Find out more about ways to teach healthy eating to your kids.
Top 5 Easy & Simple Ways to Teach Healthy Eating to Your Kids
You have probably heard the old adage, “You are what you eat”, and to be honest, we completely agree with it. The choice of food undoubtedly has a great influence on our body and applies equally to both children and adults.
If a person acquires bad eating habits, it will follow him throughout his life, even in adulthood, and worst of all, it can cause health problems and a bad attitude towards food. This is exactly why it is necessary to create good eating habits from an early age.
In this article, you will find ways to teach healthy eating to your kids. Remember, it’s never too early to start.
Ways to Teach Healthy Eating to Your Kids
#1: Set a Family Meal Time
You are probably not fully aware of the fact that children gravitate towards routine. This is exactly why you try to eat at least one meal a day as a family, all together. Spend time in peace and light conversation. Avoid mentioning different obligations. Just chat and hang out.
Also, make sure that meals are always at the same time as much as possible to avoid overeating in children. Let the joint meal last no longer than 30 minutes.
#2: Be a Good Role Model
Kids learn best by modeling, so rest assured, if you are persistent enough, you can expect them to soon start eating the same foods as you. They simply love to imitate adults and everything adults do.
Even if you are on a diet, it would be a good idea not to mention it in front of the children. It is enough to mention carbohydrates or fats in a negative context a few times for your children to address them in this way and create a bad attitude towards this type of food.
#3: Address the Picky Eater
It’s no secret that it’s hard to deal with a picky child, but trust us, with persistence and effort, it’s very possible. We have convinced ourselves of this countless times.
Regardless of how many times the child refuses, feel free to continue offering a variety of foods during meals to encourage exploration and allow for exposure, even when the child begins to fake vomiting or cry. The most important thing is to be calm, yelling at each other is a big no-no.
So, always remember that there is no pushing and forcing, but encouragement.
#4: Offer Smart Treats & Snacks
Treats and snacks are an integral part of the daily menu for children. It is simply difficult for them to imagine a day in which they won’t eat the smallest piece of their favorite candy. By giving your child a choice of healthy snacks, you will expose them to some new foods that will be much easier to incorporate into dinner and lunch recipes later on.
If you lack ideas, feel free to take a look at this perfect vegan biscuit recipe with almond milk. Trust our discerning taste buds, whosoever tried it wasn’t disappointed.
#5: Unite While Planning & Prep
You may not be thinking along those lines, but children are more likely to give a chance to some new ingredient if they were (at least a little) involved in its preparation. Even the most ordinary, perhaps seemingly irrelevant tasks such as measuring or mixing with a mixer are actually a good starting point and one of the best ways to teach healthy eating to your kids.
We know it sounds like a lot of work and dinner might be served at 5:45 pm instead of 5:00 pm, but trust us it’s worth it!
To Conclude
Finally, take a deep breath and think about what is best for you and your family, and don’t think too much about what others are doing. Every child is special, and that is why it is most important to focus on raising a healthy, happy child, and not on the number on the scale.
Which of these ways to teach healthy eating to your kids will you try to use first? Let us know below!
