Promote healthy eating for kids

By teaching children healthy eating habits parents can help them to maintain very healthy lifestyle when they will grow adults.Nowadays Television and ​entertainment sources bombard variety of junk/fast food via commercials,So it becomes tough task for parents to teach healthy eating to children.

Healthy food help  children to maintain healthy weight and normal growth.The quality and completeness of the food remain as critical as ever to the nutritional health and well being of the child. A satisfactory diet must include the nutrients and appropriate amount of calories. Like adults, children need to eat a variety of foods from different food groups to get all the nutrients necessary for  good health and most important their growth.

Children develop a natural preference for the foods they enjoy the most, so the challenge is  to make healthy choices appealing. However, you can ensure that your children’s diet is as nutritious and wholesome as possible, even while allowing for some of their favorite treats.For example once a while their favorite chocolates, fast food delicacies can be offered as reward.  

Here are few tips to promote healthy eating for children:

1. Children's eating pattern are totally different than adults .The most important is they have very small tummies so cant be expected to eat full course meal at one go .They should be offered small amounts of food or snacks frequently throughout the day.

2. Young children may need to eat five or six small meals instead of three big ones.It helps to keep your child on a regular eating schedule. Too many quick snacks should be avoided, so there is enough time to build up an appetite between meals.

3.Offer variety of foods in the forms your child prefers. Kids generally prefer foods with milder flavor, in particular vegetables,chicken.
 

​4. Parents should act as role model in this process as children love to imitate.Regular family meals help a lot here.

5. Parents should share mealtimes and eat the same healthy foods as that cooked for children to encourage them

6. Do encourage children to enjoy fruits and vegetables by giving them a variety from an early age.Fruit and veg smoothies are great recipes to start with.

7. Do ask children to help prepare meals. If parents rely mostly on convenience foods, children may not learn to enjoy cooking,,eating different dishes.

8. Don’t force children to eat more than they want.Do allow children to follow their natural appetites when deciding how much to eat.

​9. Get kids involved. Have your child help to prepare foods. Often they will be more willing to try something when they helped to make it.

10. Children enjoy helping adults to shop for groceries, selecting what goes in their lunch box, and preparing dinner. It's also a chance for you to teach them about the nutritional values of different foods, and (for older children) how to read food labels.Go food shopping with your children. Let them see all the different fruits and vegetables and have them pick out new ones to try.

11.Make it fun: present the food as a game, a play-filled experience. Or cut the food into unusual shapes.Pack the school tifins in funny manner or decorate their meals.