It is no secret that the maximum height a child can grow to depends on his or her nutrition. Genetics lays out the blueprints for the potential each individual holds but it is up to regular exercise and more importantly nutrition that determine height and the overall health of a growing child. This is why getting kids to eat healthy at an early age is very important, especially in a society where there is easy access to foods that are not very healthy for kids or anyone for that matter.
The earlier you get kids to make better choices the easier it is to get them to practice good eating habits. If you can convince your children to eat healthy fruits and vegetables without a worry then you won’t have to deal with the struggle of introducing them to new foods. It should be easy to get them to eat healthy. Yet when your child neglects to eat healthy foods then you have a problem. Figure out how to convince them to eat healthier foods. For instance, you can serve them vegetables at dinner with mashed potatoes. Tell your child to mix their vegetables such as corn and broccoli with their mashed potatoes to mask the taste. After some time they should get used to eating these foods and eat them without any trouble.
Getting kids to eat healthy starts with the parents, that means you. In order to motivate your children to eat healthy they have to watch your eating habits. Children mirror what they see their parents doing more than you think. This means that you want your children to see you eating healthy so that they know it is a good thing to do as well. Casually eat vegetables at dinner, even the ones that you don’t like. Show your commitment and become a good example for your child. You want to ensure that they are looking at eating healthy positively and not in a negative manner.
Portion control is something that you want to teach your children early on in life. Let your kids know that it is fine to feel stuffed, but to stop eating once they feel satisfied. If your child keeps on demanding food then you may have to be a bit strict and control how much they eat. Figure out how much a child at a certain age should eat and try to control their meals within that portion size. Exercise helps reduce hunger when it is not necessary. So go out and play catch, walk, or complete some form of exercise with your child so that they can break a sweat and exercise a bit.
Better food choices is not something that should only be done once in awhile. You should form regular habits with your child to eat healthy. Make sure he, she, or all of your children are constantly eating healthy meals and snacks. Every now and then you can go ahead and let them splurge with cookies, ice cream and tasty treats. A good way to live is to feed them 80% of their meals with nutritious items and the other 20% with foods that are good for the taste buds. This means one out of every five meals can be something like burgers and fries or a pizza. As long as you are consistent with feeding your children healthy foods and they get enough exercise throughout the week they should be fine. Getting kids to eat healthy at an early age is key to preventing obesity, diabetes, and ensuring that they grow to become big and strong individuals.
Gary Pettit
