Overweight, a condition defined by a body-mass index, or BMI, of 25.0 or higher, has risen dramatically in North America and elsewhere in recent decades. While this trend has affected all age groups, the impact on children is especially alarming, because people who gain weight early in life have a much harder time losing it than do those who become fat as adults. Medical and public health personnel have proposed a number of primary causes for this "epidemic."
Slimkids
Developed in 1995 by a registered nurse who had struggled with her weight as a teenager, Slimkids is a doctor- and dietician-approved diet. With an daily average intake of 1,500 to 1,800 calories and 64 grams of fat, it is not especially restrictive when it comes to fat ingestion, as fat accounts for about 35 percent of total calories. The total cost of the program, including a program book, a folder and food journals to record intake, is $22.95, and the website contains a significant amount of free nutritional information as well as a sample menu.
Trim Kids
Trim Kids is a 12-week program that encourages a high level of parental involvement, particularly in the realm of steady moral support. There are no forbidden foods; instead, heavy emphasis is placed on exercise and general behavior modification. Specific plans take into account that children are still growing and, therefore, include carefully balanced meals.
Limiting "junk foods," eating plenty of fruits and vegetables and learning portion control are all important Trim Kids elements, and kids are given strategies about how to remain active even during ostensibly sedentary activities such as watching television and talking on the phone. On the whole, this is more a lifestyle change than a diet.
Wellspring Camps
Touting itself as a "fat camp alternative," Wellspring takes a scientific rather than a punitive or purely disciplinary approach to diet and activity. With nearly a dozen locations in North America, the program claims that its participants lose an average of four pounds per week; nearly 70 percent keep off the weight once they return home.
The aim of Wellspring is to establish lifelong patterns in the realms of nourishment and exercise rather than merely send a fat kid home a little lighter. Staff members focus on the emotional and social aspects of being overweight as a teenager and integrate this into their interactions with campers. Stays last from four to 12 weeks and cost between $6,495 and $11,490 before reimbursement from health insurance.
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