Any reason NOT to get my 9 year old fitbit?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I want to get one for my inattentive kid and set the alarms randomly for attention alerts. I am afraid it will get lost, though. $99 isn't crazy for us. But doing that 3 times would not be my preferred way to spend money.

I got one for my ADHD inattentive kid. He programmed it to go off at the beginning of every class (he is in middle school) to remind him to turn in his homework. It has worked like a charm. He hasn't lost it yet; it stays snapped on very well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't like that they are emitting radiation all the time. I am not a crazy person or anything, but to have something on my body 24 hours a day that emits radiation is just something I'm not comfortable with especially for my kids. I agree with someone else who said to get a pedometer.

I have this same concern and it's why I won't get one either! And, who knows what effect it might have on kids.

A pedometer seems like a safer choice.

[Anonymous]

My kid really wanted my fitbit, but we got him a pedometer instead. Or his grandparents got him one -- the free kind that come from your health insurance company. It's TERRIBLE. Really doesn't work at all.

Are other pedometers better?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I didn't read any of the posts b/c i am in a hurry so sorry if this is repetitive but i just wanted to post that my Fitbit Flex gave me a terrible rash (deem said maybe a latent nickel allergy?). I haven't worn it in over a year and I still have this very itchy rashy spot on my hand/wrist!

let me know if you want to sell it

You want to buy a used Fitbit that gave someone a rash that lasted over a year?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We got the Garmin Vivofit for our 8y old last Christmas. He wears it everyday and never takes it off - except for showers. He just looks at it for the number of steps he gets (he gets far more in school that I do at work!) and is always trying to beat his 'record.' And he competes with his sitter for the number of steps they get.

It has worked great for my kid.

This. My 7 year old begged for a month straight and also offered to use his savings. Bought it in January and he is still very much in love with it. In fact, there has not been one toy/item that has kept his interest like his Fitbit. We have daily challenges with DS, DH, cousins and aunts/uncles. My DS usually beats us all every day. He has been very responsible with it. Takes it off before showering (even though it's resistant). He got bummed last sat when we had to leave for baseball game and it was still charging. Equally bummed when I told him it would be best to leave it home this summer during camp as they will be swimming/lake most days. I never thought I'd say it has been the best purchase we've made for him to date.

I'm sorry this just sounds really unhealthy to me. You have the family competing against each other and your 7 year-old wins? This is a perfect illustration to me of why I would never get a fitbit for a child this age. The thing is set up to maximize, maximize, maximize. It just encourages the child to run those numbers up as high as possible. This can lead to very unhealthy practices. These are young children. They should not be trying to meet a randomly chosen number every day. What about days when they don't make their goal? Have they failed? Plus it undermines a practice that is incredibly important for athletes, to listen to their bodies when determining exercise levels. Finally, if its all about the numbers it just robs children of the joy of moving. I didn't think there were any more ways to rob them of their childhoods but this seems to be a new one.

Children are not mini-adults.

I am the poster with the 8y old. The parents don't compete. I probably get in 1/3 of the steps my kid gets - I work full time so whatever steps I get are just from me being at work. He just likes to look at mine and his and say, "I won again today!" He is in school all day so it isn't like he is outside running laps to increase him number. But between recess, walking around school, and playing outside in aftercare, he routinely gets around 8000-9000 steps. He isn't a slave to the Fitbit and if he was pushing himself to excess, I would certainly stop it and take it away, but he isn't.

In no way is my kid a mini-adult.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We got the Garmin Vivofit for our 8y old last Christmas. He wears it everyday and never takes it off - except for showers. He just looks at it for the number of steps he gets (he gets far more in school that I do at work!) and is always trying to beat his 'record.' And he competes with his sitter for the number of steps they get.

It has worked great for my kid.

This. My 7 year old begged for a month straight and also offered to use his savings. Bought it in January and he is still very much in love with it. In fact, there has not been one toy/item that has kept his interest like his Fitbit. We have daily challenges with DS, DH, cousins and aunts/uncles. My DS usually beats us all every day. He has been very responsible with it. Takes it off before showering (even though it's resistant). He got bummed last sat when we had to leave for baseball game and it was still charging. Equally bummed when I told him it would be best to leave it home this summer during camp as they will be swimming/lake most days. I never thought I'd say it has been the best purchase we've made for him to date.

I'm sorry this just sounds really unhealthy to me. You have the family competing against each other and your 7 year-old wins? This is a perfect illustration to me of why I would never get a fitbit for a child this age. The thing is set up to maximize, maximize, maximize. It just encourages the child to run those numbers up as high as possible. This can lead to very unhealthy practices. These are young children. They should not be trying to meet a randomly chosen number every day. What about days when they don't make their goal? Have they failed? Plus it undermines a practice that is incredibly important for athletes, to listen to their bodies when determining exercise levels. Finally, if its all about the numbers it just robs children of the joy of moving. I didn't think there were any more ways to rob them of their childhoods but this seems to be a new one.

Children are not mini-adults.

I am the poster with the 8y old. The parents don't compete. I probably get in 1/3 of the steps my kid gets - I work full time so whatever steps I get are just from me being at work. He just likes to look at mine and his and say, "I won again today!" He is in school all day so it isn't like he is outside running laps to increase him number. But between recess, walking around school, and playing outside in aftercare, he routinely gets around 8000-9000 steps. He isn't a slave to the Fitbit and if he was pushing himself to excess, I would certainly stop it and take it away, but he isn't.

In no way is my kid a mini-adult.

Original PP with 7 year old. Yes, we are pretty competitive in our household. My son especially loves to beat dad and we are all pretty fit and active. We race putting our seatbelts on, brushing teeth and doing chores. I would definitely say it's friendly and not intense. My kid doesn't get upset when he loses a seatbelt challenge or a baseball game. He doesn't have a goal each day as far as numbers go, just to get more than dad (they both beat me). DS gets about 11-12k on school day with school aftercare and playing outside for 30 minutes. He gets 12-15k on days with practices or games. DH averages 9-10k and I am at about 8-9k. This summer we are doing a family challenge to see who is going to read the most books. Feel free to diagree about competition but it works for our family.

[Anonymous]

My kids -- ages 14, 10, and 8 have the Fitbit Zips; they're all active, with no hang-ups about or problems with weight, so I didn't see a downside. Only the 10 year old wears his on a daily basis, though. We do some of the weekly or weekend challenges, but because he's outside playing all the time he consistently wins, usually racking up 15K steps to my 10 or 12K (I felt pretty good about that until he told me he doesn't wear it in gym class). I don't know that I would get it for a kid who has weight problems and then have him/her try to reach a specific goal each day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We got the Garmin Vivofit for our 8y old last Christmas. He wears it everyday and never takes it off - except for showers. He just looks at it for the number of steps he gets (he gets far more in school that I do at work!) and is always trying to beat his 'record.' And he competes with his sitter for the number of steps they get.

It has worked great for my kid.

This. My 7 year old begged for a month straight and also offered to use his savings. Bought it in January and he is still very much in love with it. In fact, there has not been one toy/item that has kept his interest like his Fitbit. We have daily challenges with DS, DH, cousins and aunts/uncles. My DS usually beats us all every day. He has been very responsible with it. Takes it off before showering (even though it's resistant). He got bummed last sat when we had to leave for baseball game and it was still charging. Equally bummed when I told him it would be best to leave it home this summer during camp as they will be swimming/lake most days. I never thought I'd say it has been the best purchase we've made for him to date.

I'm sorry this just sounds really unhealthy to me. You have the family competing against each other and your 7 year-old wins? This is a perfect illustration to me of why I would never get a fitbit for a child this age. The thing is set up to maximize, maximize, maximize. It just encourages the child to run those numbers up as high as possible. This can lead to very unhealthy practices. These are young children. They should not be trying to meet a randomly chosen number every day. What about days when they don't make their goal? Have they failed? Plus it undermines a practice that is incredibly important for athletes, to listen to their bodies when determining exercise levels. Finally, if its all about the numbers it just robs children of the joy of moving. I didn't think there were any more ways to rob them of their childhoods but this seems to be a new one.

Children are not mini-adults.

I am the poster with the 8y old. The parents don't compete. I probably get in 1/3 of the steps my kid gets - I work full time so whatever steps I get are just from me being at work. He just likes to look at mine and his and say, "I won again today!" He is in school all day so it isn't like he is outside running laps to increase him number. But between recess, walking around school, and playing outside in aftercare, he routinely gets around 8000-9000 steps. He isn't a slave to the Fitbit and if he was pushing himself to excess, I would certainly stop it and take it away, but he isn't.

In no way is my kid a mini-adult.

Original PP with 7 year old. Yes, we are pretty competitive in our household. My son especially loves to beat dad and we are all pretty fit and active. We race putting our seatbelts on, brushing teeth and doing chores. I would definitely say it's friendly and not intense. My kid doesn't get upset when he loses a seatbelt challenge or a baseball game. He doesn't have a goal each day as far as numbers go, just to get more than dad (they both beat me). DS gets about 11-12k on school day with school aftercare and playing outside for 30 minutes. He gets 12-15k on days with practices or games. DH averages 9-10k and I am at about 8-9k. This summer we are doing a family challenge to see who is going to read the most books. Feel free to diagree about competition but it works for our family.

Couldn't agree with you more, 15:10. A little friendly competition never hurt anyone. My kids love it; they have no daily mandatory goal and are as far from mini-adults as could be imagined. "Robs children of the joy of moving"-- give me a break.

[Anonymous]

9 and 7? Absolutely not. Both the expense, the fact that they will either get bored with it quickly or obsess about it as well as the general age question are a no go for me. Now if they were 15 it would be a different story but even then I'd be very wary about the possible obsession/tracking/eating disorder side effects. I really think this is a great thing for adults but does not at all belong in the hands of children. It is not a toy and even if they see it as such at first that can very quickly change. Especially when they start comparing and competing with their peers which WILL happen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have no idea how much it costs, but would not buy one for my DD who is 12. The purpose of it is to track how much you move, how many calories you burn, etc., right?

I simply don't want my kid to focus on numbers in relation to movement and health in that way. She's not the obsessive type, but I want her to focus on how good and strong and capable her body feels when she runs or does gymnastics or ice skating.

(I don't know of any of her friends who have one.)

I completely agree. Kids don't need fitbits, they need to get out, be active, and hopefully enjoy it for the sake of it, not because they are focused on upping the steps for the day!

[Anonymous]

Yes I would because:

a) They want to,

b) they have the savings for it,

c)It is not something overly expensive for your family (i.e. you can easily afford it)

d) It doesn't go against my values or is a thing I don't think children should have (as opposed to pps) such as: iPad, iPod, smartphones, handheld video games, tv in bedroom, unlimited screen time, etc. To *me* fitbit is a toy actually. An adult, expensive toy, but harmless. The key thing her to me is that they have the savings to pay for it so I don't see a problem.


And to finalize, I would NOT help them pay for it because as you said, it will probably be a "flavor" of the month thing so I actually think there can be a valuable lesson in here: they will spend all or good part of their savings in something they "really want" (mostly because they saw mommy and friends with it) and after a while they will lose interest on it. In 45 days they won't be interested in it anymore and will be $100.00 short…

Or, they will just like it and keep using it "forever." Which is good as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes I would because:

a) They want to,

b) they have the savings for it,

c)It is not something overly expensive for your family (i.e. you can easily afford it)

d) It doesn't go against my values or is a thing I don't think children should have (as opposed to pps) such as: iPad, iPod, smartphones, handheld video games, tv in bedroom, unlimited screen time, etc. To *me* fitbit is a toy actually. An adult, expensive toy, but harmless. The key thing her to me is that they have the savings to pay for it so I don't see a problem.


And to finalize, I would NOT help them pay for it because as you said, it will probably be a "flavor" of the month thing so I actually think there can be a valuable lesson in here: they will spend all or good part of their savings in something they "really want" (mostly because they saw mommy and friends with it) and after a while they will lose interest on it. In 45 days they won't be interested in it anymore and will be $100.00 short…

Or, they will just like it and keep using it "forever." Which is good as well.

Help them buy used ones on Craigslist with their own money.

[Anonymous]

DH bought a 'kid power' http://unicefkidpower.org/ unicef fit-bit thing for my kids (one of their friends got one for Xmas). They can 'earn points' toward feeding malnurished kids through UNICEF. So, kind of like an ongoing charity walk/move-a-thon. I was skeptical & thought they'd lose it right away or get too wound up in competition, but they seem to love it & love earning 'points' (and we look up stories about the kids and other cultures via UNICEF) it's helped get the less active kid to just be more mindful of being active (she tends to get into an activity once she's started).

[Anonymous]

I think you should get an inexpensive pedometer. If they use it, enjoy it and don't lose it -- you can consider upgrading to a Fitbit later.

[Anonymous]

6/11 15:10 poster with 7 (now 8 year old). My DS still uses his Fitbit daily, has won hundreds of challenges, and loves it. He kept it at home when he went on family vacation last year for a week night as work not about every other day. Definitely recommend getting cheap version to see if kid keeps interest. My DS uses his Fitbit more than any other "toy" or "video game".