Teaching Children to Eat Healthier Food

One of the greatest challenges to parenting your children can be getting them to abide by the right nutritional guidelines. The risks of not eating the right foods can lead to obesity, diabetes, and other health problems. The food pyramid created by the USDA outlines the healthy food groups for which children should consume. The five groups consist of grains, fruits and vegetables, dairy, meats, and oils. Most parents have success getting their children to succumb to some of these food groups while having outright challenges with others.

So what does a parent do to combat children resisting the persuasion or coercion of eating broccoli, spinach, or the serving of meat? I have listed a few suggestions below that may or may not be met with success.

Breakfast

The importance of the day's first meal cannot be underestimated. The right start to the day always involves kick starting it off with the right breakfast. Breakfast is a good way to fuel up the tank for the morning as it promotes energy and will enable children to be more mentally alert when sitting in school as well as have a better attitude. Never allow children to go to school or out to play without sitting down to a breakfast. It only takes a few minutes and is very important.

Lead by Example

If the parents are going to talk the talk, then they need to lead by example when it comes to teaching proper nutrition and diet to their kids. If you are going to tell your kids to cut down on sweets, you should not do so while indulging in candy or cookies. This is a good opportunity for parents to correct their own bad diet habits by showing kids that mom and dad opt for the healthier snack or treat. Kids will be more easily swayed to try eating fruit instead of candy or cookies when Mom and Dad do the same.

Another decent way to lead by example is to try and eat meals together whenever possible. Obviously during the hectic week kids and adults will be distracted by outside of the home commitments such as work, sports, and other responsibilities. Take as many days out of the week as schedules will allow having dinner together. This will allow children to observe proper nutrition being practiced by their parents.

Compromise

Learning to get your children to eat the right foods often involves cutting some deals along the way. We are all human and definitely will covet those sweet treats on occasion such as candy, cookies, and high fat, high sodium foods. Sticking to the food pyramid is important to optimal physical development, but allow these cheats once in a while to keep your kids from establishing a revolt in the household. There is also room to compromise if your children will be participating in sports activities or exercise. There is no problem giving in daily to allow a cheater sugary or fatty snack if the child will be burning calories for an hour or two during the day. The metabolism and physical activity of the child will negate any ill effects of the snack.

Persistence

Just because a child turns their nose up at their first or second attempt with broccoli or cabbage do not give up. You don't want to base initial negative responses as the overall decision on what your child likes or dislikes. A third attempt may involve melting a little cheddar cheese over the broccoli to satisfy the child's taste buds. Keep offering up the vegetable or meat as much as possible for the next few weeks. IT may take between ten to twenty offers to get your child to accept or they may continue to decline. Do not give up hope.

Push the alternatives if you reach a dead end on some foods. If you are really distraught over your child's lack of interest in carrots, then introduce other beta carotene rich foods such as sweet potatoes or squash. Substitution is the key for kids having a dislike for highly nutritious foods. If the youngster does not like the taste of milk, offer them other healthy calcium substitutes such as yogurts, cheeses, and calcium fortified orange juice.

Snack Time

Make Snack time, fun time. Do not omit snacks from your child's diet just because they may be giving you a hard time at the lunch or dinner table. Kids need to eat at least every three hours so they may come meandering into the kitchen around three o'clock in the afternoon looking for something to eat. Rather than give in to their demand for chips or cookies, offer them carrot sticks, celery sticks with peanut butter, or some low fat cheese cubes with whole grain crackers. They may squawk at first by your healthier suggestions, but if they are really hungry they will give in and try it.

These are only a few helpful hints for promoting better nutrition and diet for children. Avoid the practice of forcing a child to eat something they simply refuse. If they constantly refuse a food, remember to consider substitutions when going to the supermarket for the week. There is plenty of healthy food available at the store, and you will eventually find a winning combination for your children after several trial and error attempts.