use of prams/strollers or sitting for prolonged periods of time to encourage your child’s motor development.
- Let your child enjoy the goodness of fruits and vegetables. Fruits and vegetables are rich in nutrients and fibre and are essential for a healthy, balanced diet.
- Serve a rainbow of fruits and vegetables for different vitamins and minerals.
- Getting your child to eat his greens may not always be easy. Give vegetables an interesting twist. Try cutting vegetables into different shapes and sizes. Use different vegetables to add colour to dishes.
- Make physical activity a part of your child’s everyday play.
- Play with your child to boost his concentration skills and attention span, and to help develop motor skills, healthy bones and muscles.
- Active bodies do make brighter minds, and it is best to start early.
- Encourage regular sleep and wake times with no overnight milk feeds. Children aged 1 to 2 years need 11 to 14 hours of good quality sleep, including naps, with regular sleep and wake times. Avoid night milk feeds as it promotes tooth decay.
- Encourage self-feeding with supervision and without any distractions. Allow your child to choose how much to eat, and do not force-feed. Your child will be able to regulate his own food intake. Avoid any digital devices during meals.
- Encourage healthy snacking at regular times to prevent over-eating. Offer your child nutrient- dense foods as snacks, 2 to 3 hours apart from main meals. Pair fruits with protein for a healthy snack.
- Encourage home-cooked family meals. This will allow you to limit the amount of salt, sugar and oil in meals and increase the amount of vegetables for a more balanced diet. Parents are important role models for healthy habits during meal-times.
0 ― Zero sweetened beverages
1 ― Limit screen time to ONE hour per day and sedentary time to ONE hour at a time
2 ― Ensure at least TWO servings of fruits and vegetables daily
3 ― Spend at least THREE hours in a variety of physical activities
4 ― Practice the FOUR Dos for a healthy lifestyle
The Prophet s.a.w taught us to be aware of our food intake and to not overeat to protect us from sicknesses caused by eating and drinking excessively. He said: “The son of Adam does not fill any vessel worse than his stomach. It is sufficient for the son of Adam to eat a few mouthfuls, to keep him going. If he must do that (fill his stomach), then let him fill one third with food, one third with drink, and one third with air.”
Sunan Ibn Majah: 3349
Allah mentions in the Qur’an, “Eat and drink, but do not waste. Surely He does not like the wasteful.”
Surah Al-A’raf 7:31
Reference:
1. KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital
2. Guidelines on physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep for children under 5 years of age. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2019 3. Health Promotion Board
4. Office of the Mufti (MUIS)
Mencegah Masalah Kegemukan
Masalah kegemukan semakin meningkat dalam kalangan kanak-kanak dan remaja. Di Singapura, kajian Lembaga Penggalakan Kesihatan (HPB) menunjukkan bagi setiap 10 kanak-kanak, 7 orang kanak-kanak yang gemuk pada usia 7 tahun akan kekal gemuk apabila dewasa kelak. Ini menambahkan risiko penyakit-penyakit kronik seperti kencing manis dan darah tinggi. Pada usia muda, kegemukan boleh membawa kepada masalah seperti mudah sesak nafas, berhenti bernafas sewaktu tidur (‘sleep apnea’), tekanan pada sendi-sendi, kurang keyakinan diri dan kemurungan. Kenaikan berat badan yang berlebihan selalunya disebabkan oleh tabiat pemakanan yang tidak sihat dan kekurangan aktiviti fizikal.
- Elakkan daripada memberi minuman yang manis kepada anak anda. Ini termasuk jus buah-buahan dan minuman malt coklat. Jika anak anda haus, galakkan minum air kosong.
- Gantikan susu formula dengan susu segar pada usia lebih daripada 1 tahun.
- Elakkan daripada memberi anak anda susu pada waktu malam.
- Pastikan sekurang-kurangnya 2 hidangan buah-buahan atau sayur-sayuran sehari.
- Masakan rumah lebih baik untuk mengawal kadar garam, gula dan lemak dalam pemakanan untuk anak anda.
- Hadkan waktu menghadap skrin (menonton televisyen, telefon bimbit atau alat elektronik) ke 1 jam sehari.
- Luangkan masa sekurang-kurangnya 3 jam sehari dalam akitiviti-aktiviti seperti bermain di luar, jalan-jalan dan beriadah.
