Eating Like It Matters

Developing a healthy relationship with food is not always easy, but is a key milestone in helping you and your family along the path to healthy eating. Whether you feel guilty for filling up on sweet treats or simply ignoring what you eat. Both can be a sign that you could use a tune up in eating attitude. How can you start to make the change from eating your way into a food coma vs. eating for energy?

Here are some tips to help you eat purposefully:

- Understand the link between eating and energy. Healthy food gives you energy! Choosing foods that are high in sugar and refined carbohydrate will provide you with lows and highs in blood sugar (energy). The body prefers to have a steady state of energy to keep you going throughout the day. Fill your plate with fruits, vegetables and lean protein in order to keep this steady state of energy going. You will be amazed at how quickly you will feel the change. I can almost hear my body saying 'thank-you' when I eat a piece of fresh fruit or a serving of home cooked soup.

- Eat for reasons other than filling your belly. Have an awareness of the link between disease prevention and food. Be mindful about choosing foods to improve health such as eating brightly colored vegetables for their disease fighting antioxidants and choosing to eat fish for its omega 3 fatty-acid content. You will be more likely to choose healthy foods for you and your family if you respect the power of food.

- Think twice before you bite! Before you delve into that second piece of chocolate cake, take a moment to think about what food you’ve already eaten that day. Have you had your fill of fruits and vegetables? Have you had enough protein to sustain your energy? If you have, then go ahead and indulge once in awhile (besides, as you know, I believe that food is more than nourishment for our bodies). But if you have neglected to make healthy food choices then rethink your decision. Instead, choose to have a glass of water, go for a walk around the block or find another non-food related distraction. You'll be glad you did!

Being mindful of what you eat will help you on your way to having a positive attitude towards food.

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Optimizing Your Child's Eating Habits Healthy Bite #5

Take the pressure off: Children can easily sense parental stress and will often eat less when pressured to eat more or to ‘finish their meals’. Trust that your children will eat when they are hungry and will not starve themselves. Infants and young children have an innate ability to respond to their hunger cues. Mealtimes are not entirely about nutrition. It is also a time to bond with family. Children who feel comfortable and secure at a dinner table have better appetites and are more likely to try and enjoy new foods.

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Appropriate Portion Sizes: Avoid overwhelming your child by providing appropriate portion sizes for your child. Smaller foods look more manageable, especially when introducing new foods.

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Try & Try Again: It can take up to 15 exposures to a new food before a child decides to like it. Keep serving new foods along with food that your child already enjoys and remember to eat it yourself! Keep in mind that spitting out an unfamiliar food after tasting is normal behavior and is often a way for your child to explore the new taste and texture.

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Division of Responsibility – Understanding the responsibilities of the parent and the child at mealtimes will help both to feel confident at the dinner table. Your job as a parent is to provide a meal and snack SCHEDULE (when and where to eat) for your child as well as provide them with HEALTHY CHOICES. It is your child’s responsibility to decide HOW MUCH and whether he/she will eat at all. Trust that your child will eat according to appetite and focus on quality not quantity. In the long term, bribing, threatening and rewarding your child over food generally does not help your child like healthy foods.

Optimizing Your Child’s Eating Habits

Teaching your child healthy eating habits can be challenging. Most parents recognize the role that good nutrition plays in their daily lives. Putting this into practice is not as straight forward. Here are a few tips to help you get started on creating healthy eating habits for your child:

Healthy Bite #1

Do as I Do: Parents are the most significant role models and children will eat what you eat in the end. Generally, the better the parents eat, the better the children will eat. Remember to:

• Fill up on vegetables and fruit. Aim to fill half of your plate with the disease fighting super foods at mealtimes.

• Stock your kitchen with healthy foods that will provide energy to avoid those moments of reaching for the bag of chips or sugary treats.