How to approach nutrition when feeding children away from home
C
hildren can be picky eaters. Parents know that getting kids to eat anything, much less healthy foods, can sometimes make the dinner table feel more like a battlefield than a place to break bread. That’s especially so when the dinner table is in a restaurant, where savvy youngsters might know less nutritious dishes like macaroni and cheese or fried chicken fingers are on the menu. But the benefits of a healthy, balanced diet are so numerous for youngsters that it’s worth doing whatever it takes to get kids to embrace nutrientrich foods, both at home and when dining out. The American Academy of Family Physicians notes that a healthy diet can stabilize children’s energy levels, help them maintain healthy weights and potentially prevent mental health conditions, including anxiety and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. But recognizing the importance of a healthy diet and getting kids to embrace one are two different things, especially when kids are dining out and being tempted by unhealthy alternatives. In recognition of that, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends the following strategies to parents who want their kids to eat healthy when they’re away from home.
14
Make meals all-inclusive. When preparing school lunches or taking youngsters out for a night on the town, make sure to offer a mix of foods from the five food groups. The AAP recommends parents offer vegetables, fruit, grains, low-fat dairy, and/or quality Enhance foods if necessary. While protein sources, which can include meat, high amounts of sugar, salt and fat fish, nuts, seeds, and eggs. Offering can jeopardize the health of adults and each of these foods at every meal may youngsters alike, the AAP notes that not be feasible, but kids should eat foods small amounts of these substances can selected from the major food groups at be used to enhance kids’ enjoyment of every meal. healthy foods and increase the likelihood Avoid highly processed foods. The that they will eat them. National Institutes of Health notes that Parents may not have much control over studies have suggested there’s a link what their children eat while away from between highly processed foods and home. But a handful of strategies can health problems. Such foods, which increase the likelihood that kids enjoy typically contain ingredients such as healthy fare when eating at school or at hydrogenated oils, high-fructose corn restaurants. syrup and flavoring agents, are typically high in calories, salt, sugar, and fat. While highly processed foods tend to be easier to make and readily available When you or a at restaurants, loved one are facing serving them to youngsters can start kids down the life our caring road to poor dietary professionals are habits, potentially increasing their risk for obesity and diseases like Fees are based heart disease and diabetes. When Sinnissippi Centers packing snacks for school lunches or Providing care, Medicaid, taking kids out to offering hope Medicare, restaurants, be sure to include or bring All Kids, along healthy whole www.sinnissippi.org and private foods, such insurance as fruits and vegetables. This can accepted ensure kids get some healthy fare during mealtime.
Just a phone Justcall a phone call away away
800-242-7642
SM-ST29159-0214
