Many parents, recognising that their children are obese, try to solve the problem without adequate medical or nutritional knowledge.

A child in a fitness centre 

After becoming aware that their children are obese, a large number of parents turn to the simple formula less food, more exercise, without consulting health professionals.

One example is T, a student at a primary school in Ho Chi Minh City. Her mother monitors closely as she exercises at a gym to make sure she completes the regimen, even though 11-year old T feels out of place alongside adults.

T reluctantly admitted that she would much rather get exercise by swimming or playing badminton. "My mother said that I have to lose 5 kilos in the next two months," she said.

Also, she is allowed one bowl of rice and little else for each meal.

The mother of another girl, who is on a similar routine, said, “If she doesn't lose weight now, it will be difficult for her to become slender in the future. Girls should be slender.”

The potentially more dangerous part of this method is cutting out meals, or sudden and drastic cuts in diet.

A teacher at primary school shared that when one parent asked that her child's portions be cut, the teacher explained that this should be done gradually. The teacher said, "This student just ended up asking other students for food or borrowing money to buy more."

While exercise is certainly important, the kind and amount of exercise should be appropriate for the child's age group, said Doctor Nguyen Tai Dung, Deputy Head of the Division of Student Affairs, under the Department of Education and Training. He added that one of the best ways to assure that your child gets enough exercise is to make sure they are active in sports or play.

Dung also emphasised the importance of a diet. He said that just cutting portions could lead to malnutrition.

According to the research from the Ho Chi Minh Nutrition Centre, 1.4% of elementary school students in the period of 2008-2009 were malnourished. Obese children accounted for 28.5%.

From 1999 to 2010 the number of obese students under five climbed from 2.2% to 11%.

Do Thi Ngoc Diep, Director of Ho Chi Minh City Centre for Nutrition, stressed the need for children to eat fruits and vegetables, adding that parents should not make their children skip meals and limit them to foods high in sugar and fats.

Obesity a growing problem in schools

Students playing during break