You Asked?
How can I
help my children to eat well.?
This answer comes from Adrienne Danyliw from
Child Hunger and Education Program (CHEP)
Q: I’m a mother of one preschooler and two school-aged children. I’m hearing a lot about overweight children these days, and I believe that good nutrition is important to keep my children healthy. However, getting them to eat healthy food is a constant struggle, with school lunches being one of our main areas of conflict. Help! I need some ideas.
A: You are absolutely right: good nutrition is important for children. The latest statistics show that one quarter of Canadian children are overweight or obese. Some experts have said that this generation of children will live shorter lives than their parents. Talk about a call to action!
Obesity is a complex condition with many causes. We often think of diet and exercise as the only solutions to obesity, but our food environment also affects our health. For example, advertising can push us – and our children – to want certain foods. We often see advertisements for high-fat or high-sugar foods. We rarely see ads for vegetables, fruit or whole grain foods; even though these are foods we should eat for good health. It is important to be aware of these influences, and to take charge of the food we feed our families.
There are many things we can do to keep our families healthy. One of the most important things we can do for our children is to be a good role model, and that includes eating well. But feeding children is often more challenging than having them follow your example.
So how can you help? Here are some ideas:
· Set regular meal and snack times. Try not to feed your children between these times; then they will be hungry when meals and snacks are offered.
· Limit juice and milk between meals. Offer water between meals and snacks. Children don’t need juice at all: instead offer fruit as a snack or with meals.
· Respect tiny tummies. Keep portion sizes small: ½ apple, ½ slice of toast are appropriate sizes to start with. If your children want more, then give them another small serving.
· Don’t be a short order cook. Serve one meal for everyone with at least one food at each meal that your children enjoy.
· Let your children decide. Once you have provided healthy foods, it is up to your children to decide which food, and how much, they will eat.
These tips work well when children eat most of their meals at home. But the ball game changes when kids go to school. Parents lose control over what’s eaten at lunch time. Kids are free to swap lunches, and these exchanges don’t always upgrade the nutritional value. Here are some ideas to encourage your children to eat a healthy lunches:
· Involve kids in making lunches: Have them make the sandwich or peel the carrots. Or you make the sandwich, and have the kids choose the additions like an apple, yogurt, and muffin. Just make sure that the easy choice is the healthy choice. If “junk” food is in the house, kids (and adults) will eat it!
· Offer healthy choices: “Would you like an apple or a pear in your lunch today?” Make sure the choices are similar, such as from the same food group.
· Keep it interesting: Instead of a sandwich, fill a pita shell with lettuce, chicken and cheese. Or make a wrap with leftover beef stir-fry. Call it “peppy pita” or “wrap’n’roll tortilla”
· Show your love: Put a note in their lunch kit, “Have fun in art class today.”
A final challenge for parents is often the food served at schools. It is common for schools to host hot dogs lunches or sell chocolate covered almonds as a fundraiser. Sometimes, teachers use candy as rewards for attendance or completed homework. If these issues concern you, talk with your principal and parent council, and bring ideas for healthy changes.
Many schools in Saskatoon have made changes towards better nutrition. Some schools have a salad bar instead of a hot dog lunch. Students have sold bags of ready-to-eat carrots as a fundraiser, and teachers have promoted vegetables and fruit in the classroom. Schools that have made nutritious changes find that it is no more expensive to offer healthy food. They say that it is a change in mindset to where healthy food is the normal food. For more information on these programs or for nutrition information, call CHEP Good Food Inc at 655-4575 or visit www.chep.org
Adrienne Danyliw is a Registered Dietitian who works with the Children's Nutrition Programs at CHEP Good Food Inc. She has over four years of experience working with nutrition for kids, and her passion is promoting good food for everyone.
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