Healthy Eating For Kids

In today's society, fast food is everywhere; luring children in with their advertising and general presence on the high street. This overbearing presence can make it difficult not only to teach a child how to eat healthily but also why they should.

Children (and I'm sure you were the same!) will always prefer a happy meal over a chicken salad. However, through trial and error, you can narrow down the healthy foods that you child does like.

Start them young!

Generally children are less fussy when they are youngest. If your child is under 3 years old, now is the time to make sure that they eat a wide variety of healthy foods. This way they will not have to be introduced later to a hostile 5 year old!

Under the radar

If your child is of the age where all they want is cake, sweets and pizza and no amount of begging, pleading or bribery will get them eating the amazing stew you whipped up it's time to be a little sneaky. Children (and most adults) eat with their eyes, but unlike adults, they do not know or even care about the benefits of healthy food. Next time you make a meal, try adding something that usually puts your child on the defensive but make sure that it is well disguised. Once the meal is gobbled up and approved, reveal the hidden ingredient.

It's win-win, your child is eating vegetables and next time you present the vegetable you can remind them of the time that they ate it and liked it!

Funny names and stories

Associating fruit and vegetables with fun names or stories is a great way to get your children enthusiastic about healthy eating. You can make stories up about the food making children in to superheroes or personify the food itself to tell a story on the plate. The possibilities are endless and as long as you make it fun and engaging, your child will enjoy eating healthily.

Rig the election!

Allowing your child to choose their food is a great way to get them to eat it. By offering up a selection of healthy food you can make sure that they are eating healthily and just as importantly, they are learning about healthy eating options. This will make them less likely to choose junk later in life.

There are many ways to encourage your children to eat healthier. If you can make it fun and educational they will be much more likely to take their new habits through to adulthood.

James Carrington lives in London, UK - and provides nutrition advice for sport and general health.
James help many people achieve their dietary and fitness goals via his website http://healthyeatingand.me.