Tips for Moms and Families

Nutrition::Tips for Moms and Families

Busy moms have a wealth of concerns when it comes to the eating habits of their children.  The good news is that small steps make a big difference in improving health and reducing the risk of diabetes and other chronic diseases.  The most important thing is to start where you are—by working healthier habits into your family’s daily routine. To get started, here are 50 ideas for making healthier food choices, moving more, and taking care of your family.

Make Healthier Food Choices:

1. Choose baked instead of fried potato chips.
2. Buy pre-cut carrots, celery, broccoli and other veggies and serve these with low-fat dressing or dip.
3. Try one new fruit or vegetable each week.  Have your children help you choose it at the store.
4. For kids over the age of 2, try 1% or 2% milk instead of whole milk. Gradually decrease the fat level, and they may not even notice.
5. To get your children to eat more fruits and veggies, finely chop or shred carrots, zucchini, celery, red pepper, or mushrooms and sneak them into spaghetti sauce, meatloaf, and other dishes.
6. Offer 100% fruit juice mixed with carbonated water instead of sodas.
7. Rename vegetables, giving them fun names. Let your children help with this.
8. Choose a salad or cut carrots or apples instead of French fries at fast food restaurants.
9. Don’t go to the grocery store when you or your children are hungry.
10. Remember that all forms of fruits and vegetables count.  Include fresh, frozen, dried, canned, and 100% juice products.
11. Encourage children to taste every food you serve, even if they say they don’t like it.  Taste can change over time.
12. Try whole grains like brown rice instead of white rice.
13. To avoid “impulse snacking”, carry healthful snacks for your family.
14. Add fresh or dried fruit to cereal or oatmeal at breakfast.
15. Offer vegetables instead of fruits as the first food for infants. We’re all born with a preference for sweet tastes, but offering veggies first encourages babies to try other flavors and not expect all foods to be sweet.
16. Pile pizza with tomatoes, peppers, onions, mushrooms, and other vegetables.
17. Stuff sandwiches with slices of vegetables like tomato, green pepper, lettuce, onion, or cucumber.
18. Encourage children to help in the kitchen. They will enjoy eating healthful foods more if they helped.
19. Try not to snack while cooking. This will also help keep you safe from food borne illness.
20. Take your children to the library or search the Web together for healthful family recipes.
21. Enjoy family mealtimes.  If you can’t do this every day, aim to enjoy a family mealtime at least a couple of times each week.

Manage Portion Sizes:

1. Banish the “clean plate club”.  Encourage your child to eat until his/her stomach is full, not until the plate is empty.
2. When eating at fast-food restaurants, think SMALL—small hamburgers, small drinks, etc.
3. Don’t finish off the food left on your child’s plate.
4. Serve age-appropriate portions.
5. Don't let your child skip meals. Going too long between meals may cause children to eat too much at their next meal.
6. Listen to music while you eat instead of watching TV.

Move More:

1. Visit the playground.
2. Whenever possible, walk places with your child instead of driving.
3. Kick a soccer ball around the park together.
4. Teach “hopping like a bunny”, “jumping like a frog”, and other fun activities and encourage children to help you invent their own activities.
5. Make fitness fun!  Keeping their spirits up will help keep their weight down.
6. Show your children the dances you used to do when you were their age.
7. Schedule family “walking dates” throughout the week.
8. Organize a family softball or basketball game.  If you need more people, involve other neighborhood families.
9. Turn up the music and dance with your children while doing household chores.
10. When watching TV, use the commercial breaks to take a quick lap around the house.  See who can run the most laps during the commercials.
11. Walk the family dog; don’t just watch the dog walk.
12. Take the stairs instead of an escalator or elevator.
13. When shopping, park a little farther away from the store entrance.
14. Play active outdoor games with your children.
15. Encourage your children to play organized sports. Support them by learning as much as you can about their chosen sport.

Take Care:

1. Look at what your family eats by the week, not by the meal.  Don’t get stressed if each meal isn’t “perfect”, as long as their overall diet includes a wide variety of healthful foods.
2. Turn off the TV so you can focus on your family.
3. Encourage yourself and your children with positive feedback.
4. Avoid using food as a reward or a punishment.  Praise your children with positive words, and offer non-food rewards, like extra reading or play time.
5. Include children in discussions about health.
6. During family mealtimes, ask open-ended questions like “What was the most interesting thing you saw today?” or “If you could be any animal, what would you be?”  Take turns answering the questions.
7. Try not to eat out of boredom or frustration.  Encourage your children to know the difference between hunger and emotions.
8. Honor your health and your family as a precious gift.

GetFit Tips were taken from www.eatright.org, by the American Dietetic Association and www.CDC.gov by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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