Contents:
- Medical Video: How to Create a Healthy Plate
- Make mealtime a family time
- Avoid forcing food
- Make fun food
- Practice what you learn
Medical Video: How to Create a Healthy Plate
If you are a working mother, you may worry about your child's eating habits. You may have a caregiver or place your child in a day care center while you work. In both cases, you must make sure your child gets a healthy diet and creates healthy eating habits. If your child has an ulcer or gastric acid reflux disease (GERD), poor eating habits can worsen the condition. Creating good habits of children from a young age is very important. You can help children control heartburn and pain reflux and prevent obesity. Here are some tips for creating good eating habits.
Make mealtime a family time
Your child like many other children may not like meals. It is difficult for a child to sit in one place for a long time. Your child prefers to go play and explore. Children need to see that eating good food is a valuable part of life and that eating time is fun.
To make a meal time pleasant, make sure the whole family gather together. Show the child that eating time is the time when the family can talk and eat together. Suggest your child share about the things he saw that day or what they did at school. Most families are too busy and sometimes eat separately in front of the TV or while using a gadget. Family time during mealtime is important for children's development by showing social interaction.
It is also a good idea to maintain good manners but don't let the meal time become too rigid with too many rules. Your child will not like it.
Avoid forcing food
Every time you will see a caregiver or even a parent feeding a food that your child might not like. This creates bad eating habits. Your child cannot learn when it is too full and is more at risk for stomach ulcers and GERD.
Make sure your child gets the right portion size. Remember your child is not as big as you. Their stomachs are still small and do not require the number of calories needed by an adult. Don't force feeding your child, this will only make things worse. Let them know that it's okay to not eat food. Too much feeding in children can cause ulcers and GERD or can make symptoms worse. It is recommended to avoid acidic foods and eat smaller portions more often.
Children are often hungry after school. In families that have dinner late at night, you can give your child snacks when going home from school. Healthy snacks include apples, yogurt, or bananas.
Make fun food
Instead of having a strict meal plan, advise your caregiver to make food that your child likes as long as the food is healthy. Try to introduce new foods but don't force them to like them. Give them freedom of exploring will make mealtime fun and find new healthy choices.
Children are more likely to eat if they think the food is interesting. Give colorful food to attract children's attention. You can make interesting shapes or settings that catch their eyes. Also try giving them more food that is eaten by hand or finger. More fun when they can touch their food.
Fruits and vegetables are difficult for children because they may seem boring. You should avoid cooking too many vegetables to keep the food crispy. As for fruits, avoid giving brownish fruits. Chocolate is not an attractive color and can make children think fruit is rotten and refuse to eat.
If you provide dessert for children, you should treat it only as part of a meal and not a gift for finishing food. This can make the child think that the food is bad and refuse to eat if there is no dessert.
Practice what you learn
You might not see it, but your child cares for you. Children are quick to imitate what they see in adults. You also your caregiver must be a role model for your child. This means you must have a healthy diet and eating habits.
You can teach your child about food safety by taking them to a grocery trip. It also helps your child choose what they like to eat. They will have no reason not to eat later.
Remember that you like if someone imposes things on you, so does your child. Raising a child is an art and there is no right or wrong way to do it. If you have a picky eater, you can talk to other parents about their eating habits or nutritionists to get more tips and ideas. Good eating habits are important for preventing heartburn and GERD and obesity.
Hello Health Group does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.
