Dr. Ahmed, can you help me? My son has gained a bit of weight, and my attempts to put him on a diet have been unsuccessful 🙁. Why should we make our kids follow a restrictive diet and deprive them of the foods they love, especially when they’re just starting their lives?! 😊

The idea is to regulate a child’s diet, and the problem lies in the unhealthy foods available in the market that target kids, like fried foods and sugary treats. What a mother should do is choose better food options for her child that are delicious at the same time. Even if the meal is small, we can teach them about the right amount of good and nutritious food 😃.

You might ask, “Isn’t his weight gain harmful?” Let me tell you, no, there’s no harm in a child gaining weight in a gradual and natural way. Children are supposed to gain weight as they grow, and it’s normal. For example, if a child is 140 cm tall, and the mother is 170 cm and the father is 175 cm, their ideal weight would be around 70 kg! The child will naturally grow to reach their parents’ weight and height 😊. This will happen until they reach puberty, so let’s not say the child is overweight! If they gain weight after puberty, we’ll change the family’s habits, but we won’t make the child follow a diet alone. We’ll all start eating healthy, reduce the presence of sweets at home, and exercise together or let the child do the physical activity they enjoy. Movement will greatly help them maintain a healthy body.