I'm not sure why, but some of the things I'm reading here are scaring me. I grew up with a grandmother that strictly limited what I was allowed to eat, when I was allowed to eat it, and how I was allowed to eat it. I wasn't allowed to snack. I wasn't allowed to take food from the refrigerator. If I went out to eat with friends when we were in high school or over breaks from college, she would quiz them as to how much I ate, what I ate, etc. She did all the cooking, and we always had tons of fruit and vegetables in the house; we didn't have potato chips or junk... except occasionally, cookies. But even then, most of the baked stuff in the house was stuff she'd made with egg beaters, skim milk, etc. She would even search my room if she thought I'd brought something home or eaten something I shouldn't have. The result was that when I developed an endocrine disorder, I waited a good year and a half after I started rapidly (and I do mean rapidly, in less than 2 years I gained more than 150 pounds, while eating a low-fat fairly healthy diet and swimming at least once a week) gained weight. When the first four endocrinologists that I saw told me that I should join Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig (which I'd already been trying since high school: I was NEVER thin, but I wasn't badly over weight, and I was active; I walked or swam or played volleyball), I believed them. They told me there was nothing wrong with me except I ate too much. My primary care doctor disagreed and kept pushing me: I finally found a doctor that actually did the bloodwork (I had one that lied to me and my mother; he said he did the tests we asked for, but he only did a standard CBC which doesn't show most endocrine abnormalities.), and EVERY single hormone they tested for was abnormal. Cortisol, insulin, tesosterone, estrogen, progestrogen. All of them.
Now fast-forward 5 years: my grandmother has FINALLY accepted that my weight isn't entirely my fault, nor is my ability to lose weight. She's very proud of me being a lifeguard and of all the swimming I do.
So, just be very cautious with what you do.

I'm telling you if kids are kept busy.....out playing like we were all day except for meals....they are not fat. There are rare cases.......but the bottom line is kids are not active enough and have access to too many high calorie quick/fast foods. Get them busy and get back to good wholesome meals.

Liz

Anony~~i already had made an appt for his doc for blood work that was my first move
Liz~~I wish i could keep him busy like i said im at work all day long and we walk everynight except during this heat wave my city doesnt have many activities for kids they tore down the skating rink tore down our bowling alley and keep promising a boys and girls club but still nothing for our kids and teens have nothing to do

No junk food in the house. I grew up in a house with zero junk food and I NEVER suffered and I learned healthy eating habits.

For my birthday each year my mom would let me pick out a box of sugar cereal to eat on my birthday for breakfast. The rest of the box was thrown out. I looked forward to that each year and would plan which cereal I would try. And you know what???? I was disappointed each year. I was so used to non-sugar cereal that the sugar cereal tasted like @ss to me. The marketing drew me in year after year but the product was a consistent let-down.

As a wee one some of my favorite snacks were...

Turkey bologne wraped around a thin slice of cheddar
Celery with peanut butter
Plain popcorn
Fresh fruit
Carrot sticks & other veggies dipped in a mix of salsa & peanut butter (it may sound gross, but I dare you to try it...it's YUMMY...it's like a spicy thai peanut sauce).

Bottom line....If you don't keep the junk in the house your family won't eat junk.

I was also involved with dance lessons, tennis, swimming and martial arts as a kid. Now you don't have to enroll your son in all of these activities, but if he's involved in a few that will increase his calories burned and general fitness level.

Also, as a kid I rode my bike everywhere. I would much rather be out on my bike than inside watching TV or playing video games. Encourage outdoor activities as much as possible.

(707Goddess) Michelle - I too was made fun of to the extreme in school. So badly infact that I would "fake" being ill so I wouldn't have to go. Eventually my parents figured that out and talked to the school and tried to make the situation better but none of that really helped. Kids are going to do what they are going to do, mean and nasty as it is, its true. Eventually I learned that it was up to me to do something about it. Not saying let your son suffer alone, no. Do try to do what you can. Talk with him, let him know how special he is. (I'm sure you already do this, just saying what worked for me again) I found that if you have a strong family and friend bond that will be behind you regardless, that makes a big difference.

I wish your son the best of luck because I do understand what it feels like. Its tough and I would imagine even tougher now a days with how all the celebrities dress and all of that.

I think your doing the right thing by coming here and asking for help. That shows a lot of caring and support for your son.

It has a lot to do with what's available and what you're teaching your son. Overall, I definitely agree with everyone's suggestions to get rid of the junk food and to start getting him to exercise. I would also suggest seeing a nutritionist, because putting children on diets is a little different from putting adults on them - children have specific nutritional needs, and if you want him to be really healthy you should focus on that, as well. Get him involved with cooking and shopping, so that he learns about healthy food. Hiding low-fat snacks in junk food boxes might work for now, but in the end it doesn't teach him anything, and when he's making food choices for himself one day he won't know the difference between healthy and unhealthy snacks. I didn't gain any of my weight until I left home, and I believe that's because we almost never had junk food in the house, ate tons of fruits and veggies and very healthy meals, and were active as a family. I've gone back to the way I ate when I lived with my parents in order to lose weight.
It won't be easy for him, but it's incredibly important that you teach your son about proper nutrition and the importance of exercise.

I have a problem with your thinking here.... I know exactly what my parents would say... they NEVER had any of those activities when they were growing up, but almost no one was fat because they were always finding things to do.
There is no excuse for you son to NOT be outside everyday. If it is too hot, go swimming! He can ride a bike, run around the neighborhood, play some baseball, and do things that boys do in the summer.
You should not rely on what activities are available. It is your responsibililty to make it more fun for him to be outside than to stay inside: This means getting rid of the computer, video games, TV, cable - whatever it is that he "enjoys" doing all day long inside, take it away. If he is bored inside, he WILL go outside. (This idea didn't work for me when I was that age because I would whine until the cows came home and my parents would always give in, which they shouldn't have).
What are his siblings doing this summer? Why doesn't he do some running around with them? Also, he is old enough - how about starting a Lawn Mowing service for the neighborhood, he could charge a small fee and get some money and exercise at the same time.
All I am saying is that there are plenty of things for a kid to do, but you should never rely on your town to provide activities, that is no excuse for not being active.

I was a very active child myself but still obese. I would swim every day during summer and I would run around and play with friends. I even joined a junior track team and even though I couldn't keep up, I will still run laps. I also had a bus pass and would take trips in which I would walk quite a bit and take the buss pass home. I think the key ingredient was food. My mom never really had too much junk in the house, but it didn't matter, I would eat and eat and eat. I would spend money on food, I would go to my friends house and eat.

I think a key ingredient is getting rid of the junk food from your own house. Another key ingredient is talking to your child about proper nutrition and eating. Stock up on fruits and veggies, lean meats and whole grain breads. Also try to get your child involved in activities outside the house.

If your kid likes video games, how about the dance dance revolution game? Kids seem to like it and it gets them exercising.

Our society is more obese now than it ever was and we are getting more obese every day. I really think food is the key. We introduce so much junk into our lives including fast food restaurants, candy and sodas. If you eliminate the bad food, your child will have a better chance of controlling his weight.

I have a bus pass, and I think I'm going to do this myself! What a good idea.

I found this quite helpful! Although my son never got too enthusiastic about the taste of spinach, I could always get him to eat it by talking about the health benefits of it.

Thank you ladies i knew i could come to you guys with this and get some good advice, i am taking all your comments very seriously and picking and probing to find what would work for my son, our lawn mower is broke but i think im gonna go buy a new one this weekend he's ALWAYS talking about doing that

Baseball, basketball, jump rope, hula hoop, Red Rover, tetherball, swinging, tree climbing, skating (on sidewalks), bike riding, playing badmitton over the back fence, volleyball, walking, hopscotch, hide and seek, pogo stick, walking on stilts that my granddad built for me were all things I did as a kid when I lived a mile from a town that had fewer than 300 people. There was no such thing as cable and computers then, so cartoons didn't last all day.

My kids would spend all day in front of the tv if I let them. I turn off the television and tell them to go outside. They jump on the trampoline, ride a skateboard around the porch, play basketball. I don't know where you live or your circumstances, but there are cheap resources for physical activities for almost every lifestyle.