4 ways to teach your kids about a healthy diet

Here are some tips on how you can implement healthy eating among your children:

Tip #1 — Have more meals together at home

Eating breakfast and/or dinner together as a family is highly beneficial for bonding. By designating a specific time for meals and by making them pleasant times of the day where children can bond with the family, children will adopt a healthy attitude towards eating, and not think of it as either a source of stress or as something to turn to for comfort.

Additionally, eating together at home can make it easier for your children to have a healthy diet. Save dining out for special occasions, and eat the majority of meals at home to make sure that you set a good example to your children about the importance of healthy food.

Tip #2 — Get the children involved

From shopping at the supermarket to preparing food at home, try and get your children involved in the process of preparing food. Apart from being a fun an engaging experience, involving children in food preparation is a great way to teach them about nutrition and why it is important to eat a wide variety of foods.

Giving children a choice in what they eat is also a good way to teach them about making healthy choices. For example, allow them to choose between two or three vegetables, and let them know that you will take their opinion into account when preparing meals.

Making decisions in what they eat will make them feel more engaged with each meal, less under your command, and more inclined to try or even finish their portions.

Older children can even help with the cooking, which can kindle an interest in learning about different types of food. It's also a good opportunity for parents to explain why some ways of cooking are better than others. Furthermore, you can teach your children to read nutrition labels of different foods before buying them.

Getting your children involved in buying and cooking will also give you an idea of what their preferences are. In turn, this can help you to educate them about the nutritional value of the different foods they like.

Tip #3 — Keep a variety of healthy snacks at hand

At young ages, children are fascinated and drawn to things that are colorful or interestingly shaped. As a parent, you can tap into this natural fascination by making sure that the fruits or vegetables you buy are varied in color, texture and taste.

Furthermore, you can cut food into different shapes or letters to attract your children's attention and to get them more interested in the food. Children will be more willing to try something that looks different or novel.

Ensure that you have a variety of healthy foods, as children will soon get bored if the same things are presented to them daily. Rather than an apple every day, give them a different fruit every day of the week to keep their interest from waning.

Another strategy that is helpful in teaching children to eat a healthy diet is to try offering healthy alternatives to food that tends to be less healthy. Using whole grain bread instead of white bread and replacing sugary, carbonated drinks with homemade fruit juice are examples of things you can do to improve your children's diet without upsetting them.

Ensure that these healthy alternatives are easily accessible and plentiful, so that your children never have to turn to less healthy versions.

Tip #4 — Never use food as a bribe

Many parents resort to using treats as a reward to get their children to finish their main meals. Even if the treat you give them is a healthy one, this practice is unhealthy as it children will associate their main meal (which includes vegetables, for example) with dislike, and will rush through it to get to the dessert.

Such impressions can stay with your children for a long time, and when they are old enough to make independent decisions, there may be a tendency to favor unhealthy food over nutritious, healthy dishes.

While it is good to allow your child to have a treat once in a while, never present it as something to work towards or as something better than healthy food.

How do your children react to your attempts to make them eat healthier? What other methods do you use to inculcate good habits in them from a young age? Tell us in the comments!

Edited by Registered Dietitian Arielle Kamps, M.S., R.D, L.D. Via HealthMatters.sg, a Singapore Health and Fitness blog that aims to help you lose weight, keep fit, and live healthy. Click here to get our free guide "Eat Your Way to Health — Secrets of a Healthy Diet".

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