[Ash2007]

I have not read all of the other replies but this is my advice..
my mom never cared about my weight at all. I have been over weight since elementary school.. that is NOT ok! If she is coming to you for help.. and she is if she is telling you she feels over weight.. help her out! Go on walks together, make better choices of the foods that she is eating. Show her that healthy eating can be fun and taste good. I have a book called eat this not that.. I am pretty sure they have a kids book too. That may help.. Good luck. I hope nothing I said sounds harsh. Don't get upset about it.. let her asking you for help encourage you! Good luck!

[mountain walker]

Hi I have a gorgeous 7 year old son who is also taller and heavier than most of his peers.
Last year I was quite worried about his weight.....as I have struggled my whole life. So I started taking him to walk the dogs.....every day in the holidays and at the weekends when he is with us.
Not only do we enjoy our time spent together but he earns 50p for every walk which he saves to buy Lego! I know some parents disapprove of bribery but heck....it works a treat with him!
He isn't a very sporty kid as he has problems with his feet and knees and can't run, but he can walk, swim and started Tae Kwon Do this year.
He is constantly hungry which is worse when he is bored ( true for all of us!) so I ensure we have healthy snacks at home.He spends some time with his father ( unfortunately) and eats total rubbish when he is there which undermines my efforts a bit.
Fortunately boys are a bit less self conscious than girls so he hasn't developed body image issues.
I hope you manage to reassure your daughter.

[Flattum2be]

Thank you for sharing all your experiences and advise. Shows that my efforts will get results. I'm sure if I make small changes it wil help both of us. It has already helped me to stay on plan this week and I took the kids for several walks as well. I've started to limit tv time,so she and her brother (he is 3) spent more time on the trampoline, or she's on her rollerskates or bike. I don't mention ANYTHING about weight and just makes the exercise part of their fun time. I give her plenty of fruit and veg to choose from when she says she is hungry between meals and it helps.

All I want and desire is for my daughter to be fine and enjoy her child- and teen years. Not worrying about weight like I did.

[Tesalyn]

That's a hard one. My daughter is 7, too, and I would also be devastated if she said something like that. I think the best thing to do might be to slowly introduce healthier habits in the household without saying anything about them being related to her weight. I definitely don't think she should go on a diet per se, unless a doctor says that is needed. Just little things, like giving her fruit instead of ice cream. And you could just have only healthier stuff in your house, since you're working on weight loss yourself. Good luck. It's great that you're concerned for her now. It will likely make things easier for her on down the line.