Healthy Eating Tips for All the Family | Obesity
By Ina Woolcott
You are what you eat was once a universal theme, today however the rise of childhood obesity in the last 3 years has reached record numbers and this powerful snippet of wisdom has been kicked to the curb. Of course, a treat now and again is fine, but for the majority of the time it should be HEALTHY, ORGANIC, UNPROCESSED, PREFERABLY RAW foods. We must raise awareness of good eating once again.
How to get control back over our diets and that of our children? I as a parent know how hectic life can seem, but my daughter and I always have healthy, unprocessed foods. We gotta respect our bodies AT ALL TIMES to stay in optimum health. It just takes a bit of self control and slowing down to become healthy once more.
The sad thing is kids generally cant do anything about their diets, they eat what their parents give them so the norm is for the trend to be set for all of their lives. Families and caregivers are responsible for the exercise and food their kids eat. Successful prevention of childhood obesity starts in the home….
Weight is a Family Affair - research the ingredients on food labels - a lot of foods are full of sugars, hydrogenated fats, MSG, yeast extract, E numbers, colourings, flavourings, chemicals, GM etc. If you don’t know what something is on a label, research it and the effects of it on ones body. Go on the internet for instance. Beware though, those trying to promote dodgy ingredients will be the first to promote them. Educate ALL your family about these ‘bad’ ingredients. Research together and individually and see what you all find. Make conscious eating choices. Also, ORGANIC is ALWAYS BEST. Even if you find it more expensive, respect your body.
Also be aware of emotional eating habits - when happy, upset, bored, lonely, stressed or peed off etc eating patterns change and negative moods add to poor health. Our habits and moods are passed on to our children. Discover what triggers your eating habits and then control this so that they aren’t copied by your kids.
Respect Your Bodies - ‘Today's generation of children is the first generation of children not predicted to live longer than their parents’ - Newsweek Magazine September 22, 2003.
Everyone ages, however, how we all progress into older age is down to our habits, and we assist our children to reach older age. Look inward, adjust your beliefs about your body and attitude toward age, then set a positive example for your children. You are responsible for your body, paying attention to it now will only BENEFIT you in the long run. Don’t think that you are young now so it doesn’t matter, because you will only get ill in the long run. Aging doesn’t mean that your body will fail. If you put effort in you will reap the rewards. Good eating coupled with daily exercise and activities will keep you bright and energetic. You could do exercises with your kids if they are old enough. Go hiking, ride bikes together, you could do yoga or martial arts together, go swimming - the options are endless! Set an example, be proud that you can point your kids in the right direction and give them the best you can. Encourage them to be outdoors more than inside, not glued to the TV or computer. Obviously there is noting wrong with some TV, but just as with food, all in moderation. Although you gotta be a bit stricter with food.
Involve your kids in the kitchen with food preparation and cooking - Don’t treat the kitchen as a no-no to your kids, let them help. Even if you work during the week and don’t have enough time then you could always use the weekends. Many children don’t have basic cooking knowledge and end up buying TOTALLY UNUTRITIONAL microwave ready meals or buy takeaways when they are older as they don’t know any better. Ultimately, this will lead to weight gain and ill health in later life. By involving your kids in the kitchen they will not only understand the importance of healthy eating and food prep but also kitchen safety.
Go food shopping together - I’m sure many parents dislike the whole food shop thing, which may seem like a chore. I for one actually love going shopping and filling my trolley with organic fruit, veg and some kind of fish. As my daughter is still too young to demand stuff I suppose this is easier. Although she will ask for her favourite fruits (strawberries, grapes, Satsuma’s and blueberries), this I am happy to buy though, as long as it is all organic. If they don’t have the organic version she understands, I tell her that its not organic and she understands. If we are to rush about and grab all the cheap offers and cheap foods, then our kids will pick up this behaviour for later life. Before you go food shopping, you could write a list with your child(ren) together to add a sense of inclusion and anticipation, and maybe allow them to pick some new fruits or vegetable they have not yet tried. Also teach them to look at the ingredients, read them together. If you don’t know an ingredient teach them to research it.
How we eat is as important as what we eat - It is vital to understand that how we eat is as essential as what we eat. Teach your children to chew properly. Why? Because - there are powerful enzymes present in our saliva that work at breaking down the food as soon as it goes in our mouths. This is the first step in the digestive process. If not chewed properly, the food will pass through the digestive system as large pieces. Chewing correctly is the only way to grind up food so it is small enough for the digestive system to extract as many nutrients as possible.
Chew food 25-50 times an pass this on to your kids, or we wont get the full benefit of the foods. Do not eat in stressful situations or atmospheres, with loud music, too much talking as this influences a person to eat to quickly. Lastly, eat before 7pm to allow the body to relax and unwind at the end of the day and not have to deal with digesting a full stomach, thereby using up all its energy.
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