Statistics indicate childhood obesity in Hawaii may be twice the national average.
That's reason for concern and parents need to know how to deal with that problem.
The numbers are frightening.
"And in the past ten years, we saw the incidents continuing to escalate. In fact, some studies show that one out of every three children is overweight or obese and more than half of the adults are," said Ruby Hayasaka, a nutritionist at Castle Medical Center.
The question of our children's health is one thing - but there is another reason we want to help them avoid being overweight.
"I think it has to do with quality of life. We want our children to have the best quality of life. When you are struggling with obesity, you're not at your optimal level. There's a lot of depression that comes along with obesity, whether you're a child or adult," Hayasaka says.
And that's only one of the potential health problems.
"We're seeing adult onset diabetes now in children as well as symptoms of heart-type diseases," Hayasaka says.
Aside from proper diet, what should parents do to help their children avoid being overweight?
"At the very top of the list is to keep your kids active. Keep them away from spending too much time on television or electronic games unless it's active electronic games. Spend time out in nature. Introduce them to a lot of variety," Hayasaka says.
Exercise is one factor - diet is the other. How do parents get youngsters involved in more healthy eating? Hayasaka suggests including them in the planning of meals.
"Some families do theme meals. They might do a Mexican fiesta one day, they may do a backwards meal where they start with a simple fruit dessert, they go back and end up with a salad," she says.
