Most people think if you send a child to weight loss camp, he may lose some weight but once he comes home, he will gain it back.

Everyone knows that 99% of all diets fail, right?

Actually, there is some scientific evidence that sending a child to a special camp for weight reduction can produce lasting results. But you have to choose the camp carefully or else the weight loss and health benefits will be short-term.

The camp should not be about losing a lot of weight quickly or dramatically. A good camp is about starting and maintaining a healthy lifestyle of eating right and exercising. Weight loss is only a byproduct of that new healthy lifestyle. A good weight loss camp has an educational slant. It is a place where children:

• Get educated about good nutrition,
• Change bad habits to good ones
• Learn to enjoy physical activity
• Have fun losing weight
• Get follow-up and family participation after camp so they can maintain their weight loss

Change habits, not diets. Changing habits may be more important than sticking to a diet. For example, researchers followed 1000 people born in 1972 for 26 years, and found that those children who watch less television weigh less than those who watch a lot of television. (Ref.1) Habits like television watching, video game playing, snacking and portion sizes are more important to long-term weight loss than calories and fat grams.

Diets alone don't work. In fact in a 2003 study of 14,000 boys and girls, children who went on diets actually increased their weights more over time than children who did not. (Ref.2)

Learning about nutrition is important in the long range. A good camp starts a child on a lifelong balanced diet that includes fruits, vegetables, protein and dairy. There a child begins a lifelong habit of choosing foods for nutrients, not taste. Since 1969, Duke University has been running a weight loss camp emphasizing nutritional education for adults who want to lose between 5 to 100 pounds. After two years, 55% of the Duke campers maintain their losses; and even after four or more years, 42% maintain - making Duke's program one of the most successful in the world. (Ref.3)

Group dieting may be best. Part of the reason a weight loss camp can work is that it involves losing weight with a group. A 2000 study done at the New York Obesity Research Center compared results from a group diet program to do-it-yourself diet plans. After six months, participants in the do-it-yourself programs did not lose as much weight or waist circumstance as those involved in a weekly support group led by professionals. (Ref.4)

Child Campers maintain their weight loss after a year. A British team of researchers followed 194 children who attended an eight-week weight loss camp in Massachusetts . The camp emphasized the joy of physical activity, monitored food choices without overly restricting calories, and educated campers on health, nutrition and physical fitness. Many children for the first time became proficient in a sport, and that proficiency led them to pursue the sport after camp ended. As expected, nearly all campers not only lost weight but achieved a lower Body Mass Index (BMI). Another 10% continued to lose weight after going home. Although there were reversals after camp, in the follow-up study 44 weeks later, 80% still had a lower BMI than before attending camp even without a follow-up program. (Ref.5)

Many overweight children are embarrassed in physical education classes because they can not perform as well as normal weight children, they feel silly and heavy in their movements, they are not able to run fast, and so forth. A weight loss camp that emphasizes physical education can often change an overweight child's poor attitude toward sports and phys ed class. (Ref.6)

A good weight loss camp may increase self-esteem. A team of researchers at the University of Leeds found that children who attended a weight loss camp for four weeks became more satisfied with their body shapes. Also their self-esteem increased on measures of self-worth, athletic competence and physical appearance. (Ref.6) In another study at the same university, a camp stay was associated with a reduction in the number of negative automatic thoughts and an increase in positive thoughts, especially related to exercise and appearance. (Ref.7)

A good camp provides help after the session ends. The Duke University program provides telephone counseling and other strategies in their Lifestyle Maintenance Program. Wellspring Camp for young people provides an after-care program as well as family education to help campers maintain their loss. Losing weight is often the easy part - to get long-term results, you need help after the camp experience.

The rate of childhood obesity has tripled among American children in the past thirty years, which means these children may become more susceptible to heart disease, cancer, arthritis and other health problems as they grow up. These nine million overweight children may be the first generation whose life expectancy is shorter than that of their parents, if adults don't provide the means to help them adapt better eating habits. (Ref.8)

REFERENCES

1. Hancox, Robert; Milne, Barry; Poulton, R. Watching Television linked to Overweight. Lancet, July 17, 2004 , Volume 363, Issue 9430, p. 257.

2. Field, Alison, Austin, SB; Taylor, CB; et al. Relation between Diet and Weight Change. Pediatrics, October 2003, Volume 112, Issue 4, p. 900.

3. Duke Diet and Fitness Center , "About Us." Posted at http://www.dukecenter.org

4. Heshka S; Greenway F; Anderson JW; Atkinson RL; Hill JO; Phinney SD; Miller-Kovach K; Xavier Pi-Sunyer F. Self-help weight loss versus a structured program after 26 weeks. Journal of American Medicine, 2000 September, Volume 109, Issue 4, p. 282-287.

5. Gately, PJ; Cooke, CB; Butterly, RJ; Mackreth, P; and Carroll, S. The effects of a children's summer camp programme on weight loss, with a 10 month follow-up. International Journal of Obesity, 2000, Volume 24, P. 1445-53.

6. Barton, SB; Walker , LL; Lambert G; Gately PJ; Hill AJ. Academic Unit of Psychiatry and Behavioral Studies, School of Medicine , University of Leeds , Leeds , United Kingdom . Cognitive Change in Obese Adolescents Losing Weight. Obesity, 2004 Feb; Volume 12, Issue 2, p.313-319.

7. Walker , LL, Gateley, PJ, Bewick, BM; Hill, AJ. Academic Unit of Psychiatry and Behavioral Studies, School of Medicine , University of Leeds , Leeds , United Kingdom . Children's Weight Loss Camps: Psychological Benefit or Jeopardy? Journal of Obesity Related Metabolic Disorders, June 2003, Volume 27, Issue 6, p. 748-54.

8. "New Strategy on Obesity in Children Urged." New York Times, October 1, 2004.