Loveland Reporter Herald – Raising healthy, happy children is a priority for most parents. Helping them maintain a healthy diet is important and helps children grow strong. But the world around them is often filled with mixed messages.
While parents may wish their children would eat healthier snacks, television advertisements often tout the latest brand of sugar-filled cereal and additive-loaded snacks.
What’s a parent to do?
Dr. Keith Kantor, a nationally recognized nutritionist, and Leah Widhalm, registered dietitian and clinical nutrition senior manager for Banner Health, recently shared a few ideas that can help.
Start Young
“If a child is 9, 10 or 11 years old and they’ve been eating a certain way their whole life, when you offer them something new, they’ll reject it. That’s where a lot of parents get into trouble,” said Widhalm.
“If they start when their little and the child sees mom and dad eating nutritious things, it’s not a weird thing to them, it’s part of the normal diet,” she added.
Lead by example. “First of all,” said Kantor, “you have to practice what you preach. If you’re scarfing down potato chips, you can’t do that in front of children and then expect them not to do it.
Make good snacks available. “If you look at most people’s homes, it’s pre-packaged, pre-prepared things that are on the shelves,” said Widhalm. “There’s not a lot of a fresh fruit or vegetables. Instead of going to the pantry for something else, have a fruit bowl sitting out for snacking…READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE.
Dr. Kantor’s greatly anticipated new children’s book, The Green Box League of Nutritious Justice, is now available. Be sure to order this highly reviewed book, filled with healthy living tips for the whole family. A portion of the proceeds benefit the Children’s Miracle Network.