Are weight loss camps appropriate for children under 10?

No

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by Rixta Francis

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If a child of that age is already so much overweight that drastic action is needed, then a weight loss camp is totally insufficient. A camp by definition won't be longer than a few weeks and when a child has such weight problems that's not closely enough. Then you can't do anything more than make them play some sports and give some easting advices. But those things will be useless as soon as the child is back home. So in fact the camp will only put the child in a certain box and nothing is done to solve the real problem.

If you want to help obese children a long term approach is necessary. Some countries have special homes for obese children, where they stay for at least six months (and go to school in the meantime) and they don't only play sports and are taught about healthy eating habits, but these things are part of a total life style change. Intensive therapy is part of the program and long term sporting will teach kids that exercising is fun. You can't learn that in a few weeks. Also the pattern of overeating must be attacked and again that's not something you can change in weeks.
Then there are lots of children that overeat because they feel unhappy. That is definitely not something you can solve in a camp of a few weeks. That requires long-term therapy and support, as usually the kids are in a vicious circle (you eat more because you feel unhappy, then you feel even more unhappy because you get overweight and you eat even more).

And then last but not least: a camp is usually a place where the parents drop the children and pick them up again at the end of the camp. But when children are obese it's very important that the parents are involved with the treatment! They must know why things have gone out of hand and they must learn how to help and support their child. Without this the child will come home and has no idea where to start and will go back to the old life-style.

So short-term camps are totally useless and might only work contra-productive. When the kids notice that it hasn't really helped they will lose any motivation to ever get a normal weight. A long term approach is much better, because is often works very well and it gives the kids self-confidence.

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