Obesity in Children

On this page

Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Diagnosis and Tests
• Prevention and Risk Factors
• Treatments and Therapies

Learn More

• Living With
• Related Issues
• Specifics
• Genetics

See, Play and Learn

• Health Check Tools

Research

• Statistics and Research
• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Reference Desk
• Find an Expert

For You

• Children
• Teenagers
• Patient Handouts

Summary

Obesity means having too much body fat. It is different from being overweight, which means weighing too much. Both terms mean that a person's weight is greater than what's considered healthy for his or her height. Children grow at different rates, so it isn't always easy to know when a child has obesity or is overweight. Ask your health care provider to check whether your child's weight and height are in a healthy range.

If a weight-loss program is necessary, involve the whole family in healthy habits so your child doesn't feel singled out. Encourage healthy eating by

• Serving more fruits and vegetables
• Buying fewer soft drinks and high-fat, high-calorie snack foods
• Making sure your child eats breakfast every day
• Eating fast food less often
• Not using food as a reward

Physical activity is also very important. Kids need about 60 minutes each day. It does not have to happen all at once. Several short periods of activity during the day are just as good.

NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

Start Here

• Childhood Overweight and Obesity (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• Helping Your Child Who is Overweight (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases) Also in Spanish
• Overweight and Obesity (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Diagnosis and Tests

• About BMI for Children and Teens (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish
• BMI in Children (American Heart Association)
• How Are Obesity and Overweight Diagnosed? (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Also in Spanish
• Stature-for-Age and Weight-for-Age Percentiles: Boys, 2 to 20 Years (National Center for Health Statistics) - PDF Also in Spanish
• Stature-for-Age and Weight-for-Age Percentiles: Girls 2 to 20 Years (National Center for Health Statistics) - PDF Also in Spanish

Prevention and Risk Factors

• Balance Food and Activity (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) Also in Spanish
• Families Finding the Balance: A Parent Handbook (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) - PDF Also in Spanish
• Help Your Child Stay at a Healthy Weight (Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion)

Treatments and Therapies

• Addressing Your Child's Weight at the Doctor (American Heart Association)
• Common Weight Loss Challenges (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
• Is Childhood Obesity an Issue in Your Home? (American Heart Association)
• Weight Control: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
• Weight Loss Surgery: An Option for Teens? (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish

Living With

• Dietary Recommendations for Healthy Children (American Heart Association)
• Emotional Toll of Obesity (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
• Weight-based Teasing and Bullying in Children: How Parents Can Help (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish

Related Issues

• Childhood Obesity: Common Misconceptions (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish

Specifics

• Childhood Obesity Causes & Consequences (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Organic Causes of Weight Gain and Obesity (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
• Weighty Issues for Kids: Taking Aim at Childhood Obesity (National Institutes of Health)

Genetics

• Genetics Home Reference: proopiomelanocortin deficiency (National Library of Medicine)

Health Check Tools

• Body Mass Index (BMI) Charts (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation)
• Body Mass Index: Calculator for Child and Teen (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish

Statistics and Research

• CDC Vital Signs: Progress on Childhood Obesity (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish
• Childhood Obesity Facts (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• FastStats: Obesity and Overweight (National Center for Health Statistics)
• Perception of Weight Status in U.S. Children and Adolescents Aged 8-15 Years, 2005-2012 (National Center for Health Statistics)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Obesity in Children

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: The Global Syndemic of Obesity, Undernutrition, and Climate Change: The Lancet...
• Article: Whey Proteins Reduce Appetite, Stimulate Anorexigenic Gastrointestinal Peptides and Improve Glucometabolic...
• Article: Low Diagnostic Accuracy of Body Mass Index-Based and Waist Circumference-Based References...
• Obesity in Children -- see more articles

Reference Desk

• Glossary of Terms Related to Healthy Eating, Obesity, Physical Activity, and Weight Control (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)

Find an Expert

• Find a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics)
• KidsHealth (Nemours Foundation)
• National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
• Weight-Control Information Network (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)

Children

• What "Being Overweight" Means (For Kids) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Teenagers

• Dealing With Feelings When You're Overweight (For Teens) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Emotional Eating (For Teens) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• When Being Overweight Is a Health Problem (For Teens) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

• Growth chart (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Obesity in children (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish