Tips for Not Singling a Kid Out About Food and Body

Published October 21, 2021

At WithAll, we believe it is important, no matter the reason for your concern, to not single out a child or a subgroup of children when encouraging food and exercise habits. This can be stigmatizing and isolating and can indicate to the child that their body is wrong or needs to be fixed.

One Way to Not Single Out Kids About Food and Body

Two happy kids

Try This Instead

Instead, apply everything you do related to food, body, and exercise to all kids in your life equally.

If you do decide to make changes, make these changes as a whole family. If these changes really are about health, everyone in the family can be doing it together.

Find activities the whole family can enjoy together that are focused on enjoying the activity, not weight loss or changes to mealtime. This looks different for each family, but here are some ideas for encouraging movement.

Infographic with Tips

Looking to go deeper?

Check out our Q&A video with Emily Pisetsky, PHD, LP. about if we should encourage kids to lose or gain weight.

Check out our Simple Guide to What to Say which touches on this principle of Not Singling Kids Out when it comes to food and body.

We all want our children to lead happy, healthy lives. But in today's world it can be increasingly difficult to know how to best support kids' physical and mental health. As a parent you have a powerful opportunity to shape the way your children think about and feel in their bodies, and in turn, you…

Diet Talk: What is it and how can I avoid doing it around the kids I care about?

Feb 11, 2021

Diet talk is everywhere. It comes up with family members & during gatherings with friends. You see it on your social media feeds, your favorite TV shows, and in the magazines you read. In fact, diet talk is so ingrained in our day-to-day lives, it can be hard to understand what we even mean when…

Harmful Weight Talk: What is it & why is it so bad for kids’ health?