Want Your Child To Eat Healthier?
“Today, I’m so excited to have a guest post by Jamie Garner .”
If you ask parents, most will disclose to you that they feel remorseful about their kids’ eating regimens, knowing that it’s essential to encourage healthy food to kids, yet they’re struggling with how to do it. Here are some helpful ways to let your children eat better.
Create a meal timetable.
Youngsters eat and drink often, about 3 meals and 2 snacks. Their eating habits will improve if you make a schedule. When you go out, keep fruits, healthy snacks and water with you so you won’t be forced to buy them junk food.
Make dinner a family meal.
Try assorted meals for dinner. A meal should not be too extravagant; however, it has to be healthy: think stir-fry, gluten-free quinoa pasta, multi-grain gluten-free bread, veggies, fruit, baked chicken nuggets. Learn to prepare and freeze stews or soups – just warm it up when needed with meals or as a main for dinner.
Change your frame of mind.
Understand what your children love to eat. Eating popcorn while watching movies or eating a cone of ice-cream is a part of life’s genuine delights.
But if your children love sweets, there are plenty of healthy options, such as chocolate chia pudding or gluten-free oatmeal almond butter cookies. Your children will be perfectly fine having treats that are combined with exercise and healthy meals.
Avoid cooking individual meals for each child.
You will tire out easily if you have to make different meals for everyone. To make your life easier, cook a meal with a couple of healthy sides and put the assorted dishes on the table so the children can make their own choices.
Your children will frequently copy what you do, so as time goes on, they will eat the majority of food that you serve. Check out our favourite gluten-free recipes for kids for inspiration.
Let them cook with you.
Your children will love it if you let them help you plan the meals and help with grocery shopping as well as cooking the meals. They will be progressively keen on eating what they have made. If they are older, ask them to dice carrots or other veggies.
Stop making remarks about their food.
Though it is hard, do not to remark on what or how much your children eat. Stay neutral. Keep in mind that, you have carried out your parental responsibility by making healthy food for your children. Leave them to take charge of what to eat. Forcing foods on them will make them hate meal time and disobey you. Avoid saying stuff such as you had better finish the veggies.
Add a side of condiment & dips.
If they dislike veggies, try various dips that they might like. Some kids will eat anything served with hummus, vinegar, sour cream, peanut butter, ketchup, or mayonnaise. However, you should offer healthier options whenever possible.
Take out junk food from your grocery list.
Keep in mind that you are the parent and you are accountable for the meals in your home. If fewer junk foods are available, your children will have no choice but to eat the healthy food that you buy, i.e. healthy cereals, veggies, fruits, yogurt, chicken, beef, etc.
Pumpkin Pie With Cinnamon Apple Swirl Yogurt Bowl
Don’t forget breakfast.
Including enough fiber per day in their diet is important and easy. Buy cereals that have high fiber content for a handy solution. Or make meal preps like buckwheat pancakes or healthy muffin batter that will be enough for a few days.
Be more creative.
Meals that look more fun and colourful will entice your kids to eat various types of food. If your children are young, try to make foods into the shape of animals and give them cool names, e.g. yummy bunches for cauliflower.
Mini foods are also popular. You can easily use a cookie cutter to transform pancake or bread into circles and hearts that they will surely love. They also love frozen grapes or berries.
Taking everything into account, lay a good example for your children. They will grow up with bad habits if they see you always dieting or eating erratically.
Important message to pass to children is, stop eating when you feel full, instead of, you must eat everything on your plate.
Author Bio: Jamie Garner is a mother to 8 children and an avid cook. She enjoys theatre from both the audience as well as being on stage. She has been writing stories ever since she could put pen to paper and still enjoys doing so today. Her passion for food has her often creating new recipes to try on her family, who are always happy to sample. Jamie graduated with a diploma in Social Services and has worked with children for most of her life. She now writes for caviar.bc.ca and helps them in their content promotions.
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