July 11, 2017
We’ve all been there. We come home from a long day and make a healthy meal only to discover your child doesn’t want to eat what you’ve made. Or you’ve packed a beautiful lunch, with all the colours of the rainbow, but that lunch comes back uneaten. Below, outlines 5 easy steps that you can incorporate into your life today, so that your child/ren will be on their way to a healthier life.
5 Steps to Get Your Kids to Eat Healthier
Let them help you in the kitchen.
- Little ones can stir or mix for you. You can also make a do-it-yourself bar with yogurt parfaits, or tacos. Just lay everything out, and let them put it together. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Studies show, kids who help with meal prep are more likely to eat what they’ve made.
Set a good example.
- We are our kids biggest role models. If we don’t set a good example with our eating habits, they won’t want to eat healthy either.
Give them lots of variety.
- Vegetables or fruits should be offered at every meal so that they can decide what they’d like to eat. If they don’t like a certain food, try and try again. Studies show that a child needs to taste a particular food at least 7 – 15 times, before they might like it. You can even offer yogurt based dips or hummus for their veggies, to make things interesting for them.
Decrease consumption of packaged or processed snacks.
- Although these snacks are so convenient, they are usually full of added sugar and preservatives. A quick on-the-go snack might be a handful of berries or grapes. Cut up apple with nut butter for dipping. Cheese and crackers, or yogurt and a piece of fruit. Remember to add protein to keep them fuller for longer.
Make it fun!
- Instead of cutting up veggies, the regular old way, why not cut them into shapes? Or make little kabobs of fruit or veggies? For example, you can put little cherry tomato skewers with mini bocconcini and a cube of whole grain bread in their lunch boxes. (Watch that the skewers aren’t too sharp for the little ones.)
Again don’t worry if they don’t start adapting right away to your new way of eating. It does take time, especially if they’re used to eating certain foods. But this healthy approach to eating is the best thing you can do for your family! And don’t forget to have fun along the way!
