We are excited to offer a comprehensive, one of a kind Pediatric weight management and maintenance program for children and adolescents . Dr. Samer Kafelghazal, MD is board certified pediatrician and fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics, with 13 years of experience in weight management. By working with the whole family, he is able to help parents and children stay healthy and improve their lifestyle.
Pediatric obesity has reached an epidemic level. Currently,almost 25% of American children are obese.
Our pediatric weight management program works by creating a partnership between our medical team, parents, children and their schools. Parents are the single most important influence on the eating and activity habits that their children develop, so we spend a significant amount of time on educating children and their caregivers. Our goal is long term success through consistency in the nutrition and activity levels of the children in the household.
In our pediatric weight management program believes helping children reach a healthy weight and learn how stay healthy for the rest of their life can be fun and interactive. One of our goals is that children look forward to their visits to our center and feel that their success is being rewarded. Our comprehensive program includes education, physical activities, medical care and behavior counseling. We have a unique center specially designed with children and teens in mind, including
educating parents and children to build their knowledge about healthy food and appropriate portion sizes
learning about interactive computer games that the whole family can use, which is proven to improve outcomes
educating children and parents about types of fun and easy physical activity
The concept of using interactive games is called exergaming.Research has shown that children who participate in this type of exercise are able to burn more calories per minutes and improve their overall activity level.
Visits to our clinic are usually biweekly or monthly and we accept most insurance plans. Our patients are welcome to visit more frequently to take further advantage of our fun educational and physical activities.
We are committed to helping you and your child lead healthy, active lives when you join our pediatric weight management program.
What are some of the strategies that you can use right now at home to help your child achieve a healthy weight?
Limit sugar-sweetened beverages
Consume the recommended fruits and vegetables
Eat daily breakfast
Limit fast food
Use appropriate portion size
Eat meals together as a family
Limit television and screen time and keep televisions out of children’s bedrooms
Encourage moderately vigorous physical activity of 60 minutes a day or more.
5210--Count Down to Good Health
5 Servings of Vegetables and Fruits Daily
2 No more than 2 hours of screen time: TV, Computer, and video games
1 At least 1 hour of physical activity every day: “Break a Sweat” time
0 No sugar sweetened drinks: drink water, low fat milk or 100% fruit juice
Other Resources
To calculate your children BMI and find out how much activity they need
