Healthy eating habits for children – 10 back to school tips to keep your kids healthy and happy when they go back to school.
by Carolyn Gish-Miller, BA, RHN, NNCP
1. If you don’t want your children to eat junk food then don’t buy it. Remember you drive the car and purchase the groceries.
2. Stock your cupboards with protein shakes and high-protein power bars that contain healthy ingredients. Don’t buy snack cakes and cookies.
3. Make weekends the time to bake healthy cookies and muffins with your children and use it as some family time and a way to teach healthy eating.
4. Buy real fruit juice, not soda pop or sugar-laden, artificially flavored and colored water.
5. Purchase washed and cut veggies so they are ready to use when you come home from work or when putting lunches together. This also means that there are veggies ready for your kids to eat when you aren’t home. Consider buying some humus for dip for the veggies which will add some healthy protein and fiber.
6. On Sunday, bake lots of chicken (skinless) and boil some eggs so they’re ready to eat for the next few days. This will make it easy for you to make lunches with good, clean protein, not bologna and processed meats.
7. Involve your children in the meal planning for the week so that everyone know what is for dinner. Ensure that everyone has a job to do with making supper such as setting the table, measuring (a great way to practice math skills!!), cutting up veggies or even cooking if you have teenagers.
8. Sit down with the entire family to eat supper and talk to your kids. If you can’t do this every night, then pick a couple nights a week that are mandatory family nights. This will ensure that you are teaching your children proper eating habits.
9. Limit television and video games to a certain number of hours per day and certain days per week.
10. Take time to do activities with your children such as going for a walk or riding bikes or just plain having fun before or after dinner. This encourages fitness as a family and helps you get your 30 min. of fitness in per day.