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Helping your child make healthy eating choices on a regular basis can become difficult with life’s interruptions. Use this list as a helpful reminder to maintain a steady healthy eating schedule.
#1: Be a guide
When children have a choice, they also feel empowered. Giving a child the feeling of power automatically reduces any type of power struggle. Provide a variety of nutritious foods at each meal and snack. Your job is to let your child decide if and how much to eat. Enjoy spending time sharing meals with your child. Eat to fuel your body and set a healthy example for your child.
#2: Set the pace
Our lives are filled with busy schedules and activities. Try to slow it down a bit for meal time. Take the time to enjoy the company of others at the table. Show your children how to eat and enjoy the experience. Model taking bite-sized spoonfuls and chewing the food well.
#3: Bond
Share the experiences of food with your family. Make a grocery list together. Shop together. Prepare the meal together. Each day, enjoy at least one meal together. Clean up together. This togetherness will create a bond and teach responsibility.
#4: Make a schedule
Create a schedule for meals and snacks that works for your family. This will provide structure and help stop grazing or coming to the table without an appetite. Meal and snack times will no longer be a mystery. All family members will be glad to know when they will eat again.
#5: Trust your child
The human body knows hunger and fullness naturally. Each body is different. Recognize that your child will eat the amount they need to satisfy their body.