The Lighter Weight

16% of American children and teens are obese and another 32% are overweight, according to the CDC.

Those extra pounds put their health at risk.

In December nine year old Sierra Tejada weighed 98 pounds and was teased regularly by her classmates about her weight.

Eating was a free for all and her mom, Michelle, knew something had to change.

"We tended to go overboard with the foods that weren't as healthy," said Tejada.

Enter Pediatrician, Doctor Joanna Dolgoff, for help.

 

She says her new program, "The lighter weigh", is the solution to combating childhood obesity by changing the way kids think about food.

"It teaches them which foods are the healthiest. It teaches them what an appropriate serving size is, and it also teaches them the normal give and take of healthy eating," explained Dolgoff.

It's based on a traffic light system.

"I've taken over a thousand foods and divided them into red light, yellow light, and green light categories with appropriate serving sizes for each particular age group. The red light foods are obviously the least healthy foods. The green light foods are the most healthy foods," said Dolgoff. 

Then she customizes it for each child and puts together a guide of how many of each color foods are permitted each day.

"This program's different because it takes into account the child's own body, the child's own metabolism. By using this testing I really make the plan specific to each child. It's not one size fits all," said Dolgoff.

Dr. Dolgoff stresses that it's more about health than weight loss.

 

It's working for Sierra Tejada.

She's lost 14 pounds since March.

 

She's no longer obese and gets teased about her height instead of her weight.

"When I look in the mirror, I notice that my stomach keeps going down and it used to be much bigger," said Sierra Tejada.

And she's not doing this alone.

Her mom is by her side and has lost 12 pounds herself.

"We exercise together. We go shopping together and so she knows that there's someone else that's with her and helping her out," said Tejada.