Having Trouble Teaching Your Kids to Develop Healthy Habits? Here Are 5 Ways That Might Help
Health experts say, involving your children in preparing meals that include a lot of healthy nutritious options will 'increase their chance of making them eat healthier' at a young age and even as they get older.
As parents, it is your foremost responsibility to teach your children the essentiality of living a healthy life. However, it does not do any good if they don't practice what you teach them, right?
If you're having trouble establishing and sticking with healthy habits, yourself, always think of your little boys" and girls' health, which will surely motivate you.
As the family's primary role models, it will be much more effective if you set good examples of healthy eating habits and physical activity.
The effect you have on your children, especially during their early years, can also impact their long-term decision-making.
5 Easy Ways to Teach Them Healthy Habits
You can definitely help your kids develop healthy habits earlier in life that will lead to benefits of a lifetime.
According to the pediatrician, Dr. Kimberly Leek, kids look up to their parents, and thus, as such, we should set a good example. Try these five easy steps to get, not just your children, but the whole family started living a healthy lifestyle.
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1. Promote a Balanced Diet at Home
Like adults, kids need to eat and drink food and beverages, respectively, full of nutrients to fill their bodies with the energy they need for the day.
You don't have to force healthy foods like vegetables and fruits onto your little ones, but instead, instill in them the advantages of eating them. Explain how to reach these foods are in vitamins, proteins, minerals, carbohydrates, and healthy fats.
Health experts say, contents vitamins, minerals, and others, "give their muscles energy" so they can move fast and efficiently, and feel great all day.
It will be best to explain to your children that eating foods that are too salty, sweet, and oily will make them feel sick and unenergetic.
Some of the foods you can include in your kids' everyday meals and diet are:
- Whole grains
- Vegetables
- Fruits
- Protein like lean meats, eggs, peas, seafood and peace
- Low-fat dairy products such as milk, cheese, yogurt
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2. Engage Your Children when Preparing Meals
A lot of parents have proven this technique useful. Take advantage of the cooking time and use it to teach your little boys and girls about the basics of eating nutritious foods, as well as the importance of consuming fruits and veggies.
Health experts say, involving your children in preparing meals that include a lot of healthy nutritious options will "increase their chance of making them eat healthier" at a young age and even as they get older.
As you teach the young ones about healthy eating, be sure they're having fun doing the meal prep, first and foremost. Ensure that they are having a positive experience from this activity.
3. Limit the Kids' Screen Time
Healthy habits don't just mean eating nutritious foods and exercising. They may also involve setting a time limit for video games and video-watching.
In this digital era, children and teenagers are growing up so engrossed in tech gadgets like television, computer, and smartphone, almost all hours of the day.
As parents, you play a vital role in teaching your kids the use of screen time in a healthy manner that can improve their everyday lives.
Dr. Leek suggests making a "family media use plan" that sets limits and encourages play. The pediatrician emphasized the "overuse of media" that can result in a "sedentary lifestyle," not to mention, displacement of social interactions, physical activities, and "even sleep."
4. Initiate Fun Physical Activities Kids will Enjoy
You know which activities bring fun to the whole family, especially your kids. Expose them to these kinds of physical activities that will make them not just exercise but also enjoy every one.
Some of the activities you can have as a family include swimming, hiking, camping, fishing, 30 minutes to one hour of dancing, and jogging.
You may also engage them in household chores like having them help you clean the house, tidying their room, or fixing their bed.
5. Teach the Kids to Make Reading a Habit
It is essential to develop a strong reading skill to ensure your child's success in school at present, and later, at work.
Aside from guaranteeing excellent performance in school, reading will help build your kids' self-esteem, as well as their relationship with you and the rest of the household.
Cleveland Clinic recommends that parents include reading as a part of their "children's playtime and bedtime routines. It also suggests that reading to children every day can start as early as six months.
It is crucial to choose books your little ones like to make them view the reading activity as a treat for them, not a chore or responsibility they are obliged to follow.
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Jul 03, 2020 08:50 AM EDT
