Heavy Kids Get Heavier in the Summer
Robert Latkany, MDJune 01, 2009
Kids grow more in summer. Most put on weight proportionate to the inches in height they gain. But for heavier kids, summer months often translate to unwelcome pounds. We’ve all seen the heavy boy who sits inside and plays video games each day after school or the tweener girl who doesn’t stay over for birthday sleepovers because she’s self-conscious about the 60 extra pounds she’s carrying.
Nearly 1 out of 5 children in the United States are obese. For all kids, obese or not, summer is an ideal time to get outside and burn calories. Kids swim, play games, and attend sports camps. They sweat--a lot. It seems logical that overweight kids in particular might lose pounds more easily over the summer break. But research shows just the opposite. It turns out those daily fitness programs built into many public school curricula really make a difference. And sadly, overweight kids tend to put weight back on that they may have lost from September to June.
Children gain body mass index twice as fast in the summer months than during the school year according to Downey and colleague. Carrel et al determined that the improvements seen in cardiovascular fitness, fasting insulin levels, and body composition during the school year were lost during the summer months in a school based fitness program for overweight middle school children. Gillis et al found a statistically significant weight gain in overweight youths during July and August compared to any other months, and 66% of children were found to gain weight during the summer. Von Hippel et al also found the greatest rise in body mass index in the summer months, especially in Black, Hispanic and previously overweight children.
Obesity is Medpie.com's #1 Hidden Summer Health Hazard for Kids.
Please read our legal disclaimer.
Write a comment
- Required fields are marked with *.
Bookmark with:
What are these?