Straight talk on kids’ weight

Doctors ought to quit using fuzzy terms to define children’s weight problems and instead refer to truly fat kids as overweight or obese, a committee of medical experts has recommended.

Many doctors diplomatically refer to children many would consider too fat as being “at risk for overweight”; they refer to children others would consider obese as “overweight.”

Those categories don’t adequately define the hefty problem, according to the group, which was convened by the American Medical Assn. and funded by federal health officials including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The nonbinding recommendations are designed as guidelines for pediatricians and other medical professionals who work with children. The CDC will consider whether to adopt the recommendations; the AMA has no plans to endorse them.