Ask Dr. K
Anthony Komaroff
Q) My 15-year-old daughter wants to go on a diet. How can I make sure she stays healthy while losing weight?
A) My first question is whether your daughter really needs to go on a diet. Before your teen starts any weight-loss program, talk with her pediatrician, who can help determine an ideal weight for your teen and give her guidance about dieting. Many people (teens and adults) view themselves as overweight when, by medical standards, they are not. They will not get any health benefits from losing weight -- though they may think they will look better.
If your pediatrician determines that your daughter does need to lose weight, remember that it matters how she does it. As nearly everyone knows, you lose weight by burning off more calories by your physical and mental activity than the calories you consume in your diet.
But what many people don't know is that reduced-calorie diets are not necessarily healthy just because they have fewer calories. For example, there are healthy and unhealthy fats and carbohydrates. If your daughter's low-calorie diet contains mainly unhealthy fats and carbs, that's not good -- even if she loses weight.
Let your teen know that weight management is about long-term success. People who lose weight quickly by crash dieting almost always gain the weight back. The best weight-loss strategy is one that your teen can maintain for a lifetime.
Here are some simple guidelines to help you and your daughter to get things started:
- Eat a healthy breakfast every day. People who eat breakfast actually eat fewer calories during the day.
- Drink four to eight, 8-ounce glasses of water each day.
Read more:
Dr. K: Make sure your daughter really needs to lose weight
