What is healthy weight for a child?

You may find it difficult to tell whether your child has temporary "puppy fat" or is genuinely overweight. Your GP will check height and weight charts when assessing your child to see if he/she is overweight for his/her age.

Why can't healthy weight ranges be provided for children and teens?

Healthy weight ranges cannot be provided for children and teens for the following reasons:

· Healthy weight ranges change with each month of age for each sex.

· Healthy weight ranges change as height increases.

How can I tell if my child is overweight or obese?

Use the Body Mass Index (BMI) to screen for overweight and obesity in children and teens aged 2 through 19 years. Although BMI is used to screen for overweight and obesity in children and teens, BMI is not a diagnostic tool.

Also see the Manna Ideal Body Weight tables to get an estimate of a healthy weight.

For example, a child who is relatively heavy may have a high BMI for his or her age.

Formula: weight (kg) / [height (m)]²

With the metric system, the formula for BMI is weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared. Since height is commonly measured in centimetres, an alternate calculation formula, dividing the weight in kilograms by the height in centimetres squared, and then multiplying the result by 10,000, can be used.

To determine whether the child has excess fat, further assessment would be needed. Further assessment might include skin fold thickness measurements. To determine a counselling strategy, assessments of diet, health, and physical activity are needed.

Can I determine if my child or teen is obese by using an adult BMI calculator?

No. The adult calculator provides only the BMI number and not the BMI age- and sex-specific percentile that is used to interpret BMI and determine the weight category for children and teens. It is not appropriate to use the BMI categories for adults to interpret BMI numbers for children and teens.