My Child Plays Sports And Runs Around All The Time But Is Still Overweight. What Am I Doing Wrong?

February 1, 2009 -- Question: My child plays sports and runs around all the time but is still overweight. What am I doing wrong?

Answer: If you feel your child is very active and plays a lot of sports and things but is still overweight, then ask yourself what may have changed about the child's lifestyle or what's going on at home in the food environment. Look at what the child's eating and children, like adults, can begin to eat more without actually doing more. So look at what the child's eating when they're at home. Look at what portion sizes you've given to the child to eat and ask if those may have increased.

Also, take a very good look at how many calories your child might be getting from beverages, because beverages can supply a lot of calories. And when kids are socializing with their friends, or doing sports, or even at home, they can start to think that calories don't count if they're liquid, but they do. And kids can consume anywhere from a few to several hundred calories a day, just in the form of sweetened beverages -- that's a very good place to start taking a look at where your child might be gaining some extra weight. And if they are drinking a lot of sweetened beverages, that would be a good time to stop or at least slow down.

The only beverage your child really needs to drink when they're physically active is water -- also, a few glasses of low-fat or fat-free milk a day, and maybe a glass of juice, but primarily water.