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Teen Weight Loss Surgery and Insurance Coverage

Weight loss surgery might be an option for adults who are morbidly obese. What about for teenagers? Most private health insurance companies will not cover this type of procedure. Teenagers who are covered by Medicaid or CHIP have a better chance of having their weight loss surgery covered. Every surgery, no matter how big or small, comes with risk. While certain kinds of weight loss surgeries may be a recommended option for some adults who are morbidly obese, this doesn’t mean that it is completely and entirely safe in all cases. Not every private health insurance plan will cover this … Continue reading →

Teens and Body Image Issues

Pimples can make facing the world difficult at best. Some teens opt out of many events and opportunities to spare themselves the stress. Other teens have their growth spurts early and tower over all of their friends. This makes them self conscious. A teenager is told they are overweight, when they are in fact fit and a little muscular. They begin to diet anyway. Eating disorders appear in many different incarnations. In one case, a teen chews her food and then spits it out before swallowing. As a parent watching teenagers deal with these and other similar issues, it is … Continue reading →

Metabolic Syndrome and Teenage Boys

You may have heard of metabolic syndrome in conjunction with adult males or females. It is a set of conditions that usually indicate the presence or likelihood of coronary disease and type 2 diabetes. Remember all of the literature recently about how belly fat, more than other kinds of fat, can be dangerous? It is one of the indicators of metabolic syndrome. And while we do usually associate metabolic syndrome with adults, as mentioned above (22 percent of Americans have it), it can also occur in adolescents (about 4 percent). Metabolic syndrome is categorized by “insulin resistance, increased waist circumference, … Continue reading →

Single Parenting and Your Growing Child: It is Time for the Talk

Single parenting, oh the joys! Another job that we cannot pawn off on anyone else and that is “The Talk”. It helps if you are divorced in this case and the other parent is involved, but what if there is no other parent? Yes, I am afraid to tell you, you are it, again. Talking to your kids about growing up is probably one of the least favorite things that you will do as a parent. It is not too uncomfortable for the parent, but it is usually uncomfortable for the child. Because it is uncomfortable for them, we are … Continue reading →

Helping the Overweight Teenager

Between peers, teachers, neighbors, and the media, teenagers have enough information about weight shoved in their face. Being a parent of an overweight teenager is difficult only because you want your child to be healthy number one, but also liked. As you see your child come home from school in tears because he/she was teased, or you hear a story about your child not being included in a neighborhood game because of being too fat, or perhaps your child is obsessed with thin people in magazines on and television, it breaks your heart. Rather than just sit back and do … Continue reading →

Some Teens are Having Bariatric Surgery

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Teenagers who are obese might have the option of having bariatric surgery. Previously, this type of weight loss surgery was only offered to adults. Although it isn’t the best choice for every teenager, there are some teens who can greatly benefit from it. The New York Times reported in February of 2017 that the number of adolescents who are overweight or obese has leveled off in recent years. But the number who are severely obese – heavy enough to qualify for bariatric surgery – has nearly doubled from 1999 to 2014. Previously, 5.2 percent of adolescents were severely obese. That … Continue reading →

Body Image

Before I got divorced I rarely worried about my weight, I was younger and I was married. My weight had never been a problem. Then I got divorced and started dating. Sometimes dating feels like swimming with sharks, everyone is trying to look their best, be their best, make the best first impression. Suddenly I worried about things I never worried about before, like my weight. It’s perfectly normal to want to look and feel our best, however we do need to be careful with the messages we are sending our daughters. Young girls are so impressionable and we are … Continue reading →

Eating Disorders Run in Families

Genealogists are aware that certain genetically heritable diseases can be handed down through the family, from one generation to the next. Learned behaviors can also be passed along. Researchers have found that eating disorders can be passed from mothers to their daughters. Genealogists who are working on putting together a medical family tree have probably asked their relatives a whole lot of health questions. It might not be so difficult for your relatives to talk about health issues like high blood pressure, diabetes, or the type of cancer that caused the death of certain ancestors. However, there are a lot … Continue reading →

Parenting in the New Year

It’s a brand new year. Isn’t it funny how a certain date or event makes us strive to be better people? January 1st is just another day but the way our calendar is set up gives it significance. This year I’m thinking about what it means to be a single parent and what my mission is as Hailey’s mother. My daughter is eighteen now so the day to day hands on parenting is over, she no longer needs me to tie her shoes or wipe her nose. I still parent my child, I think you always do no matter how … Continue reading →

All Aboard the Roller Coaster Ride of Adolescence

Dealing with a teenager can be a dicey proposition in the best of times. On any roller coaster, part of the ride is taking that occasional plunge, but what happens when the drop becomes too steep or the ride veers off track? When you’re in parenting mode, your tolerance for a rough ride may be different from your teen’s. So how do you know if your teen is having a bad day or a bad week or something more? How do you know if the withdrawal and slump in grades are normal or something to worry about? How do you … Continue reading →