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Obesity in Children
URL of this page: https://medlineplus.gov/obesityinchildren.html

Obesity in Children

On this page

Basics

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

Learn More

  • Living With
  • Specifics
  • Genetics

See, Play and Learn

  • Health Check Tools

Research

  • Statistics and Research
  • Clinical Trials
  • Journal Articles

Resources

  • 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

  • Helping Your Child Achieve a Healthy Weight (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
  • Helping Your Child Who Is Overweight From the National Institutes of Health (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

  • Child and Teen BMI Categories (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish
  • How Are Obesity and Overweight Diagnosed? From the National Institutes of Health (Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Also in Spanish
  • Obesity Screening From the National Institutes of Health (National Library of Medicine) 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 From the National Institutes of Health (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) Also in Spanish
  • Families Finding the Balance: A Parent Handbook From the National Institutes of Health (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) - PDF Also in Spanish
  • Help Your Child Stay at a Healthy Weight Easy-to-Read (Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion) Also in Spanish
  • Obesity Prevention: AAP Policy Explained (American Academy of Pediatrics)

Treatments and Therapies

  • Weight Control: MedlinePlus Health Topic From the National Institutes of Health (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
  • Weight Loss Surgery: An Option for Teens? (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish

Living With

  • Emotional Toll of Obesity (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish

Specifics

  • Weight Management and Healthy Living Tips From the National Institutes of Health (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)

Genetics

  • Proopiomelanocortin deficiency: MedlinePlus Genetics From the National Institutes of Health (National Library of Medicine)

Health Check Tools

  • Child and Teen BMI Calculator (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish

Statistics and Research

  • Childhood Obesity Facts (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
  • FastStats: Obesity and Overweight (National Center for Health Statistics)

Clinical Trials

  • ClinicalTrials.gov: Obesity in Children From the National Institutes of Health (National Library of Medicine)

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

  • Article: Systems thinking with active implementation research (STAIR): Protocol for a school-based...
  • Article: Effect of high-intensity childhood games on heart rate variability, saliva leptin...
  • Article: The impact of narratives and active video games among black and...
  • Obesity in Children -- see more articles

Find an Expert

  • Find a Nutrition Expert (Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics)
  • KidsHealth (Nemours Foundation)
  • National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases From the National Institutes of Health

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

Patient Handouts

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

Topic Image

Obesity in Children

MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA

  • Growth chart
  • Obesity in children

Related Health Topics

  • Body Weight
  • Child Nutrition
  • High Cholesterol in Children and Teens
  • Obesity
  • Weight Control

National Institutes of Health

The primary NIH organization for research on Obesity in Children is the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

Disclaimers

MedlinePlus links to health information from the National Institutes of Health and other federal government agencies. MedlinePlus also links to health information from non-government Web sites. See our disclaimer about external links and our quality guidelines.

The information on this site should not be used as a substitute for professional medical care or advice. Contact a health care provider if you have questions about your health.

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