Supporting a healthy body image.

Lots of parents worry that talking to their children about their bodies – particularly when it comes to weight issues – could be damaging to their children's self esteem.

In fact, a recent survey carried out by the social enterprise Mend and the online parenting community Netmums has shown that over a third of you are concerned that the wrong words about your child's weight could lead to low self-esteem and, at worst, may even trigger an eating disorder.

This figure doesn't include parents who have already identified their children as being overweight – when those parents are taken into account, it's nearly two thirds of parents who choose not to talk to children about their weight.

Around three-quarters of you said you do talk to your children about their eating – particularly when it comes to avoiding junk food, and eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, but it seems you find it harder to talk about weight.

Paul Sacher from Mend said: "With obesity reaching epidemic proportions and becoming the norm, it can be very difficult for parents to tell if their child is a healthy weight simply by looking at them. The easiest way to check if your child is a healthy weight or not is to measure their weight and height and then to use an online BMI calculator."

Siobhan Freegard from Netmums said: "Tackling the issue of children's weight is a growing problem and it's concerning a third of parents are avoiding the issue for fear of lowering their child's self-esteem. Every parent wants the best for their child and although initially it may be a tough conversation to have, the family talking together and working together to find healthier ways of eating will lead to happier and healthier children."

With more and more young children worrying about their body image, perhaps it's time we all started finding a healthy and respectful way to talk to our children about their weight and make sure they know they can come to us with any concerns they might have.

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