Paulina Bleah, NP, PhD

the world is healing

"My kid never eats at meals" "My kid only eats noodles & nuggets" "My kid always has meltdowns at meal time" Bad eating habits aren't born. They are learned. Here are X things parents do that create unhealthy eating habits in their kids 1. No structure around meals HOW kids eat is just as important as WHAT they eat. Too many kids: -Eat in front of a screen -Eat with toys or distractions at the table -Eat under rushed conditions: "Hurry up or we will be late" or eating in the car on the way to school This takes the focus & enjoyment away from food, and also leads to unhealthy food choices Structured meal times as a family is a much healthier practice 2. Too much snacking Big food companies have convinced us that kids need frequent snacks. Its a brilliant plan that has created a billion dollar industry: -They take cheap, unhealthy ingredients. -Put it in a colourful package with cartoon characters on it for kids (and "healthy" labels like organic on it for parents) -And sell it for a big profit But kids dont need to constantly snack. Especially on processed junk. This fills them up and will lead to them not being hungry at meal time. Having scheduled snack time, and offering real foods, is a much healthier option. 3. Parents making 2 different meals If kids dont want the chicken & rice you made for dinner, and whine for noodles & nuggets, and you make them noodles & nuggets, they will keep whining for noodles and nuggets. Make life easier on yourself and offer up 1 family meal 4. Parents eating unhealthy Kids aren't going to eat chicken & carrots if mom & dad are crushing a pizza If you want your kids to eat healthy, start by eating healthy yourself 5. Too much processed foods SPOILER ALERT: Food companies dont care about your kids. They only care about profit. They spend a lot of money to make their foods addictive. They do this by adding sugar and chemicals that manipulate the body's food cravings. Processed foods are sabotaging your efforts to get kids eating healthier. _________________________________________________ Every parent wants their kids to be healthy But they simply cannot be healthy eating a diet of mostly processed foods Take steps to greatly reduce these in your home and your kids will be so much healthier for it