How to Encourage Healthy Eating for Kids
Children are renowned for being fussy eaters. If they do not like the look or smell of a food, then you will be battling them to try it and admit defeat. What’s more, kids can simply decide that they dislike a food which they once loved. How can you get your children to eat a healthy diet then? A diet that will help them stay healthy and teach them the values and importance of eating their five a day, for example?
The following guide is here to provide tips on how you can teach your kids the importance of a healthy diet as well as ways for you to get them to eat the right food.
Be a Role Model
If you refuse to eat healthy foods and make healthy meals yourself, then why would your children be expected to have a healthy diet? You need to act as a role model and set a good example if you wish for them to realize the importance of a healthy and nutritional diet. Failing to do so only gives them ammunition to refuse to eat their fruit and vegetables.
While this does not mean you cannot treat yourself, it does mean that you should be more tactical. Sit down with your kids and eat the same healthy meals as them. It is unfair to expect your kid to eat their greens if you are there enjoying fries!
What’s more, you should also teach your children the difference between not liking a food because of taste and not liking a food because it isn’t laced in additives and sugars. For instance, if you do not like the taste of an apple, then say that you counter this by eating bananas or strawberries instead.
Secretly Include Healthier Foods in Their Meals
Hiding healthier foods in their meals can help your children get over the hurdle of deciding that they do not like a food because they expect it to taste bad. You could add vegetables to stews and soups; mash up carrots and add it to potato; swap out mashed potato for mashed sweet potato, etc. You may also want to cut up apples and bananas and pair them with a peanut butter dip.
Introduce Supplements
Teach your child the importance of supplements and how they can improve their wellbeing from a young age and get them in the habit of taking them every day. By doing this, you can teach your kids values in how supplements can help their immune system.
Find a trusted provider of supplements that are aimed at kids. For instance, Tribe offer kids Ashwagandha. These supplements can help your kids and teenagers feel much mor energized, have better sleep, and reduce their stress levels. They may also experience better moods.
Provide Them with Healthy Snacks
The occasional packet of potato chips is all well and good, but that does not mean that your children should overeat such foods that are high in salt and processed fats. Rather than allow your kids to eat chocolate bars, teach them why they should opt for a healthier variant that is much more filling and will aid them in good health.
Healthy snack ideas for kids (and for adults!) include:
- Carrot sticks and hummus
- Cucumber sticks
- Apple slices and a small amount of peanut butter
- Crackers
- Yogurt with berries
- Hard boiled eggs
You could also bake healthier variants of the sugary snacks that they enjoy. By doing this, you can teach them that a banana oat cookie, for example, can be just as tasty as a chocolate chip cookie and be much healthier and better for them.
Ask Them for Their Opinion on Meals
While you may not want to ask your kids what they wish to eat every day as their requests may be steep at times, asking for their opinions on meals every now and then can work wonders in engaging them and making them more inclined to try new foods. Including your kids in mealtime can fuel their curiosity and make them more included to try the foods. Plus, if you ask whether they would like peas or carrots with their meal, they may be more tempted to eat the whole meal because they somewhat helped to create it.
Kids can be fussy eaters, but that does not mean you should give into their demands of sugary foods and allow them to eat whatever they want because they kick up a fuss. Rather, you should speak to them and explain the reasons between eating healthier meals and how it will benefit them. As an adult (and their parent), it is up to you to be a role model and teach them the importance of eating a varied and healthy diet.
