10 Easy Back-to-School Tips to Help Children (and Parents) Eat Smarter This Fall
Childhood obesity is at an all-time high in America, while the
overall nutritional value of school lunches continues to plummet.
With only weeks left before children and teenagers go back to
school, how can parents help to control their children's weight
and diet? How can a family dinner be a learning environment to
teach proper nutrition?
Here are ten simple remedies and lifestyle changes for
families. I suggest parents try to
Lead By Example and
Create A Healthy Eating Environment so kids will pick up
better eating habits and make better choices on their own.
Simply adopting one or two small and positive lifestyle
changes from the following Top Ten List will elicit long-term
results that will help you and your family eat better:
Structure Your Family's Eating. Although hectic schedules
can present challenges, don't give up on the idea of family
dinners. Discourage eating on the run and random snacking.
Instead, establish routines for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and
after-school snacks.
Offer a Choice of Several High-Fiber, Low-Sugar Breakfast
Cereals With Milk (skim or 1-percent fat) and/or Fruit. Check
the nutrition information on the box and avoid cereals high in
sugar. Oatmeal, raisin bran, fat-free granola, Cheerios, and
shredded wheat are good choices. If your child is used to sugary
cereals, gradually mix in healthier cereals while reducing the
proportion of the sweeter stuff.
Don't Try to Forbid Fast Food or Junk Food. Consider them
as treats to be enjoyed occasionally, but not in place of regular
meals or snacks. If you need to keep cookies in the house, limit
the number of choices and try to buy single serving packages so
there is less temptation to overindulge. Substitute healthier
choices whenever possible -- a child offered nonfat frozen yogurt
is unlikely to miss high-fat ice cream.
Reduce the Number of Distractions While Your Child is
Eating. Turn off the TV. Discourage eating while playing
computer or video games.
Minimize Consumption of Sugar Sodas and Fruit Juices. The
calories in soft drinks have no nutritional value and don't abate
hunger. While eating an apple or grapes reduces hunger, drinking
an apple or grape fruit doesn't.
Serve Reasonably Sized Portions. If he or she is still
hungry, they can ask for seconds. If you misjudge and serve too
much, save the excess for leftovers. Don't encourage the child to
eat the food to avoid wasting it.
Don't Use Food as a Reward. Don't use one food as a reward
for eating other foods. Don't offer food as a reward for an
accomplishment.
Conversely, don't use food to placate. If your child is
feeling sad, tend to the emotions, not the appetite.
Don't Buy Toys That Glorify Junk Food.
Cook New Foods Together. Encourage your child to help in
the kitchen preparing food. And don't assume that just because
your child didn't like it the first time, they might not ever
have it again. Try another day.
Monitor Your Child's School Lunches.
Body Intelligence is not a traditional diet book with
rigid meal plans, low-fat recipes, exercise guides, and calorie
counters. Instead, it offers specific methods to help the reader
understand and regulate eating, improve body image, and learn to
comfortably become more active. It's a unique solution to weight
control that goes to the root of eating problems -- the thought
patterns that affect eating habits, self-perception, and the way
people live.
About the Author:
Edward Abramson, Ph.D., is a professor of psychology at
CaliforniaStateUniversityand former director of the Eating
Disorders Center at ChicoCommunityHospital. He has written
several books, including
Body Intelligence(McGraw-Hill; $21.95US; 0071442065) and
Emotional Eating, and has been published in dozens of
scientific publications. He has appeared on television's "20/20,"
"Good Day LA," and other shows.
About ModernMom.com: Modern Mom ( www.modernmom.com) features smart and practical advice on topics such as parenting, finances, career, health, wellness, beauty, entertainment and more.
Copyright 2007 Modern Mom, LLC. All rights reserved.
Member Comments On...
10 Easy Back-to-School Tips to Help Children (and Parents) Eat Smarter This Fall
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I wholeheartedly agree with the point that it's best not to use food to reward or placate. Teaching a child to eat when he or she is hungry, and to not base their eating on other emotions, I think is one of the simplest but most valuable habits to encourage. It really becomes a gift later in life, because maintaining a healthy weight remains more instinctual.
