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 Assessing whether your child is overweight or not is not that easy. As I dietitian I often suggest to parents that you use the ‘trained eye’. In other words you have a good look at your child and see where their fat is deposited and whether fat deposits seem to be increasing or not.
The only problem is that according to some recent research, many parents don’t think their children are overweight when in fact they are!
So the BMI (Body Mass Index) growth charts may offer some guidance if used to monitor your child's growth and development. The BMI is calculated by dividing the person’s weight in kilograms by their height in metres squared.
BUT…don’t panic if your child is off the scale..see a health professional for a proper assessment. I can’t emphasize that enough because children are growing and they grow at different rates and sometimes they ’fatten’ up a bit before a major growth spurt. So if you are concerned, before you start restricting food or exhausting your child with massive work outs..seek some professional guidance to ensure that nutrient needs are being met and that realistic goals are being set.
The percentile charts for boys and girls shown here enable your child’s BMI to be plotted on the relevant chart at different stages of his or her growth, and may be used as a reasonable guide to assess whether the child is at an increased risk of developing weight problems. Assessing BMI for children is, however complex and if more detailed or precise information is required, consult with a health professional.
Health professionals can also use the Body Mass Index (BMI) to assess overweight and obesity in children, however as the BMI fluctuates during childhood, it is necessary to include a further step and plot a figure on the body mass index-for-age percentiles. It’s important to refer to the separate charts for boys and girls aged 2-20 years. There are no definitions of obesity for children under 2 years.
If the BMI falls on the chart above the 95th percentile (the BMI of 95 out of every 100 children) then your child is likely to be obese. If it is between the 85th and 95th percentile, they are likely to be overweight.
These charts were developed in the USA by the National Center for Health Studies in collaboration with the National Center for Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, 2000.
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