Coping and support

Parents play a crucial role in helping children feel loved and in control of their weight. Take advantage of every opportunity to build your child's self-esteem. Don't be afraid to bring up the topic of health and fitness. Talk to your kids directly, openly, and without being critical or judgmental.

In addition, consider the following:

• Avoid weight talk. Negative comments about your own, someone else's or your child's weight — even if well intended — can hurt your child. Negative talk about weight can lead to poor body image. Instead, focus your conversation on healthy eating and positive body image.
• Discourage dieting and skipping meals. Instead, encourage and support healthy eating and increased physical activity.
• Find reasons to praise your child's efforts. Celebrate small, incremental changes in behavior but don't reward with food. Choose other ways to mark your child's accomplishments, such as going to the bowling alley or a local park.
• Talk to your child about his or her feelings. Help your child find ways other than eating to deal with emotions.
• Help your child focus on positive goals. For example, point out that he or she can now bike for more than 20 minutes without getting tired or can run the required number of laps in gym class.
• Be patient. Realize that an intense focus on your child's eating habits and weight can easily backfire, leading a child to overeat even more or possibly making him or her prone to developing an eating disorder.