ARLINGTON, Va. - An influential advisory panel says school-aged youngsters and teens should be screened for obesity and sent to intensive behavior treatment if they need to lose weight.

The new guidelines from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force could transform how doctors deal with overweight children.

The panel of doctors says treating obese kids can help them lose weight, but that's only if it involves rigorous diet, activity and behavior counseling.

Reema Alsweel grew up overweight and unhappy.

"I am very sensitive about it, I'm very touchy about it," she said.

She's in better shape now, and mother to two childre: a 7-year-old and a 23-month-old.

"As a mom, I don't want my kids to go through that," Alsweel said.

She is one of several parents who support the new guidelines.

"It's easy to eat Twinkies and cupcakes or not eat what's right, especially if the parents don't provide for them," said Gary Conrad.

The task force made the recommendation based on latest research. It found 32 percent of children in the U.S. are obese or overweight, putting them at greater risk of health problems, like high cholesterol, blood pressure and diabetes.

The task force found kids who worked out, even moderately, with their parents lost weight.

Alsweel wishes she had known that early.

"If I was younger and somebody put me on the right course, i think it wouldn't have been so bad for me," she said.

Just five years ago, the same panel found few benefits from pediatric obesity programs. The task force says since then, studies have shown success. But that has only come with treatment that is costly, hard to find and hard to follow.

The chairman of the task force says the recommendations merely highlight scientific evidence showing what type of programs work -- not whether or not those services are currently available.

The new advice, published online in the journal Pediatrics, could serve as a template for creating obesity programs.

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