How To Encourage Your Kids To Take A Healthy Interest In Food

Nutrition is essential for physical and mental health at every age. Most parents will be able to tell tales of struggles they’ve endured or tantrums they’ve experienced at mealtimes, especially when trying to encourage young kids to try new foods. It can be challenging to find healthy foods that children enjoy, but it’s so beneficial to try to establish a positive relationship with food at an early age. In this guide, we’ll share some top tips to help you encourage your kids to take a healthy interest in food. 

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Talk about nutrition and read books together

Children learn continuously and they are incredibly receptive and responsive to new ideas and subjects. Start talking to your kids about the foods they eat and the impact they have on the body and mind as early as possible. Read stories and books about healthy eating, watch educational TV programs and look for resources about diet and nutrition online. Encourage your children to ask questions and to learn about why it’s important to eat well. 

Cook at home

Cooking is an incredibly useful skill for children to learn, but it can also be great fun. Cooking together as a family is a brilliant way to spend quality time together, it teaches kids valuable lessons and it’s likely to make them more interested in food. 

You can introduce your children to cooking at a very young age by letting them do tasks like stirring the mixture. As they get older, they can help you measure and count ingredients, decorate and present dishes or tasty snacks and prepare food before cooking. Older children can assist with cutting, stirring and serving. Focus on healthy eating and keep things interesting with the odd sweet treat like easy chocolate brownie cookies. If you’ve got family members visiting for the weekend, for example, you can rustle up a healthy, homemade main and enjoy a cookie for dessert. You’ll find all kinds of fantastic, child-friendly recipes online and you can also buy recipe books. 

Set a good example

Children learn from their parents and other people they see on a regular basis. If you have a good relationship with food, you’re open to trying different dishes and you have a nutritious diet, this will rub off on your kids. Try to set a good example, as your children will copy your habits. If they never see you eating vegetables, for example, they may not be inclined to eat their greens when you serve them at dinnertime. 

Make healthy eating fun

Every meal can be a learning experience when you’re young. As a parent, you’re probably rushed off your feet. It’s not practical to play games or get creative when presenting every meal, but try to have fun with food. Use popular movie and TV show characters to talk about how healthy eating benefits you, try to present food in a way that is appealing to your kids and eat together. The simplest tricks like making a smiley face out of pieces of chopped fruit or vegetables can make children more enthusiastic about eating healthy foods. 

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Every parent wants their child to have a healthy diet, but it’s not always easy to persuade kids to get on board. If you’re keen for your child to take a healthy interest in food, cook at home, eat together, talk to your kids about nutrition and read about healthy eating. Try to set a good example and make mealtimes fun. 

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This post was written with the Life According to Steph audience in mind