March is National Nutrition Month, a national campaign — sponsored by the American Dietetic Associationdesigned to focus attention on the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating habits.
That means we should be thinking more about the food we eat — and about the food we give our little ones.
It also couldn’t hurt to consider about how we make sure our children get the nutrition they need.
You can reward your kids for eating healthy (if you finish your green beans, you can have a cookies).
There’s also tricking your kids into eating healthy, suggested in Jessica Seinfeld’s book Deceptively Delicious, Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Food.
The experts say that kids need time to develop eating habits. When introducing new foods, kids may not like it — but don’t give up.
The experts say you need to try giving food to a child as many 10 to 15 times before he or she can officially “not like it.”
Because let’s face it: New foods are scary.
Let’s talk about our successes and failures getting our kids to eat healthy. What’s worked for you?
Another smart strategy is the idea "if it's not in the house, you and your kids can't eat it." I'm still trying to perfect this one, but I get it. If given the choice between cookies or carrots sticks, most kids (and adults) would rather have the cookies. They're not counting calories. And having fruits and veggies available and at the ready -- cut up in the fridge or featured as appetizer while making dinner -- is super helpful. Getting kids involved with selecting a new fruit or vegetable for dinner or a snack makes them more likely to eat it. Recent case in point: Emma recently selected a recipe for salmon with a Japanese Ponzu sauce (citrus, ginger, and chipotle chiles, among other ingredients). I'm pretty confident if I had tried to sell her on this meal, it wouldn't have been fun. But since she had a sense of ownership in the meal, she gobbled it up and really liked it. Score!
(On a side note -- try to avoid rewarding children with food (i.e. cookies, candy, cakes, etc) for eating fruits and vegetables. Children should learn that the fruit or vegetable is a reward in itself; they're full of vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants and phytochemicals you won't find in processed foods. )
On another note, I have always fed by children the way that i eat. and to this day I am very proud to say that my children love fruits and vegetables, in fact my youngest asked me if we were planting carrots this year. Of course we are, I love when he goes out each morning to harvest himself a fresh carrot! Hugs Karen