help! I have to put my 4 yr. old on a diet

I dont know what to do. My little girl has to go in to have tubes put in her ears, had the date set and everything then after her physical they tell me the anastesiologist (sp?) dont want to risk it and she is too high risk and it would be too dangerous because of her weight to height ratio. she is 45 inches and 65 lbs. a little chunky. they want her to go to Riley childrens hospital. I want to put her on a diet because of the risks, how to do that with a 4 yr old, I have already a couple weeks ago quit buying pop for the house and no fast food whatsoever.....Any suggestions....she is very unhappy. thanks Regina

Well thank God that Splenda is in just about anything now a days. You can really buy some treats she will like that are sugar free and she won't be able to tell the difference. In addition to changes in food, maybe you can up her activity level. If it's cold take her to the mall and walk around for a few hours. When the weather is nice, take her to the park or bike riding. Good luck Regina, I know this has got to be breaking your heart. Love, Dawn

Thank you Dawn, i really appreciate you responding to my post. I am going out tomorrow and buying some ff cottage cheese (cottage cheese is her favorite) and some sf popsicles and we have already changed to crystal light a couple weeks ago because I want to try to change my wole families eating habbits if i get this surgery, and even if I cant I want my kids healthy. Do you know if it would be safe to buy some protein drinks and let the kids have some....since I will need to do this after surgery too? I am going to try high protein and low carbs with my family. thanks again Regina ps. How are you doing after surgery?

Hi Regina, I am very careful about what my kids eat too because of my obesity. I will be praying that your daughter will be healthy enough for this procedure. My kids love these foods and snacks... ff fig newtons, pretzels, low fat graham crackers, lf yogurts, string cheese, lf cottage cheese, and fruit fruit fruit, esp. peaches in light syrup and apple slices (my son would much rather have apple dippers at McDonald's than french fries!) apple sauce only sf carrots, green beans, only wheat bread, the gerber graduates pastas are low fat and sodium, also juices have a high amount of sugar so I don't let him have too much of that if he is eating enough of it he doesn't need the juice, only milk and water...at four yrs old she can have low fat milk I hope this helps and like Dawn said upping the activity will be fun for her, she will think she is just playing and spending time with you! This will be a good head start for her, I wish my mom had done those things with me!! God bless you~ Candy

Thanks Candy, Do you know if that stuff is low in carbs....thats what we were going to try to do, I dont know, is it better to count fat and calories or carbs and protein with kids. Ive never really been careful with counting anything thats whats wrong with us, my fault not paying better attention. thanks for replying to my post Regina

I am really not sure about the carbs. But I think a balance is more important than cutting carbs out completely. Carbs are still very important, especially for children. I try to make sure they have like eggs and fruit for breakfast, cheese or meat or veggies for lunch and dinner and good snacks. And if you think she is eating too much I would suggest three meals a day maybe with out snacks. Or if she is just really hungry good snacks like applesauce. Good luck, candy

Hi Regina, You want to make sure she get the good carb's. The kind that come from fruit and veggies~not the kind that comes from chips, chocolate, and other junk foods. God bless you, Annette

thank you Annette, I will do that, I dont really know the difference in "good carbs" and "bad carbs"...All I know is bad carbs are in pasta and starches. thanks again Regina