Tips to Encourage Children to Enjoy Healthy Eating

While some children can’t wait for their meal times, others absolutely dread it. Children can be picky, especially when they’re at a young age. But as a parent, you can’t give in and allow your children to indulge in snack foods and treats. Instead of using anger and discipline – which often doesn’t have the desired effect – there are more sensitive options to get your children enjoying healthy eating. This article will outline 5 top tips to get your children to enjoy eating healthily.

Get Them Involved

Get your children involved! Not only is it educational, fun and a great bonding exercise, but it might even make things easier on you. Whenever you’re going grocery shopping or planning or cooking meals, involve your child/children. At the shops, let your child pick the fruit out and show them what the healthier options are. Teach them all about food and the negative affects of consuming lots of unhealthy, sugary foods.

Make Healthy Snacks / Reduce Unhealthy Snacks

Healthy alternatives such as home-made muesli bars and healthy fruit biscuits are a great way to encourage healthy eating habits. Although it can be hard to minimise the amount of naughty foods, you can always hide your snacks from your children. Keeping unhealthy snacks away from them, means that they only have healthy options to choose from.

Make Fun Food Creations

Similar to getting your children involved, you can cook fun meals that are visually appealing as well as healthy. Getting creative with your ingredients can be a fun exercise for your children as well as an easy way to get them to enjoy eating healthily.

Eat Together

Eating together is an extremely vital part of family food bonding. While it may not always be possible, it is important to make time to eat together with the whole family on a regular basis. Regular family meals encourage routine and promotes positive eating habits. Not to mention, if the whole family is eating, your child will most likely want to join in and do the same.

Be Persistent

New foods are typically a pretty scary concept for children. Especially when they’re comfortable with their current eating habits. It can take quite a long time to encourage your child to try new things, but the key is being persistent. Don’t take no as an answer, keep trying, they will accept it eventually.