Lead by Example - How to Help Children Eat Healthy
One of the biggest problems in America is childhood obesity. Not to mention, the percentage of children with obesity has tripled since the 1970s. It is very common among adults, but sometimes it appears to come out of the blue. Well, it all starts out as being a child, the things you eat and do determine your future health as an adult.
Eating habits develop at a young age when children are more prone to eating whatever they are given. It is proven that family tends to have the biggest impact on a children's diet. Being raised with parents that watch what they eat and eat meals with them causes can lead to a less of a risk for them to be overweight. Since it is something that is practiced for years, these eating habits tend to carry on in their development (Birch 3).
What could be causing this?
As children grow, they are not capable of what they eat. They are fed whatever is given to them and it can start to build on for years. There are multiple factors that can lead to children being fed a certain diet. Factors include socioeconomic status, location of food sources, and eating practices. Each factor has it's own significance, but parents shape their children's sedentary behaviors, dietary practices, and their weight status. Even their knowledge of nutrition, home eating patterns, meal structure, modeling of healthy eating and sedentary habits (Lindsay 3).
Combating obesity as a parent
Since parent's role at home in promoting healthy eating and preventing obesity is very critical, it should serve as an outline to combat the nation's childhood obesity problem. The three reasons parents play a critical role in preventing obesity are that it runs in the family, they serve as models that support the maintenance of eating behaviors, and parents are able to apply behavior changing strategies (Epstein LH).
Parents also play an important role in the development of these methods at the different stages of a child's development. The three time periods in children's lives are gestation and early gestation and early infancy, early childhood, and adolescence. As a mother is pregnant, healthy eating and safe practices are important to reduce the risk of a fetus contracting health complications. It is very important that a mother keeps screening for and preventing diabetes for the child's development. Setting a foundation for dietary habits during pregnancy can help with nutrients for the child for breast feeding and for a lifetime.
Using reinforcements cues
The next stages of development are the most important and require the most attention since children are still learning. In the early childhood stage, parents should start to use reinforcement cues that trigger certain eating behaviors and later gives a reward. Children are very prone to following eating practices that are done by parents since they usually follow elders. Children have predispositions to sweet food, but can be altered through repeated exposure and repeated exposure (Holley 2).
Some practices that can be done are giving children food that is rich in nutrients for each meal of the day and an occasional snack or treat to help them stick through it. It is not recommended to pressure children into a healthier diet, daily rewards for eating, and to limit food since it can lead to unintended consequences. Giving healthy foods a serving for each meal of the day can actually lead to better dieting since it is something that is neither forced or given to in large amounts. As for parents, it is also recommended that eating the same meals is just as important to help with consumption of these foods (Birch 3).
Foods that are rich in protein such as beans, lentils, peanut butter, and eggs should always be included in diets. As for other other items such as fiber, magnesium,
For parents that are wondering what kind of rewards to give their children, doing exercise can be one of them. By that, it means for children to do actual exercise, but to go to the park and have fun. Exercise is also important for a child's diet since it can help keep them in physical shape and reduce the risks of being overweight. After children are done playing they usually need to regain energy after burning a lot of calories and that is the perfect time to give them foods that are healthy. However it is important to mix it up each meal so that children can get a variety of foods rather then being fed the same meal everyday (Birch 5).
Resources that can help parents with dieting
These resources can help parents understand the importance of eating healthy for children and give tips on how to help them get started
https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/children/index.html
https://healthykidshealthyfuture.org/resources-for-parents/
References
