Healthy Habits for Children
Sometimes it’s hard to get children to eat vegetables and sometimes it’s just hard to get them to eat full stop. Meal times should be a time of togetherness and sharing. Instead of focusing on how much, how often and what children are eating, allow them to decide how much they need to eat.
After all they are learning to become independent. If we include children in the decision process of preparing, cooking and deciding on what’s for dinner, they become engaged and more enthusiastic about food. This doesn’t mean that you allow children to eat junk over food, it means allowing them to cut the vegetables or deciding if you will roast the food or grill it.
Whilst it can be difficult to control how much a child eats, you can control what they eat. Because if its not in the fridge or cupboard then its not an option is it?
Here are some easy tips to use in the kitchen:
1. If you find it impossible for your children to eat vegetables, making things like pasta sauces are a great way to hide them. By cooking them in water until they are slightly soft, you can mash them up and add them to the sauce. You can then use the water to either add to the sauce or cook the pasta in to add a little more nutrients!
2. When making home made chips, include other vegetables such as sweet potato, turnip and carrot. This adds variety, colour and taste. Sprinkle-with herbs such as rosemary and oregano for a little added flavour.
3. Introduce both raw and cooked vegetables each day. Snacks such as carrot or celery sticks with hummus or avocado dip or vegetable salads with lemon and olive oil vinegar. This dresses them up so they are not plain old boiled tasteless vegetables.
4. Give children options and allow them to choose what vegetables they will eat. “Would you like beans or peas?” or “Would you like pumpkin or sweet potato?”
The most important thing to remember is to remain positive about foods. There is food and then there is junk. Food is what fuels our bodies and helps us to grow, repair and fight off infection. Talk to your children about how food can help keep them strong and healthy, constantly teach your children about healthy food habits as with time, your attitude towards certain foods will become their attitudes. Its ok for children to have an opinion about certain flavours or textures. Explore with different foods and just because you don’t like something like Brussels sprouts doesn’t mean that children won’t like them either.
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