How to Get Your Kids to Eat Healthier

Looking to get the kids off junk food? Here are some tips for easier, healthier eating.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• A new outlook
• A trip to the dollar store for some fun, colorful plates

1. 
    
   Chicken nuggets are a favorite. Try pairing them with a new vegetable.

   Introduce changes in your children's (or teen's) diet gradually. The best way to introduce new foods is in combination with things they already like. If, for example, you want them to try sweet potatoes, try it with chicken nuggets that night.

2. 
    
   The sweet bell pepper: one the healthiest -- and tastiest -- foods that kids LOVE to eat. Especially easy and raw.

   Remember that healthy food is often EASY food. Kids tend to like their vegetables RAW. Chop colorful vegetables up into easy-to-handle, finger-food strips, complete with dipping cups (kids are likely to eat ANYTHING if they can dip it in low-fat ranch dressing). Try red, orange and yellow peppers, one of nature's healthiest, most vitamin-packed resources.

3. 
    
   A variety of foods, researchers show, makes us eat more.

   Keep in mind, too, THIS rule of thumb, when serving food to kids: the more colorful the food on the plate, the better it is for them. Furthermore, psychologists have determined, the more choices you allow a person -- that is, the more kinds of food there are on a plate each meal -- the more a person is likely to eat. So instead of giving your child two or three items each meal, try five much smaller, less overwhelming varieties. For example, two or three small carrots, a small sampling of bell pepper strips, two celery stalks, a small portion of meat, and a dollop of applesauce. Tasty -- and they're likely to dip into more of it.

4. 
    
   Serve your kids a crudité platter to make them feel good -- and healthy.

   Try this trick, too: a crudité platter served in the dining room, with fancy vegetables and dipping sauce, a la restaurant style is a nice way to make the kids feel special, while sneaking in those veggies at the same time.

5. Visit local farm markets on the weekends for the best, freshest flavor. This is a fun family trip, and it teaches the kids how to choose their own fruits and vegetables. Empowering the kids in this way can help you at mealtimes -- they picked it, they'll eat it.

6. Empower the kids in the kitchen, too. Let them help any way they can, as early as you can -- and as late. You'd be amazed at how carefully even the smallest child can break an egg, when given a chance -- and really, so what if you have to dig a couple of eggshells out of the bowl, if it gets them to eat? Let them stir, let them beat -- if they cooked it, they'll eat. Teach them early on about how making the right choices at mealtime will help them to grow strong -- run fast, make the football team, or will make their princess hair grow longer.

7. 
    
   Strawberries are just as good as candy -- only WAY better for you.

   Keep healthy alternatives on hand and easy to reach, instead of cookies and chips. Strawberries couldn't be easier -- to make them last, slice off the leaves on top and slice them in half, and keep them in a covered bowl in the fridge. Oranges are good, too - older children can peel them on their own. Experiment once in a while with different, exotic fruits, like kiwi and papaya.

8. Lastly: a trip to the dollar store will snag you some fun, colorful plates -- and remember, a nice visual presentation makes mealtime that much more fun -- and after all, whose meals are more important?

Tips & Warnings

• Remember: local produce sellers, whose fruit and veggies are always in season, are your best bet.
• Keeping kids in the loop keeps kids at the table and eating.
• This might just work!

Resources

• Inkless Tales Grownups Section: Recipes

[DianeD]

on 1/1/2009 My 3 year grandson eats anything and everything. He was a breast fed baby, and had a healthy start.