One in three children in Canada is overweight, one in five is obese. And it’s not getting any better. But the Pediatric Weight Clinic in Calgary is trying to help. They offer a multidisciplinary approach to helping kids lose weight. It involves psychological counselling, fitness training, and nutrition help.
I met with Clinical Director Liann Meloff. She says weight loss in children is a very complex issue which needs the whole family involved. That’s because it’s about making major lifestyle changes in these kids.
The clinic’s latest initiative is Growing Future Runners. This is a call to action to get kids moving. They’re challenging kids to move in whatever way they want: running, walking, swimming, biking, horseback riding etc. And they’re really encouraging kids to come out to the Stampede Road Race. It’s a marathon held on the first Sunday of Stampede, July 10th. Proceeds for the Kids Races go to the Pediatric Obesity Foundation which supports the Pediatric Weight Clinic. Kids ages 2 to 12 can do the Kids Races. They’ll get t-shirts and medals. And most importantly they’ll get active. Support the race by buying their green shoelaces which represent active children.
Twelve year old Jacob Mercier is a great example of a child adopting a new and active lifestyle. He’s only been going to the Weight Clinic since January and he’s already lost a lot of weight. He’s also become the Stair King. That’s because his activity of choice is running stairs in his house. His record so far is 160 sets of stairs in one night!! He’s also made a dramatic turn in his food choices. He admits he used to be a huge fan of Mcdonalds. Now he says, he’ll never eat there again. He also used to be pretty sedentary, now he says he loves getting outside and of course, maintaining his title of Stair King.
He says the lifestyle changes he’s made, along with his family, are something he’ll maintain for the rest of his life because he’s a new person. And he’s never been so proud.
For more information on the clinic visit:
For more info on the Stampede Road Race and the Growing Future Runners Program:
Thank you for letting Jacob share his story. He has worked hard and we want him to be an inspiration to others. We are grateful to the Pediatric Weight Clinic for giving us the tools to help Jacob as well as the rest of the family.
June 27th, 2011 at 7:44 pm