As a parent, you do your best in making sure your children are happy, healthy, and safe. Maintaining a healthy weight for children can be difficult, though. With children always spending time at school, homes of friends and relatives, and participating in extracurricular activities, it’s impossible to control what children are being exposed to. However, creating a healthy environment at home can help children be healthier, and teach them to apply these healthier habits in other environments, too. Whether you worry about your children being underweight, overweight, or just unhealthy, the following five tips will help you to establish a healthy at-home environment, allowing your children to maintain a healthy weight.
Prepare Snacks and Meals Together
There are many ways that kids can be involved with healthy activities at home, and this is one of them. Instead of saying, “This is what we are eating for dinner tonight,” or, “What do you want for dinner tonight?” and giving into his/her request for chicken nuggets, try, “Which vegetable should we have for dinner tonight?” or, “How about we peel these carrots together?” This way, children are still getting a say in what they want to eat, and getting to participate in making it happen. This process can help your child learn to make and enjoy healthy choices. Additionally, participation can even be fun!
Practice Healthy, Accurate Portioning
It’s no surprise that we consume more calories when we consume large portions, which leads to weight gain, but we can maintain a healthy weight by consuming the correct portion sizes. Practicing correct portion sizes at meals can get children into the habit of eating less (versus the often oversized restaurant portions), as well as orienting them to what a correct serving size actually looks like. As a source from the USDA suggests, using smaller dishware and measuring foods can help with consuming correct serving sizes. Also, reading food labels to see what is considered a serving avoids overconsumption, and is good practice for kids to start being aware of food labels.
Drink Healthy, Too
A lot of empty calories can come from beverages, and can really add up throughout the day. One of the best beverage options is water. Calorie-free, cost-free, and hydrating, water is safe for kids of all ages. Other kid-friendly options such as milk and juice can also be handy and helpful, but should be moderated as calorie and sugar content can be high, and often times, as a 2007 Pediatrics for Parents article notes, these calories are not always compensated for when considering food consumption that same day. Keeping a full pitcher of water in the refrigerator is easy to access, and because water is flavorless, adding fresh citrus or berries adds more flavor, and can be more appetizing to children.
Ensure Adequate Sleep
As parents, you know the importance (and value) of a good night’s rest. Not only is it important for mental health, but physically, it can be beneficial for maintaining a healthy weight. A 2014 study from the University of Illinois found that adequate sleep has a significant effect in lowering the incidence for obesity in both children and adults. Ways to create that sleep-friendly environment include limiting television time throughout the day, especially at least 30 minutes before bedtime, and developing a calming bedtime ritual, such as a bath or reading a story. Additionally, the amount of sleep children got was directly related to the amount their parents got, so unplug early and get that healthy rest yourself.
Turn up the Tunes
Incorporating music at home and around activities can be fun and beneficial. Music has been found to increase physical activity and mood, and in contrast, listening to classical music while eating was shown to slow the rate of eating, improving digestion and decreasing overall consumption. With the current usage of an array of electronics, accessing music is possible for nearly everyone. Whether it’s turning on your favorite Pandora station, putting a CD in the stereo, or even on the television to a popular music channel, playing music at home is fun and helps promote a healthier environment.
These five tips are just a few easy ways in creating an environment that works toward maintaining a healthy weight for families. In addition, they can be fun and interactive so that even the kids can be on board. As parents, it is important to also model these same behaviors along with your children for long-term, consistent success. By creating a healthy environment at home, you can help your child maintain a healthy weight without making them feel self-conscious about their body. If you are still concerned about your child’s weight, the professionals at Zoe Pediatrics suggest you ask your pediatrician for helpful suggestions specific to your child that can help maintain a healthy weight. Remember, you are your child’s best advocate for good health, so set a good example, implement helpful programs at home, and work as a team to maintain healthy weight as a family.
