At some point in time, every parent has gone through the
food wars with their child. Whether it’s
from the beginning of refusing the bottle or breast or they turn up their noses
at fruit and vegetables. For most of us
– our picky eaters eventually outgrow their pickiness and expand their
repertoire of foods.
I’m know that I’m lucky that my children actually love most fruit
and vegetables. If I have fruit
available, they will eat it. However,
with a special needs child in the house, meal prep can become a huge
problem. Especially when that child has
become a full-fledged teenager and no longer willing to be guided; however
reluctantly, away from poor choices. It
also doesn’t help when her “won’t eat” foods changes frequently. I just get into the groove of making potatoes
one way when she announces she will only eat potatoes if there are made a
different way.
I swear having a special needs child was all about teaching
me to become more flexible! Believe me,
it’s an ongoing learning process but here’s my take on how to get your kids to
eat healthy.
Tips To Getting Your
Kids to Eat Healthier
1. Don’t make a big deal about it. The more pressure you put on about food
choices, the greater chance that your kids are going to rebel. Maybe not in front of you but behind your
backs. Trust me, when they get bigger
they will no longer ask for a snack, they’ll wait until you’re occupied and
sneak it. I’ve found used ice cream
bowls in the closet, cookie wrappers in the cat post, and drink cans under
beds. Instead of placing restrictions on
food, we talk about nutrition and what we need to fuel our bodies and how
having treats in moderation is okay.
2. Have
healthy food on hand. If you don’t
stock it, they can’t eat it. I don’t
like to have my fruit out because of fruit flies but there’s no reason I can’t
have a bowl of fruit in the fridge on display so every time they open the
fridge they see the yumminess. Figure
out what fruits your child likes. If they
don’t like apples – is it because it’s too sour or does it need to be peeled
and cut first. I discovered that while I
hated to bite into a whole apple, once it was cut up, I actually enjoyed eating
apples.
Stock healthy snack options in the pantry. Pre-prep your veggies and fruit where you can
so that you have quick and healthy snacks ready to grab.
3. Model
Healthy Eating. If you’re scarfing
chocolate in the pantry but telling them to eat an apple, they are going to
call you on it. Instead, let them know
that treats in moderation are okay and share a piece with everyone. Then grab the apple or whip up a fruit
smoothie or fruit salad that will satisfy those sweet cravings. Be the
example.
4. Involve
the Kids. It’s true that if you
involve the kids in some of the planning, shopping and preparing of food you
have a better chance of getting them to try new things. It’s very easy to get caught up in the circle
of always doing for your kids but they really are capable of being independent
little beings and helping mom out. When
my kids were 8, 6 & 5, they were given plastic knives to cut peppers and
onions up for fresh salsa. They loved it
and I was impressed with how well they did.
What’s more is they loved eating the fresh salsa and couldn’t wait to go
home and make it for their dad.
5. Offer
Choices. I refuse to cook a bunch of
different meals to make everyone happy.
At the same time, I don’t want to see one of my kids be miserable
either. So, I make sure that on top of
the main offering I offer something else. For example, one child doesn’t like
potatoes if we bake them so I offer her a whole grain bun instead. Their dad and I love roasted peppers but
we’ll also cook a different vegetable that they’ll like or we’ll cut up raw
peppers since they like those instead.
Another child can’t stand having their food mixed up in casseroles so
before I mix everything together to put in the oven, I set aside a portion of
protein, noodles and vegetables without the sauce. It’s easy to do since typically most
casserole ingredients are pre-cooked before you assemble it.
What about your family, what do you do to encourage healthy
eating in your home?
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