Over Weight Kid

Learn to make healthy but tasteful food. Smoothies are great, taco soup, whole grain pastas, ect. Take out any and all junk food so there isn't any temptation. Buy a air popcorn popper and get him some mrs. dash butter stuff. That is a great low fat snack that any teenager should love. My family has really slimmed down just by using whole grains and making things from scratch. You'd be amazed at how many calories & growth horomones you cut down on just by taking away processed foods. Also, a probiotic may help him to properly process what he is eating so he won't be as hungry.

For starters purge all the junk and anything tempting -- no crackers, chips, snacks, sweet cereal, nothing, nothing, nothing like that. Put it in a trash bag or bring it to a food bank. What's left: just whole foods. 14 year olds typically don't cook themselves a pot of rice.
Make sure he eats at regular mealtimes and sit down with him and eat then too. It's hard if he is on teams etc. but you need to try to keep a regular meal schedule. You will probably need to join him on a skinless chicken breast diet for a while.
Finally, it's really hard to control what he eats outside the house, but see if you can't challenge him to month without sweetened beverages of any kind, and also no diet soda either. Just lowfat milk, real juice (nothing with corn syrup!) and water. Big Gulps: That is an enormous source of calories right there. You should offer to give up something too (coffee? diet coke?) and put a checklist on the fridge door.

M.-
As a former fat kid and still overweight adult, may I just say that he could be eating because he is bored or he is internalizing feelings. That's why I ate/eat. I also ate, because my family labled me the fat, smart daughter not the skinny, cute daughter and even when I came home from college losing 50 lbs in three months and played on several intermural sports teams, they still treated me the same. I know now that there wasn't any maliciousness intended, but labeling happens. Based on my weight loss struggles, I suggest that you make sure your son is busy, busy, busy. Not hanging around the house watching TV, playing video games, goofing on the computer, but doing yard work, practicing his sports, challenge him to run a mile, run it with him (I am going to do that with my son - he's the healthy one.) If he is physically active, he's going to be too tired to raid the fridge. Also, 5 smaller meals a day is better than 3 big meals a day. Also, lots and lots of water. He may be eating because he doesn't realize that the trigger he's feeling is not hunger but thirst.

I agree with the other posters about getting rid of the junky stuff, even if you like it and don't have any problems with weight. Also, I might reconsider the locking of the cupboards/fridge. How utterly humiliating for him. It's not like he doesn't know why they're there. I also agree with taking him to the doctor. There could be a bio issue or he could be getting ready for a huge growth spurt. I know my nephew carried a bunch of extra weight for a few years and my goodness, now he is 6'2" at 15 and looks great. He grew about 7 or 8 inches in a year. It was crazy.

I'm sure this is not an easy situation, but maybe a heart to heart with him, if you haven't already done it to see what's going on that might be leading him to sneak food (personally, I doubt it's because it's fun). I was just saying on another post where we were talking about keeping weight on our kids, what a challenge this reverse situation would be.

Good luck,
S.

Helllo, even if he is doing this for fun, I would wonder very, very strongly if there maybe some type of metabolic process making him extremely hungry, such as one of the worst offenders, thyroid dysfunction. It definitely be worth asking your/his primary care provider and sharing your concerns about the voracious appetite, and ask he or she if they would consider, even if he or she believes this is just a habit, if the provider would do some of the following baseline lab work to rule out anything medically connected; the suggested following lab tests are: TSH, T3, Free T4 and Total T4, along with a Hemoglobin A1C, Fasting blood sugar and a complete metabolic panel (included in this are liver and kidney function). Also, besides thhe testing, talk to your family memembers and follow up if anyone of them, especially his elders, had any known thyroid disorder, diabetes, hypoglycemia, etc. Know that this is a lot, hope that it helps, best regards, Cindy

This sounds like a difficult situation, M.. I am sure that would be hard to deal with. As a person who struggles with weight and body image and who dealt with an eating disorder during my college years, I would highly recommend that you take those locks off. I have a wonderful mother, but unfortunately for me, she was naturally thin, and I inherited my dad's weight struggles. My mom constantly monitered everything that went into my mouth - what, and when and how. When I went to college, it was a food fest for me and I gained almost 20 lbs. my freshman year. The eating disorder came when I realized I didn't like those 20 lbs. and wanted them off immediately. I'm not an expert, but from what I know, eating disorders are about CONTROL. When you lock up food, you are potentially creating a control issue between you and your son.
I agree with others that you should provide healthy choices and keep him busy with other things. You never know what kind of lasting effect this may have on him.
I don't mean to sound patronizing - just wanted to provide a perspective of someone who, as a child, battled with a parent over food.
Best of luck to you.

Dr. Oz would be so ashamed of those of those of you wanting to put a child on a diet! Some kids (and many in recent years) struggle with weight - their bodies respond to food by storing it. Problem is if you look at the food they are eating - it is usually high in fat, carbs, sugars, and low in protein, fiber, and antioxidants. The children are borderline diabetic because of their diet - and they're just kids!

You need to take a serious look at what your family eats. Is it mosty processed food? Is it high in fat or sodium content? Does most of it contain cheese or dairy? Is it water based - meaning what percentage of your food is made from fresh veggies and fruits?

Does your child eat school lunch? If so - you need to start making his meals. A typical school lunch is this: chicken nuggets - made from the leftover bits of chickens and processed with so many unnecessary additives that it is in no way nutritious, tater tots or french fries - no need to explain the dangers here, canned fruit in heavy syrup, and 2% chocolate milk. There is no fiber, an excess of fat and sodium, high fructose corn syrup in the fruit and milk, excess carbohydrates, and more calories than a fully grown adult would consume in two meals if on a proper eating plan. Michelle Obama is right about reforming school lunches - they are not healthy right now.

As for home, if you find yourself opening store-bought frozen meals or preparing "meals in a box" more than 2 days a week you are doing your family a huge disservice. You need to make time to prepare fresh meals from scratch. This eliminates the "extra" ingredients that are in the store bought meas - preservatives, excess sodium, fats, and chemicals - all toxins to the body which produces a "store" body response leading to being overweight. Preparing those meals sounds daunting but it is not if you are organized, use a list, and prepare them ahead of time. Many meals you make can be stored in the freezer for quick prep when needed. There are a lot of internet writers you can glean suggestions from - just start looking.

Your food should be 70% fresh. High in protein and fiber. This is what keeps us feeling full, gives our bodies the energy we need to burn calories and build muscle in order to maintain a healthy body and not crave the junk.

Best of luck to your family and your son. It may be good to also take your son to a nutritionist and let her tell him the importance of eating right and how to do it. She may pull more clout than you - the mother hen.

I agree with the poster who suggested blood tests. While you are at it test for IgE food allergies and IgG food sensitivies. IgG is controversial but eliminating foods a child has a sensitivy to can improve behaviour and help cravings.

Maybe his body is lacking nutrients or vitamins and thats giving him cravings. Have you talked to your dr?? I have heard other parents say that vemma has helped. You can research it and see what you think. bwynia.vemma.com

Get rid of all the junk food in the house(chips, pop,non-whole grain bread or bagels, "boxed" foods, etc). Then, find healthy alternatives that he can eat. Maybe he can help you look through cookbooks or websites for healthier choices. Try to cook more from scratch and have him help you. I like the Cooking Light recipes. Maybe even make a list of things that he can make (celery & p.b., almonds, yogurt, smoothies, popcorn, salad, etc.) so that when he thinks there is nothing to eat, he will have a list of things to choose from. Is he eating because he is bored or when watching tv? Have him help cook the family meals instead!

I love it, "he is in sports but still over weight". At 14, your are not "in sports" you are 2-3 hrs 6 days a weeks "in sports" if he is really "in sports". Have him choose the 1 sport now and concentrate on it. get a trainer to help him condition and improve for that sport. he will gain confidence, will be told what to eat from the coach or trainer. you can take the lock off the fridge as he can't eat 2 hrs before practice anyway. and will drink tons just to stay hydrated. by the time he starts high school he will be really proud of his weight (muscules/sturdinesss). Just don't call him an "over weight kid", that stuff sticks. Let him know he is perfect the way he is it is just that he is athletic and will need to train his body to compete (enjoy) high school.

Change in diet for the whole family. Don't keep anything in the pantry he can't eat. No chips, cookies, brownies, ice cream etc. Only low fat crackers, low fat PB, fruits and veggies. Unlock the pantry and fridge and let him eat as much HEALTHY food he wants!

My 8 year old is the same way, he's in sports too but what my husband and I decided to put him on a little diet.