18 Months old, 32" tall & 35 1/2lbs. Overweight?
Answers:
Most young children begin to "thin out" when they start walking. Your son sounds like he was born on the bigger side and it could be that he'll just be on the larger end of the growth charts his whole life. It's hard to know without knowing your family's complete medical history and general genetic tendency toward size and weight.
According to the CDC height and weight charts used by the American Academy of Pediatrics, for children under 36 months, your son is currently about 50th percentile for height and 97th percentile for weight. So, yes, he's on the larger side for weight. But given his young age and your doctor's lack of concern, I wouldn't do anything drastic.
You are not "wrong" but there probably isn't anything you need to do except try to ensure that your son gets ample opportunities to play and be active (too much TV is one contributor to childhood obesity issues) and try to ensure that he eats a healthy and balanced diet that includes fruits and vegetables and not too much juice and processed food.
Other Answers:
find a BMI(body mass index) calculator somewhere. that will tell you wether or not hes over weight.. i doubt he is tough. babies gain alot of weight and height in their first 2 years or so.
If the doctor isn't worried, then that should put you at ease as well. A "diet" should be out of the question. As long as your son is fed the appropriate food and runs around (or whatever his mode of transportation is at this age) and plays normally, he'll be fine. I wouldn't be too concerned until age 5 or older. ;-)
Also, your son seems to be quite tall for his age....which could account for some of that weight as well. Again, not to worry. Babies and Toddlers come in all shapes and sizes. ;-) Love him up!
Source(s):
Experience...I, too, have a chunky, nad HEALTHY, toddler.
"When my son was born..." "...and his mother is very obesity." [sic]
Am I to understand that you are the child's mother, therefore, you're the one who is obese? Or is it the *doctor's* mother who is obese?
Your son's height and weight at birth aren't extraordinary, but he certainly was a big baby. And at 18 months, 32" seems pretty tall, and 35 1/2 lbs. seems pretty heavy. I've always been under the impression that 40 lbs. was about the average for a 4 year old...that 10 lbs. for every year is a rough indicator of weight averages for children under 5. Of course, every child should be considered on an individual basis, and your son is no exception.
I couldn't find any statistics on height/weight averages for children under 2 years of age, nor what is considered a healthy weight for someone of your son's age and height. I did find a BMI (body mass index) calculator for children, but the youngest age you can plug into it is 2 years. What I found for a 2 year old with your son's height and weight is 24.2. This is considered overweight for a 2 year old. I don't know what it means for an 18 month old. But if your doctor doesn't seem concerned about it at this point, then perhaps there is nothing to worry about.
However, what literature on obesity has suggested is that children of obese parents stand a greater chance of being obese themselves when they reach adulthood. If *you* are obese, then your son could very well be headed in that direction. This is something you should be concerned about...obesity is no small matter. It can have grave consequences for your child.
I found the following information at http://www.cdc.gov/ :
"Children and teens who are overweight may begin to experience health consequences during their youth as well as putting themselves at risk for weight-related health problems later in life.
"Overweight children and teens have been found to have risk factors for cardiovascular disease, including high cholesterol, elevated insulin levels, and elevated blood pressure during childhood. One study showed that approximately 60% of overweight children had a least one cardiovascular risk factor, such as high cholesterol or high blood pressure; in comparison, only 10% of children with healthy weight had at least one risk factor. Additionally, 25% of overweight children had two or more risk factors.2
Other health consequences include the following potential problems:3
Type 2 diabetes
Sleep apnea (not breathing for at least 10 seconds during sleep)
Social consequences including poor self-esteem and social discrimination. In addition to the health problems they may experience during their youth, overweight children and teens are at increased risk for various chronic diseases as adults (including hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and coronary heart disease). Overweight adolescents are at greater risk of becoming overweight or obese as adults,4 about one third of all severely obese adults were overweight children.5
"Maintaining a healthy weight during childhood and adolescence may reduce the risk of becoming overweight or obese as an adult. Encourage children and teens to keep up healthy eating habits, participate in physical activity on most (preferably all) days of the week, and limit television viewing. For more information, visit Tips for Promoting Healthy Eating and Physical Activity for Children and Teens."
**************
Maybe your son is just a big, healthy boy. How are you and his father built? Genetics could be a big factor here. But if you suspect that your child is overweight because he's eating too much, you should talk with your doctor again and make sure he understands your concerns. Don't let him blow it off. You are your son's greatest advocate. If you feel your concerns aren't being taken seriously for whatever reason, change doctors.
If he's still like this at age 4, then worry. Don't feed him fast food or junk food and he won't be fat!
More Questions & Answers...
- Does anyone else suffer from mommy guilt?
- how to stop a 3 yr old from bedwetting?
- How can I get silly putty out of clothes??
- My 4 year old brother still sleeps with my parents?
- How can I find reasonable-priced childcare in Oxford during the Easter Holidays? Thanks?
- What do you do about a whinny 3 year old??