When you're trying to help children eat healthy, teaching them good habits is the most important thing you can do. According to editors of the Eating Well website, it's important for adults to ensure that children are getting all the nutrition they require, but in a way that limits calorie consumption to a reasonable level. However, don't focus too much on numbers. Making sure that your children consume nutritious whole foods is far more important than limiting their calorie intake.
Step 1
Focus on the positive. Take a look at your child's diet and make a list of healthy foods that he already enjoys. You can start with these items, then build upon them to create a diet of nutritious offerings he will eat. For example, if your child likes apple slices, you could branch out to a similarly textured fruit, such as Asian pears.
Step 2
Incorporate a variety of fresh produce items into your child's diet. According to Eating Well, children ages 2 to 3 should have 2 cups of fruit and veggies each day. Kids ages 4 to 8 should consume 3 cups daily and 9- to 12-year-olds need to eat about 4 cups. Making sure that you adhere to this guideline by offering fresh fruits and vegetables at each meal and snack will immediately improve your child's diet.
Step 3
Cut fat from your kid's diet by offering low-fat dairy products and limiting fried foods. Make sure that the majority of fat comes from healthy unsaturated fats, such as olive oil and nuts. While fat does help children absorb the vitamins they need to be healthy, artery-clogging saturated fats can contribute to heart disease and obesity later in life.
Step 4
Offer healthier versions of favorite snacks and cut back on portion sizes. If your child has a favorite cracker or chip, for example, it's OK for her to eat it once in a while. Purchase the whole-grain, natural or baked version if possible and always portion out servings of treats into snack-sized baggies. Doing this promotes portion control and helps your child learn the proper serving size.
Step 5
Offer whole-grain instead of white breads, crackers, pastas and cereals. Children may not like the distinctly strong taste at first, but they will get used to the flavor over time.
Step 6
Trade in soda and juice for milk and water. Sugary beverages like soda and juice contain empty calories. Milk helps kids get the 1,300 mg of calcium they need each day for healthy bone development and water keeps them hydrated and full.
Step 7
Avoid products that are specifically marketed as diet foods, including diet sodas, frozen meals and sugar-free candies. These items contain more chemicals, artificial sweeteners and sodium than a child should ingest and they also tend to teach children to have an unhealthy attitude toward real, whole foods.
Step 8
Work with your child to plan out a week's worth of healthy meals and snacks. Write out the menu on a white board and put it in the kitchen. That way, your child will know exactly what to expect and won't be caught off-guard by unfamiliar foods. He may also be more inclined to eat healthy meals that he had a hand in planning.
Things You'll Need
- Fresh produce
- Snack-sized baggies
- White board
- Markers
References
- Eating Well: Healthy Kid Diet Guidelines
- "The Moms' Guide to Meal Makeovers"; Janice Newell Bissex, Liz Weiss and Laura Coyle; 2003
- MayoClinic.com: Nutrition for Kids
- Nemours Foundation: Is Dieting OK for Kids?
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