PERSONAL HEALTH : Sizing Up Diet Camps : They’re Costly Retreats for Overweight Kids, but Do They Get to the Heart of the Problem?

They arrive with swim suits, sandals and a shared dream: to begin the new school year svelte shadows of their former selves.

Welcome to the world of weight-loss camps for kids, where the unspoken motto is simple--”Have fun, lose pounds.” In body-conscious Southern California, business appears to be booming with at least eight such camps now preparing for the upcoming summer season. Most offer sessions from two to eight weeks and promise weekly losses of three or more pounds. Some are coed with campers as young as 8; others are segregated by gender and offer separate programs for preteens, teens and young adults.

That business is brisk is no surprise given that children and teens have been steadily expanding in numbers and girth. The American Academy of Pediatrics estimates up to 30% of children and adolescents in the U.S. exceed the healthy height-weight range recommended by government guidelines.

But not everyone agrees that sending a plump preteen or adolescent to camp is the best solution to a weight problem. Programs that stress rapid weight loss and don’t have intensive parental involvement can be counterproductive, said Laurel Mellin, a registered dietitian who directs the Center for Adolescent Obesity at the UC San Francisco School of Medicine. She worries about programs that don’t get to the root of obesity, which could spring from depression, too much television viewing or family problems. Another potential danger is weight yo-yoing, added Mellin, who believes overweight kids should lose no more than a pound a week.

Other experts say the camps are too expensive, costing from $600 to $850 a week in Southern California, compared to weekly fees of $480 and $550 at two traditional camps. And when it comes to keeping weight off, a day camp approach--offering many of the same tools at a fraction of the charge--may be a better bet, note other weight control specialists.

Advocates of the resident camp approach maintain campers are bound to lose weight when exposed to healthful menus and lots of physical activity. Fees are higher, they point out, because of highly trained staffs which usually include a doctor on call and a nurse and nutritionist on 24-hour duty.

Schedules vary from camp to camp, but the daily agenda at Camp Murrieta, a San Diego weight-loss camp for girls is fairly typical. The wake-up call is at 6:30 a.m., followed by breakfast and an exercise session of walking, jogging or running. After lunch there are group rap sessions, nutrition classes, field trips and a late-afternoon aerobics class.

“We have speakers talk about hair care; we have drama, arts and crafts and other classes,” said camp director David Kempton. After dinner, he added, there’s time to socialize.

Most campers come with 20 or 30 pounds to lose, say directors, but most accept normal weight participants as well.

Whatever the goal, menus are carefully controlled. Both Camp California, near Santa Barbara, and Camp Ojai, run by Weight Watchers, follow the program’s diet plan, which allows choices of foods from different categories, said Tony Sparber, the camps’ executive director. The menus at Camp Murrieta and Camp Del Mar, also directed by Kempton, are patterned after guidelines established by the American Dietetic and American Heart associations.

Other camps teach how to count calories. At Camp Camelot in Whittier, for instance, boys are limited to about 1,500 per day; girls, 1,200. The approach, said director Michele Friedman, is based on a meal plan adopted by the New York City Board of Health.

Some Goodies Banned

Some camps prohibit marshmallows and other traditional goodies; others do not. At Castleview Camps, opening a new site in San Diego this summer, popcorn will be substituted for marshmallows, said Jim Denniston, executive director.

Reasoning that kids need to learn moderation, Kempton prefers to introduce foods like marshmallows and ice cream, “because we want (campers) to know nothing’s forbidden.”

To test campers’ resolve in the real world, “We take them to the movies and Universal Studios, where there are high-calorie temptations,” Friedman of Camp Camelot said. If they cave in and get ice cream, it must be counted in the calorie tally. “They have to learn thin people simply make the right choices,” she said.

Progress is monitored by weigh-ins and, at some camps, by periodic evaluations of body fat. But the emphasis goes beyond the scale and calipers, say directors. Campers also learn how to develop good nutritional and exercise habits and how to make the mental switch from fat to thin.

Boosting Self-Image

To accomplish that, most camps have therapists or counselors to initiate discussions. Campers are encouraged to talk to each other about eating habits and how being overweight affects them. “We try to boost self-image,” Kempton said. “It’s tied in with the ability to feel in control.”

Group dynamics help bring the programs together, say proponents, who maintain kids feel less embarrassed about their weight problems when surrounded by others in the same boat.

“Kids compare weight loss,” explained Kevin Sands of Encino, a 16-year-old veteran camper. “Or they challenge each other to see who can lose the most.” Said another camp veteran: “I liked the fact that everyone was alike--everyone had weight to lose.”

However, the buddy system isn’t foolproof. “Some of the thinner girls would tease the fatter girls,” recalled one former camper. “They would talk behind girls’ backs, saying things like, ‘Isn’t she big?’ ”

THE FOLLOW-UP

Losing weight at a summer camp is just the beginning; keeping it off at home is the real challenge. So once camp ends, follow-up begins.

“We send them home with diets and menus,” Friedman said. Other programs send monthly newsletters or telephone graduates at regular intervals for progress reports.

Those who attend Camp La Jolla take home an exercise video and an invitation to call toll-free for advice or a pep talk. Campers at Camp Murrieta and Camp Del Mar are grouped according to hometowns, said Kempton, and once home are encouraged to form support groups.

Weight Watcher camps offer free eight-week memberships to campers, allowing them to attend meetings in their communities, Sparber said.

Also considered crucial to long-term success is parent involvement. Camp La Jolla invites parents to a weekend, free of charge, said executive director Nancy Lenhart. Other camps provide parents with instructional materials or tours.

THE RESULTS

In a follow-up survey, Camp Camelot found that 75% of graduates who answered a progress report had maintained their weight loss a year later. The figure for the same period was 82% among La Jolla graduates. Yet even camp directors acknowledge the built-in biases of such surveys, noting that those who regain weight aren’t likely to respond.

Some weight-control experts believe such success rates are much lower but don’t have the scientific data to prove it. Studies are almost nonexistent with one exception--a report on 18 boys who attended a weight-loss camp in 1981, published two years later in the International Journal of Obesity. In a seven-week period the boys lost an average of 29 pounds, reported Judith Stern, a UC Davis professor of nutrition. Average body fat decreased from 39% to 27.5%--noteworthy but still higher than ideal for them, she said. “What was remarkable was the loss of fat, not muscle,” she added. “And the boys felt good about themselves. They viewed themselves (at the end) as normal weight. That’s unusual (for formerly fat people).”

FINDING THE RIGHT CAMP

To maximize the experience, experts suggest the following:

--Be wary of camps that promise too much too fast. Exactly how quickly adolescents and preteens should lose weight is a matter of debate. While some promise campers will shed three to five pounds a week, some obesity experts say that’s too much.

--Be sure the child is motivated. “When parents push weight loss too much, the child resists,” noted Dr. Barbara Ferguson, a child psychiatrist who directs the Child Study Center at St. John’s Hospital and Health Center in Santa Monica.

--Obtain a thorough physical examination beforehand. Most camps require one before enrolling, but an examination might also turn up depression or other conditions contributing to a weight problem, said Dr. Adel Eldahmy, a Long Beach psychiatrist who specializes in treating eating disorders.

--If a weight-loss camp is not nearby or not financially feasible, consider a traditional camp and alert the staff to your child’s need to lose weight, said Albert Marston, a USC professor of psychology and weight control expert.

--Ask about the expertise of the staff. Most weight loss camps in Southern California are accredited by the American Camping Assn., but there are no special requirements for weight loss camps, said Shirley Walch, executive director of the association’s Southern California chapter. Parents should inquire about the staff’s expertise and training in weight control.

--Request documented weight-loss results, or ask about average weight loss. Talk to parents who have sent their children to the camp.

--Don’t skimp. A two-week session is probably not enough to instill habit changes, said Dr. Morton H. Maxwell, a UCLA clinical professor of medicine and director of its Risk Factor Obesity Program. A four-week session is better but eight weeks is ideal, he said, noting it takes months to change eating habits.

For a directory of camps in Southern California and Hawaii, call the American Camping Assn., (213 ) 985-5781.