How to?..Help Kids Develop Healthy Eating Habits ? Let's Go SC

What can I do as a parent or guardian to help prevent childhood overweight and obesity?

To help your child maintain a healthy weight, balance the calories your child consumes from foods and beverages with the calories your child uses through physical activity and normal growth.

Remember that the goal for overweight and obese children and teens is to reduce the rate of weight gain while allowing normal growth and development. Children and teens should NOT be placed on a weight reduction diet without the consultation of a health care provider.

Balancing Calories: Help Kids Develop Healthy Eating Habits

One part of balancing calories is to eat foods that provide adequate nutrition and an appropriate number of calories. You can help children learn to be aware of what they eat by developing healthy eating habits, looking for ways to make favorite dishes healthier, and reducing calorie-rich temptations.

Encourage healthy eating habits.
There?s no great secret to healthy eating. To help your children and family develop healthy eating habits:

• Provide plenty of vegetables, fruits, and whole-grain products.
• Include low-fat or non-fat milk or dairy products.
• Choose lean meats, poultry, fish, lentils, and beans for protein.
• Serve reasonably-sized portions.
• Encourage your family to drink lots of water.
• Limit sugar-sweetened beverages.
• Limit consumption of sugar and saturated fat.

Remember that small changes every day can lead to a recipe for success!

For more information about nutrition, visit ChooseMyPlate.gov and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2010 (PDF-2.9Mb).

Look for ways to make favorite dishes healthier.
The recipes that you may prepare regularly, and that your family enjoys, with just a few changes can be healthier and just as satisfying. For new ideas about how to add more fruits and vegetables to your daily diet check out the recipe database from the FruitsandVeggiesMatter.gov. This database enables you to find tasty fruit and vegetable recipes that fit your needs.

Remove calorie-rich temptations!
Although everything can be enjoyed in moderation, reducing the calorie-rich temptations of high-fat and high-sugar, or salty snacks can also help your children develop healthy eating habits. Instead only allow your children to eat them sometimes, so that they truly will be treats! Here are examples of easy-to-prepare, low-fat and low-sugar treats that are 100 calories or less:

• A medium-size apple
• A medium-size banana
• 1 cup blueberries
• 1 cup grapes
• 1 cup carrots, broccoli, or bell peppers with 2 tbsp. hummus

Balancing Calories: Help Kids Stay Active

Another part of balancing calories is to engage in an appropriate amount of physical activity and avoid too much sedentary time. In addition to being fun for children and teens, regular physical activity has many health benefits, including:

• Strengthening bones
• Decreasing blood pressure
• Reducing stress and anxiety
• Increasing self-esteem
• Helping with weight management

Help kids stay active.
Children and teens should participate in at least 60 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity most days of the week, preferably daily.¹¹ Remember that children imitate adults. Start adding physical activity to your own daily routine and encourage your child to join you.

Some examples of moderate intensity physical activity include:

• Brisk walking
• Playing tag
• Jumping rope
• Playing soccer
• Swimming
• Dancing

Reduce sedentary time.
In addition to encouraging physical activity, help children avoid too much sedentary time. Although quiet time for reading and homework is fine, limit the time your children watch television, play video games, or surf the web to no more than 2 hours per day. Additionally, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) does not recommend television viewing for children age 2 or younger.¹² Instead, encourage your children to find fun activities to do with family members or on their own that simply involve more activity.

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Want to learn more?

Here are some additional resources that you (and your child) can use to help reach or keep a healthy weight through physical activity and healthy food choices!

For Parents and Guardians

Child and Teen BMI (Body Mass Index) Calculator
Worried about your child?s weight? For children, BMI is used to screen for overweight, but is not a diagnostic tool. For more, see About BMI for Children and Teens.

Childhood Overweight
This Web site provides information about childhood overweight, including how overweight is defined for children, the prevalence of overweight, the factors associated with overweight, and the related health consequences.

Physical Activity for Everyone
Provides information about physical activity for you and your children.

FruitsandVeggiesMatter.gov
Great recipes and information about how to incorporate fruits and vegetables in your daily meals.

How to Avoid Portion Size Pitfalls How to Avoid Portion Size Pitfalls
Confused about portion sizes? Play the CDC?s portion control game!

ChooseMyPlate.gov
Provides a tailored explanation of how to balance your meals and includes an interactive game for kids.

We Can!
This national education program is designed for parents and caregivers to help children 8-13 years old stay at a healthy weight. The booklet ?Finding the Balance: A Parent Resources? offers an array of easy to use practical tips and tools for parents and guardians to help their children and families eat healthy, increase physical activity, and decrease screen time.

For Kids ONLY

BAM! Body and Mind
Have fun, stay active and healthy.

Blast Off Game
Learn what it takes to blast off in the food pyramid space shuttle!

Best Bones Forever!
A bone health campaign for girls and their BFFs to ?grow strong together and stay strong forever!?

Power Panther?to the Rescue!
Eat smart, play hard.

VERB
Hey! It?s what you do.

Source: http://www.letsgosc.org/2012/07/how-to-help-kids-develop-healthy-eating-habits/

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