Parents, sit up straight and pay attention. Overweight kids in rural areas whose moms and dads alone took part in a four-month program on lowering their children’s weight became trimmer than children in a similar program involving the whole family, a study found. Six months later, the overweight and obese kids, ranging in age from 8 to 14, in both programs had lowered their body mass indexes more than those in a control group that had no program. Researchers concluded that programs targeted at parents may be an effective way to improve children’s health.
Source: Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, December 2008