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Sarah sat on the sidelines watching her preschool class climb the monkey bars. "Come on Sarah," her friend coaxed. But Sarah sat on the bench frozen. One of the kids called her "the fat girl," and she was embarrassed.

Every day overweight kids like Sarah deal with an unsympathetic culture that tells them to supersize and have it their way without concern for their health or emotional lives. As a parent, you can establish an environment that encourages success. Small changes made today will make a big difference tomorrow.

Here are 10 easy changes that you can implement to encourage better eating and keep the pounds from building up:

1. Buy and eat more fresh fruits and vegetables. This means shopping more often in order to buy and use fresh produce, but the extra effort is well worth your family's health. Fruits and vegetables make up the second layer of the food pyramid, yet these are the least eaten of all the food groups for many kids.
2. Avoid soft drinks and other sugary drinks. Snacking on soda or sugary juice is a hefty addition to the recommended daily caloric intake. The average soda has 160 calories and 40 grams of sugar—and zero nutrition. These beverages actually do harm because of the sugar and caffeine involved. If you don't have soda in the house, kids will drink more milk and water instead.
3. Go low-fat on dairy and cooking oils. Low-fat is good when it comes to choosing dairy products if your kids are over age 2. Children under age 2 need the fat from whole milk for brain development. Use low-fat dressings on salads and buy low-fat cheeses and milk for children older than age 2. Keep in mind that low-fat doesn't necessarily mean low-calorie. A product can be low-fat yet still have lots of sugar in it. Read labels.
   When cooking, look for ways to cut out the fat. The average American eats the equivalent of one whole stick of butter a day. If you grew up in a tradition in which everything was fried or covered with rich sauces, make changes in the way you cook. Poach, boil and broil more often. Cooking sprays also can cut down on the fat.
4. Eliminate as much trans fat in your child's diet as you can. Trans fat occurs naturally in some foods, but most trans fat is added to improve texture and longevity of foods. This fat is produced by the partial hydrogenation of oils. You will see it listed on products as "partially hydrogenated," "shortening," "partially hydrogenated vegetable oil" or "hydrogenated vegetable oil." If you want to really improve your family's health, avoid buying products with this food ingredient. These "bad fats" contribute to heart disease and childhood diabetes.

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