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19 March 2024

Parents of 'fat babies' putting infants on a diet

Increasing number of babies and young children in the country can also be categorised as fat. (AGENCY)

Published
By Shuchita Kapur

Obesity in the UAE is not a problem limited to adults, it would seem.

An increasing number of babies and young children in the country can also be categorised as fat. As a result, parents are resorting to diet regimes for infants as young as one-year old to keep their young ones fit and trim.

“Nearly 40 per cent of children who come to me are in the obesity range and their parents want us to put them on a diet to reduce the fat at an early age,” Dr Ahmed Hady, Paediatrician at Medcare Clinic in Jumeirah told Emirates 24|7.

“These children are in the age group of one to five years and often follow a bad lifestyle. They lack exercise and eat a lot of junk food,” he said.

What’s shocking is that children at such a young age start consuming an unhealthy amount of sweets, including chocolate, said Dr. Hady.

According to him, consuming juice is another problem. “Children drink a lot of juice, which adds unnecessary calories. Vegetables make only a small portion of their diet.”

Many parents, especially who are over-weight themselves, put their kids on a diet fearing their children would end up as obese if not controlled from a young age.

“I do follow a diet for my two-and-a-half-year old daughter. She’s heavy for her age and I tell her to eat only cucumber between meals. I don’t want her to grow fat,” a Dubai mom who did not wish to be quoted told this news website.

Another mother, who is a part of the same playgroup, said that her one-year-old son was always hungry. “He can’t keep eating all the time so I give him water if I think he's had enough of his feed but is showing signs of still being hungry. Initially, he didn’t like the taste so I diluted milk and that worked. Slowly he’s getting used to just plain water.”

However, this can be risky, Dr Hady warned. Children should be made to diet only after consulting a competent doctor, he says.

Some amount of fat is necessary. Diets should be followed only when the children are in the danger zone, he says.

“We have to look at the child to see if he is fat or not. For example, a baby, with a birth-weight of 3kg, weighs 20kg by the time he turns one, can be categorised as obese. It is very important to look at the growth percentile,” said Dr. Hady.

“These children need help and also at the risk of diabetes. Nearly 10 per cent of the obese children who come to us are at the risk of developing juvenilie diabetes, especially is there is a fmily history,” he said.

However, a lit bit of fat is all good with babies. Little ones are meant to be with chubby cheeks and parents looking for designer babies by putting them on strict diets do so at their own risk.