For Your Children
Regardless of your child's age, mealtime can be a challenge. However, there is good news! Mealtimes can be happy, healthy, and tasty if you keep in mind this very important "tip" by Ellyn Satter, RD, ACSW, a leading expert in getting children to eat well:
"Parents offer food, the child eats it — or fails to eat it."
The trick is figuring out why kids don't always eat what we offer. Begin by figuring out how to best offer healthy and delicious food. Try these strategies to help your whole family develop healthy eating habits:
- Set a good example yourself. When your kids see you eating and enjoying healthy foods in the proper amounts, they will too. Talk about what you like and why you like it.
- Let your children help. Kids are often more willing to eat foods they help choose and prepare. Having some control over what they eat can go a long way in getting your kids on board! Depending on their age, kids can help shop for and prepare foods. Give them choices — "Bananas or oranges?" — and when it's time to cook, let them do age-appropriate tasks. Even a very young child can rinse vegetables, and have a good time doing it!
- Offer a variety of foods, and offer choices. If you serve two veggies at dinner, maybe your child will eat one of them. Or try preparing an "unpopular" food a little differently next time.
- Don't force the foods. A battle of wills will NOT help your cause. And let's face it, even adults just don't care for some foods. Kids are the same way. However...
- Try, try again. It takes children 10 to 15 chances to try a new food before they really know whether they like it.
Setting a good example and involving your child in decisions doesn't end with healthy eating. Physical activity is just as important. Turn off the TV or video games and make family time active time! For ideas and tips to help your family find healthy balance, check out the following sections:
- Healthy Eating - Tips to get children involved with planning, purchasing, and preparation. Help children discover that healthy foods also taste terrific!
- Move More - Tips to increase physical activity. Help children discover the joy of moving in active play!
Teach your children that good health depends on the right balance between what they eat and how much they move.
Here are more helpful links.
- Tips for Keeping Your Family Moving
- This is a great web site for tips to keep your family active and moving.
- President's Challenge: You're it Get fit
- This site is a great way to learn about being physically active at any age.
- Parent-Child Activities
- Visit this site when you're looking for all-around nutrition and physical activity information and ideas.
- Get Fit Kansas
- This web site includes a listing of walks and runs in Kansas. Find one near you today!