HHS HealthBeat (February 03, 2006)

Big kid

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I'm Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

It's wonderful to watch kids grow. Every day, it seems, they get bigger.

But can Mom and Dad tell when their youngster is maybe too big?

Researcher Thomas Joiner of Florida State University had parents rate their three-year-olds – from very underweight, through the right weight, to very overweight. His study, which was supported by the National Institutes of Health, was in the International Journal of Eating Disorders.

Could the parents judge their kids' weight right? You be the judge.

"No one categorized their kids as in the highest category of all. Based on the characteristics of this sample, some of the kids' body mass index did meet criteria for obesity." (11 seconds)

To keep the weight under control, Joiner suggests parents keep the kids active, so they burn off the calories they take in.

Learn more at www.hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I'm Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: August, 15 2006