Date:
02/27/2008 04:31 PM New weight-loss camps help kids shed weight, gain
some skills
By MEGAN SCOTT
Associated Press Writer
When Tony Sparber started running weight-loss
camps 30 years ago, the campers were mostly teenage girls,
100 pounds plus overweight. The menu consisted of food like
liver, fish and alfalfa sprouts and the exercise was running
and sit-ups.
The goal was to lose as much weight in as
short amount of time as possible.
Now, things are a little less extreme: About
40 percent of the campers are boys. Most kids need to lose
between 20 and 40 pounds. Menus offer a broader range of food,
and exercise is downright fun, with activities such as tennis
and kayaking. The camps emphasize healthy lifestyles and skills
the kids can take home with them.
In short, so-called "fat camps"
are more likely to resemble regular camps that just happen
to specialize in teaching good decision-making techniques.
According to the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, 16 percent of children ages 6-19 are overweight
or obese — a number that has tripled since 1980.
The number of weight loss camps has remained
relatively the same, says Jeff Solomon, executive director
of the National Camp Association. There are about 15 to 20
out of a total of 10,000 camps in the organization. (Some
camps have multiple locations.)
Sparber, who used to run Weight Watchers camps,
says campers tend to be younger than they used to be. A large
number of the 1,500 kids he expects will sign up for his three
summer camps over the next few weeks will be between the ages
of 7 and 12.
That age group tends to be more successful
because parents have more input on the child's eating and
exercise habits, he says. Bad eating habits are also less
ingrained in younger children.
And camps are all about building habits, not
just handing out quick fixes. They offer classes about nutrition,
portion control, emotional eating, dealing with situations
like pizza and ice cream parties.
They also teach by example. Sparber said his
menus used to offer 1,200 to 1,300 calories a day. Now they
are sized more realistically, at 1,800 to 2,000 calories a
day, with hamburgers, pita pizzas, baked chips and low-fat
baked goods.
"The biggest misconception about weight
loss camp is that they don't serve you enough food and that
they overwork you," says Daniel Kriss, 15, who was featured
in the MTV documentary "Return to Fat Camp" based
on New Image Camp Pocono Trails in Pennsylvania. He lost 40
pounds at the camp. "It's the exact opposite. They feed
you the right amount of food and work you out just enough."
Changing behavior is key to sustaining weight
loss, says Ryan Craig, president of Wellspring, which runs
11 weight loss summer programs around the world, including
nine camps and two adult vacations, as well as programs at
two boarding schools.
Wellspring participants learn to cook, shop,
order at restaurants, and work with psychologists on stress
management, frustration tolerance, and emotional eating.
"It's not a lack of information,"
says Craig, referring to the reason kids are overweight. "They
know what it means to be healthy. They're resorting to food
as an unhealthy coping mechanism."
Some campers want to be there, as opposed
to years ago when their parents made them go.
Rod Rezvani, 20, who at one point weighed
440 pounds, says his father suggested attending Wellspring
Camp last summer. But he says, it was "completely my
decision."
"I was happy I was finally making a change,"
says Rezvani, who has lost 167 pounds and is enrolled in the
Wellspring college program in Reedley, Calif.
Maya Murray, 8, of Long Island, N.Y. who was
112 pounds, attended New Image Weight Loss Camps last summer
and came home 16 pounds slimmer, more confident and independent,
and making healthier choices. She continued to lose weight,
with her family's support, and is now 76 pounds.
"I wanted to feel better and look better,"
says Maya. "I couldn't breathe that well. I couldn't
run fast. It was hard to be active."
Wellspring makes sure that parents are part
of the process, says Craig, offering family workshops the
last two days of camp, a home-transition plan for each child
and an after-care program.
Losing the weight does come at a price. New
Image Weight Loss Camps cost about $1,100 a week; the camp
does give out scholarships. Wellspring Camps cost about $5,950
for four weeks; but insurance covers some of that because
of the therapy, says Craig.
Still, those costs may put some of these programs
out of reach, especially for inner city youth, who have higher
rates of obesity.
There are cheaper options, says Susan Blech,
co-author of the weight-loss memoir "Confessions of a
Carb Queen" and the senior care coordinator at Brookdale
Hospital's childhood obesity program in Brooklyn, N.Y. She
recommends parents look into schools or churches that run
camps, sports activities, or a program similar to hers, which
is free.
The important thing is to keep kids active
in the summer, says Madelyn Fernstrom, founder and director
of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Weight Management
Center.
Solomon also says more traditional camps are
now focused on children's fitness and health, serving healthier
fare and encouraging lots of exercise.
"Any camp is great because it will force
the child to have structured time in the summer," Fernstrom
says. "You want to choose a camp even if it's a special
camp like arts or science that has some activity."
