Weight Management
Weight management is extremely important for children with Down syndrome. These
youngsters have the same components of weight management as the population at
large; namely, a healthy diet and regular physical activity combined in a manner
that balances "calories in with calories out." But, because children
with Down syndrome have a lower basal metabolic rate than their non-disabled peers,
they burn fewer calories while they are at rest. However, when they are engaged
in active exercise, they burn about the same number of calories as the other children.
Instant
Feedback:
Children
with Down syndrome burn fewer calories at rest than their non-disabled
peers.
Children with Down syndrome
are usually shorter than their peers and have a smaller head circumference.
Weight, height, and head circumference measurements for children with Down syndrome
are plotted on different weight-height curves than those used for typically-developing
children.
These
charts can be accessed online at http://www.growthcharts.com.
Instant
Feedback:
Children
with Down syndrome should weigh approximately the same as typically-developing
peers.
Many parents of children with
Down syndrome describe battles about overeating. Children without Down syndrome
typically develop a little "pudge" in the pre-adolescent period, then
regain appropriate body proportions as they move into the teen years. Boys and
girls with Down syndrome also face the pre-adolescent weight gain; however, their
growth spurt in adolescence is less dramatic and the extra weight becomes more
obvious.
Children with Down syndrome
sometimes have trouble understanding why they need to eat smaller servings than
their siblings or peers. Medlen suggests the following strategies to help children
with Down syndrome make smart eating choices without engaging in an all-out
battle:
- Compliment the child
when he turns down second or third helpings.
- Talk about how foods
taste (quality versus quantity).
- Try not to comment on
the amount of food eaten by the child’s siblings or peers.
- If the child with Down
syndrome is focused on his siblings’ intake, explain that different people
need different amounts of food.
- Don’t try to frighten
or bribe the child into eating less.
- Encourage physical activity.
- If the child complains
often of hunger, ask him to rate hunger on a scale of 1 to 5. Ask him to wait
a little longer if he is only a little bit hungry.
- Teach the child about
different serving sizes.
- Begin to teach the youngster
about nutrition labels and food content.
- Medlen also emphasizes
that it’s not appropriate to use food as a reward for good behavior,
or for learning a new skill.
Instant
Feedback:
Children
with Down syndrome don’t have the ability to control their own
eating.