12 yr old low carb

PatrickXFCE

Hi All

We have a 12 year old that needs to lose 20 lbs in 4 months(he is over 100 lbs overweight, blood pressure up and insulin is up too. Any kid friendly recipes that are very low carb?

https://plus.google.com/105971632010079093827/posts/QGzx2KRGVu8

kjoy_

was this recommended by a nutritionist? did they give you any example recipes/meal plans? you should ask

pinterest has a ton of low carb recipes, just search low carb. there's one ive tried that are pizza cups (put low-sodium ham slices in a muffin tin, fill with sauce, veggies, cheese turkey pepperoni or sausage) and bake in the muffin tin. i can vouch for those - they're delicious.

Ninkyou

I would suggest going to his pediatrician. Since it's medically related, they will probably refer you to a registered dietician/nutritionist to assist you.

IMO, 20 lbs in 4 months is really hard to do for an adult, let alone a child. I would not do ANY kind of calorie restriction with a child unless under the supervision of a qualified doctor. I understand he's 100 lbs overweight, but that's all the more reason to go to his doctor. Kids need way different nutritional needs from us adults, low carb or not.

jenschroll

I would suggest going to his pediatrician. Since it's medically related, they will probably refer you to a registered dietician/nutritionist to assist you.

IMO, 20 lbs in 4 months is really hard to do for an adult, let alone a child. I would not do ANY kind of calorie restriction with a child unless under the supervision of a qualified doctor. I understand he's 100 lbs overweight, but that's all the more reason to go to his doctor. Kids need way different nutritional needs from us adults, low carb or not.

This.

Muffie22

why does he need to lose it in 4 months? speak to a doctor... weight loss and calorie and carb cutting is not something you want to mess about with with growing kids without the supervision of a professional.

babydaisy81

I'm been attempting low carb and I haven't even been able to lose 5 pounds a month, and I do weights and cardio on top of the diet restrictions. 20 pounds sounds pretty tricky! I second the dietician, but in the meantime there are lots of low carb ideas on Pinterest as well! The pizza crusts made from califlower, pasta from zuchinni, etc.

TavistockToad

Hi All

We have a 12 year old that needs to lose 20 lbs in 4 months(he is over 100 lbs overweight, blood pressure up and insulin is up too. Any kid friendly recipes that are very low carb?

https://plus.google.com/105971632010079093827/posts/QGzx2KRGVu8

:huh:

BombshellPhoenix

I would suggest going to his pediatrician. Since it's medically related, they will probably refer you to a registered dietician/nutritionist to assist you.

IMO, 20 lbs in 4 months is really hard to do for an adult, let alone a child. I would not do ANY kind of calorie restriction with a child unless under the supervision of a qualified doctor. I understand he's 100 lbs overweight, but that's all the more reason to go to his doctor. Kids need way different nutritional needs from us adults, low carb or not.

This.

^Ya that.

AmykinsCatfood

I found these the other day, they are amazing with blueberries in them and a dash of vanilla extract. http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/breads/r/lowcarbmuffins.htm

emdeesea

Why does it have to be "low carb?" Was this recommended by the MD? Why can't it just be getting more exercise and eating a bit less?

leggup

1. Are you speaking with a nutritionist who can tailor a diet to your son's age?
2. Why low carb?
3. Why SO aggressive? Is he having surgery in 4 months?

At 100 lbs overweight, I would think that it would be better to slowly replace some higher calorie foods in his life with lower calorie ones, plus find a sport/physical activity he loves and encourage that. Cutting carbs is probably not sustainable, given that he is 12 and probably doesn't want to cut them (it's hard enough for people who are adults who want to cut carbs to cut them).

BekaBooluvsu

I've been morbidly obese since I was 12. My mom was always putting me on some diet or food plan. I would eat what she gave me and then get food from the vending machine at school and secretly eat all the junk food on grocery day behind her back. I don't know if putting a child on a food restriction will help or hinder. All I know is, I developed an eating disorder because of all the diet garbage my mom forced on me. I am almost 30 years old and I have, only now, started getting help and learning myself through research how to eat healthy and moderately.

Try to add more fruit and vegetables to their diet by making the same meal for everyone saying that you, as a family, need to eat healthier. Don't have junk food in the house at all. Use a dehydrator to make veggie and fruit chips. Have fruit available on the counter for snacking. Maybe an after dinner family walk too. Wal-Mart sells a vegetable pasta maker for around $5. It's great because you can turn zucchini and yellow squash into strips like noodles. Serve those up with lean hamburger and spaghetti sauce and presto, yummy and nutritious food.

You don't have to take my advice I just thought I would chime in and maybe offer a different perspective.

Jacwhite22

Hi All

We have a 12 year old that needs to lose 20 lbs in 4 months(he is over 100 lbs overweight, blood pressure up and insulin is up too. Any kid friendly recipes that are very low carb?

https://plus.google.com/105971632010079093827/posts/QGzx2KRGVu8

no....no no no no no.......See a nutritionist....and a doctor. You are going about it all wrong.

MiloBloom83

I would suggest going to his pediatrician. Since it's medically related, they will probably refer you to a registered dietician/nutritionist to assist you.

IMO, 20 lbs in 4 months is really hard to do for an adult, let alone a child. I would not do ANY kind of calorie restriction with a child unless under the supervision of a qualified doctor. I understand he's 100 lbs overweight, but that's all the more reason to go to his doctor. Kids need way different nutritional needs from us adults, low carb or not.

This.

And take away the Xbox. Start exercising with him.

Yanicka1

Go see a nutritionist FFS.

Naley2322

poor kids going to have NO energy! why not switch to a healthy diet with fruits and 100% whole wheat instead of candy / white processed bread...way better than cutting carbs for a kid..

I mean it would be easier to cut out the fast food / candy and other junk food instead of cutting carbs

martyqueen52

It sounds like you need to re-evaluate your feeding habits as a parent, along with getting a medical diagnose for your child.

starrylioness

Does it have to be low carb? I've lost all of my weight by just counting calories and moving more. Low carb is hard for most people, and I can imagine especially so for a child, being so limited and restrictive. What's the rush for anyway? Also, are you consulting a doctor about this? Any diet, especially for a child, should involve a doctor's supervision. Just my two cents anyway...

So_Much_Fab

This might sound judgmental, but it's not meant to be.

To me, the problem seems simple. Overweight kid? Insert healthier food, delete some junk, get him moving more. But then I thought, well...how did he become so overweight in the first place? Took a peek at your profile pictures and bingo - just as I thought. It looks like your whole family is overweight.

Again - not judgmental. Just fact.

So what does this tell me? It tells me that your whole family had bad eating habits and could benefit from learning better ones.

Rather than to put the kid on some sort of restrictive diet, I respectfully suggest that you and your wife learn how to make healthier meals. Change the eating habits for your entire family. Make it a family thing! Get out and move more as a family! This way, everyone wins and your kid doesn't feel singled out or restricted.

SunofaBeach14

Get him under a barbell and out for runs. Careful with how low carb you go as he needs the energy. Lots of fruit and veggies, solid amount of protein and dietary fats, and speak to your doctor about how much of a calorie deficit is appropriate.

jfboomer

Rather than to put the kid on some sort of restrictive diet, I respectfully suggest that you and your wife learn how to make healthier meals. Change the eating habits for your entire family. Make it a family thing! Get out and move more as a family! This way, everyone wins and your kid doesn't feel singled out or restricted.

^^This.

PatrickXFCE

In answer to some of the questions, this diet was indeed recommended by an endocrinologist in Nashville. As I understand it, we are being put in touch with a nutritionist, but we haven't heard anything from them yet.

aneary1980

Okay I'm not on low carb intentionally but I try and have more protein so the carbs go down.

On a typical day I have

Breakfast - Scrambled eggs on toast (the bread is seeded wholemeal) obviously you don't need the bread
Lunch - Either homemade 3 bean chilli or chickpea and chiroz casserole with quina (spelling)
Dinner - Turkey and veg any meat with veg will be fine

Snacks - fruit and greek yogart.

Drinks - Lots of water and one Latte (I do not recommend this for a child)

There are some carbs in that but not too much

I'm assuming that once the weight has come off things will get better so being active will help too.

Naley2322

I still say instead of cutting his carbs and depleting his energy and making a 12 year old feel like crap and potentially cause damaging weight loss and re gain by cutting carbs and the weight gain when he adds them back in later it could completely throw his body out of whack

you should just cut out fast food and processed meats and get rid of chips / cookies / pop tarts / sugary cereals / soda / sugar drinks and replace them with 100% whole wheat breads / oatmeal for breakfast and healthier meats for lunch and dinner and adding in lots of fruits and veggies to every meal... for snacks instead of cookies and other 12 year old treats give him fresh fruit or some whole wheat crackers or whole grain popcorn you can also bake homemade muffins and cookies made with fruit instead of sugar and use whole wheat instead of white flours and you can replace white sugars with honey / raw sugar / fruits

kristydi

In answer to some of the questions, this diet was indeed recommended by an endocrinologist in Nashville. As I understand it, we are being put in touch with a nutritionist, but we haven't heard anything from them yet.

Hi. Is this a pediatric endo? The reason I ask is that my younger brother is a type 1 diabetic. He was diognosed at 14. The insurance tried to have him go to an adult endocrinologist and he did for a while. It did not go well. Managing his diet and insulin so he kept his sugars under control and kept up his energy was a nightmare on the adult focused endocrinologist's plan. My parents fought for the peidactric endo and it made a huge difference. Growing kids have really different needs than adults.

PatrickXFCE

@kristydi: I have no idea if the Dr. was a pediatric endocrinologist or not. I will ask my wife on the matter.

MinimalistShoeAddict

This might sound judgmental, but it's not meant to be.

...how did he become so overweight in the first place? Took a peek at your profile pictures and bingo - just as I thought. It looks like your whole family is overweight....

Rather than to put the kid on some sort of restrictive diet, I respectfully suggest that you and your wife learn how to make healthier meals. Change the eating habits for your entire family. Make it a family thing! Get out and move more as a family! This way, everyone wins and your kid doesn't feel singled out or restricted.

From a psychological perspective I tend to agree with this (under the supervision of a doctor). I don't think it would be good for him to feel singled out and put on a diet by himself.

Remember that you are role models for your son and he learns from your behavior.

There have been numerous correlation studies regarding BMI. For adopted children (where info on genetic parents is known) the BMI of the kids (even into adulthood) was MUCH more closely related to the BMI of their adopted parents than the BMI of their genetic parents. The implication is that habits learned as a child are more important than genes in predicting BMI as both a child and as an adult.

Springfield1970

@kristydi: I have no idea if the Dr. was a pediatric endocrinologist or not. I will ask my wife on the matter.

Please don't ask advice this important on a forum! Carry on with the professional care that you started.

Good luck.