5 Ways To Make Your Child Have The Meal Properly

 

“Investing in early childhood nutrition is a surefire strategy. The returns are incredibly high.”

Anne M. Mulcahy

Every parent with young kids deals with the problem of seeing their child getting stuck into the habit of eating unhealthy food items. As more lucrative, unhealthy food items are filling up the market, a vital problem that has haunted the parents for quite a time is providing required health and nutrition to the kids and that too without upsetting them. Lifestyle is changing, nutritionists and behavior experts are in constant search for methods to indulge the kids into healthy eating habits easily.

Why Do Nutritionists Emphasize More On Health And Nutrition For Kids?

Dieticians/Nutritionists say that a child needs to eat nutritious food items in his early years as health and nutrition is important for growth. The reason behind this is most of the development of a kid’s intelligence commences at a younger age, and not to forget physical growth that also booms in this period. Nutritionists advise going for natural food items like vegetables and fruits for their health. Organic items are not only nourishing for physical health but also the enzymes in them help to shape up and control the mood of a child in a better way, as research says junk foods are loaded with materials that are quite unhealthy for their health.

Role Of Parenting In Developing Better Habits In Kids?

Kids are innocent, naïve and look to parents for making better decisions for them. However, they get attracted to unhealthy habits now and then, but it is a parent’s responsibility to bring in the positive changes in them and take the right steps to provide them with health and nutrition. Parents can opt for the right patterns and changes into their routines, and kids will accept it much easier due to the

connection they share with them. Also, younger children stay at home for most of the day, and therefore the guardians can keep a closer watch on their eating habits. 

Health And Nutrition Tips For Your Kids To Instill Healthy Eating Habits

Amid an early morning run to work and a tired return from a busy schedule, parents find it tough to have the time to feed their kids, considering the tantrums children throw at the eating time. But the good thing is that one does not need a degree or a hi-tech course to learn the simple but riveting methods about making kids eat. The prime concept is to build an eating routine that is creative, interesting, and lucrative for kids (hidden with health and nutrition). With some simple food tips, parents can master the practice of filling up their tummy with delectable and nourishing foodstuff.

• Involve the kids in the preparation of healthy foods

Most parents prepare the food, and the kids only get to see it on the table. Experts say that to encourage the kids to have better eating habits involving kids in buying, preparing, cooking, serving, and even growing and gardening of foods increases their interest. They get to know the items closely, can feel them, smell them, appreciate the color; this instills their senses towards these items in a positive way. Studies show that kids like the feel and smell of whole vegetables and fruits than the sliced ones, so this method is going to boost their appetite for sure and also will provide them with the required health and nutrition. Also, this will help increase their knowledge about a food item, which will bring a sense of excitement and delight in them.

• Let them find a promising role model in their parents’

Parents are heroes for a kid, they watch their actions, learn from them, try to follow them, and therefore it becomes quite crucial that a parent themselves come up with eating habits vital for increasing health and nutrition. Knowingly or unknowingly, one is affecting his kids, and if you are setting a good example, chances are your child will also develop a good routine. That is why if an elder reaches for the nutrition, eat natural and healthier foods with great interest, kids will automatically get attracted, will give those items a try, and might hook on to it possibly. But, do not worry for not having these healthy habits; as a grown-up, you can come up with some much easier health and nutrition diet, and the caring parent in you will make it you do anyway!

• Make the eating table a palette of healthy colors

Kids get attracted to newer things, and therefore it is advisable to bring health & nutrition in their lives through different recipes and dishes. Kids are curious, and when they see a new shape and color on their plate, they go for it, and there are possibilities that they will stick to it for later also. Always try to find new ways to present the food items on the table that may attract the kid towards them, mix up different food items in one plate to create an attractive pool of colors on the table.     

• Introduce a new food variety every week  

Unhealthy and so-called junk foods attract the kids a lot, it is quite tough to distract their attention from them, and definitely, it is not possible to do it in a few days. It takes a bit long for kids to get into the habit of eating something that offers them much needed health and nutrition. Also, they get bored quite quickly with the same eating items, so, always come up with some new varieties in a few days’ gaps. That will retain their interest in spending a lot of time at the eating table. Try different cuisines and recipes to teach their interest in eating. You can also try to sneak in health and nutrition food into a kid’s favorite items like a burger, pizza, smoothie, etc. Fast foods etc. are not that much nourishing, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be given at all; they have some sugar content, etc. which is also necessary for their health.

• Keep away distractions from the family mealtime

Another crucial reason that has sprung up for kids for not having involvement in family meals is screen entertainment, whether it is on television, mobiles, or computers. Most of the children are into the habit of getting glued to the screen while eating. Some get so engrossed in screens that they can’t even find their plate on the table, so how could one expect them to look for items that supply health and nutrition in abundance. To be frank, one of the major reasons behind their habit of clinging to screens has come from the fact that parents used these things to make them eat in the early years, and it has developed into a habit now. As kids follow their parents, they also imitate their habit of watching TV, mobile at eating time. Some more distractions take away the focus from eating like reading books, newspapers, solving a puzzle, which should be avoided, as according to doctors, it affects our digestive capacity. 

With the help of these simple tricks, you can draw the attention of your child towards healthy eating habits, and your child will follow the rules happily. Because health and nutrition plays a very important role. And while trying for that, you will come up with some new and benefiting ways to get the job done, a repetitive conventional learning process of parenting, you know!

Other Related Sections

NCERT Solutions | Sample Papers | CBSE SYLLABUS| Calculators | Converters | Stories For Kids | Poems for Kids| Learning Concepts | Practice Worksheets | Formulas | Blogs | Parent Resource