Healthy eating habits

Healthy eating habits for children

It is easier to develop and correct the eating habits when children are young. No better way to educate your kids about healthy habits than to follow them yourself. If you binge on fast food, you surely can't be laying down the message of healthy eating. Eat and serve healthy portions.

• Assist and teach children to make wise food choices. Never dictate or force them to stick to your choices of eating. Serve a variety of foods over time if possible.
• Never encourage children to eat while there are watching TV as they don't pay attention to what they eat resulting in overeating leading to obesity. Allow them to eat only in appropriate places of house such as kitchen or dining table. Plan mealtimes as family times.
• Advise your children to eat properly and slowly so that they can chew the food properly.
• Get them to eat only at specific planned times. Let them snack on healthy food items at other times.
• Avoid excessive consumption of soft drinks and beverages. Ensure consumption of more water and fresh juice as a substitute for fizzy drinks.
• Try to eat together with the family at least one meal a day. Encourage positive conversation by avoiding any lectures or arguments, lest the child might tempt to eat faster and leave the table soon. In worse cases it may even lead to stress.
• It important not to put on a restrictive diet for an overweight child, unless advised by the doctor.
• Take children along with you food shopping and involve them in activities like preparation of meals so that they are aware of what they eat and nutritional considerations.
• Food should never be used as punishment as the children may think that they won't get enough food to eat. Similarly don't use sweets as enticements for good behavior or good grades.
• Parents should avoid giving frozen processed food and nutrition depleted food to their children.