Nurturing Healthy Eaters, Tots & Tykes

TOTS & TYKES

nurturing

TOTS & TYKES

HEALTHY EATERS Habitual snacking vs. hunger Over snacking can become a “bad” habit and interfere with children’s appetites at meal time. Teach kids to eat well-balanced meals and 1-2 snacks when they’re actually hungry vs just wanting to eat either for the taste, emotional reasons or boredom.

A good guideline to follow is to provide three well-balanced main meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) at traditional eating times. This includes a healthy lean protein, whole grain carbohydrate, and a veggie and/or fruit with 1-2 snacks allowed in between. Kids thrive on routine. When they know to expect and eat three well-balanced meals a day, they should be well satiated and less likely to engage in snacking behaviors.

Learning to listen to their bodies Learn to say NO when your child begs, cries, or fusses for additional snacks, sweets or juice beyond their normal allowable amounts. You might feel like a bad mom when they get upset, but this is teaching them food boundaries and eating based on their body cues vs eating for emotional reasons.

This tip is from our Happy Mama Mentor Andie, RD, CLC and mom to Soren & Addison Also available to chat at: happyfamilyorganics/chat

Lead by example Kids are always watching and listening to how we approach food behaviors, even at a young age. They watch the foods you eat and keep stocked around the house. One of the best methods to get your kids to eat veggies is for them to see YOU eat veggies!

Demonstrate good family eating patterns such as sitting down as a family during meal time and taking your time eating at meals. This includes no TV, laptop, or phone usage.

Independence vs. autonomy Encourage and be considerate of your child’s need to express their independence when it comes to food selection, but DO NOT short

order cook or limit the menu to foods you know they’ll accept.

Doing so will just worsen their pickiness and reduce their chances for trying and accepting new or existing healthy foods.

Continue to offer your child the same healthy types of foods (variety of fruits and veggies) that the rest of the family is eating.

Or, return to the foods they ate when they were younger (even if they refuse or only take a bite or two) along with their new preferred foods. Having children exposed to the consistency of healthy food choices at home is key, even if it’s not their first choice!

Don’t get discouraged by the word “no!”

Just because your toddler may not be into something one day, does not mean she won’t be willing to try it the next. Keep offering and try pairing new foods with known liked foods to encourage a taste test!