Tempt Kids with Innovative Fruit & Veggie Recipes
Do you want your children to maintain a healthy body weight? Given below are few easy-to-follow nutrition instructions for sound health.
Take care to include fruits and veggies in meals and snacks. Children need at least 1½ cups of fruits and 2 cups of veggies every day. Children mostly don’t mind eating fruits as they have a sweet taste and would like to indulge in a bowl of frozen grapes, melon kebabs, blueberry pancakes and strawberry-topped frozen yogurt. The major challenge here is that most kids dislike bitter or strong flavored veggies. It is better to offer them some steamed broccoli or cauliflower. Introduce a variety of veggies and dip choices by steaming green beans and zucchini and serving them cold along with baby carrots, celery and cucumbers.
Break your fast with a wholesome breakfast. Apart from your regular cereal and milk, try a breakfast combo with some scrambled egg, cheese and veggies wrapped in a chapatti roll. Teach kids to prepare their own breakfast smoothie or serve a yogurt bar with plain or vanilla-flavored yogurt.Top them with some dried fruits, nuts and granola.
Eat three servings of low-fat dairy foods. Children need to consume low-fat dairy foods to nourish the body with bone-building calcium and to maintain a healthy body weight. Prefer low-fat milk as your regular beverage with meals and consume soft drinks only during special occasions. You can also drink low-fat flavored milk which contains the healthy nutrients of unflavored milk, with a bit more sugar than the plain variety. Also substitute high-fat sour cream with low-fat plain yogurt on baked potatoes or spicy nachos.
Stay physically fit. Children should stay active and fit. Make them dance to their favorite music and dance along with them to motivate the little ones to remain active. Also, have an eye on the kid-friendly activities in your locality. Involve the entire family in this process by planning activities such as biking, post-dinner walks, basketball or soccer at the park. You can even tune your child to play games that promote fitness and balance rather than allowing them to sit with a laptop in their hand.
Review portions. Portion sizes may go out of control just in front of your eyes. Use day to day items to have an idea of the portion sizes. For example, a tennis ball is about one cup of cooked pasta or rice and a DVD is about the size of one waffle or pancake. Keep smaller portions and smaller plates for kid-sized appetites. Be mindful of beverages as 1 cup (235 ml) beverage is a healthy portion size, but the usual quantity that is sold by retailers come in 2 cups (473 ml) or more servings per bottle or can. Serving size and portion size are crucial to make smart food choices that stay within the recommended calories given by dietitians/nutritionists at https://www.firsteatright.com.
Eat your meals together as a family. Make it a rule to eat at least one meal together as a family every day. Spend time with your loved ones with healthy conversations and keep all the electronic gadgets like mobiles and televisions turned off to make this happen. Use this quality time to teach your children table manners, such as using a napkin, the correct method to cut meat and also to share your experience through the day.
Allow your children to plan the menu. Children should be involved in planning meals to make them aware of eating healthy. Plan the week’s menu together as a family and ask your children for their opinion. Integrate kitchen duties along with your child’s other household chores by allotting small activities like cleaning the table or washing the vegetables. Finally, teach your child to cook. In case you lack effective culinary skills,join a cooking class along with your son or daughter.
Never deprive foods or use food as a reward. Always remember to limit the portion sizes of your child’s favorite foods instead off or bidding them completely. Parents are responsible for the eating habits and timings of their child. Having a let go attitude can result in munching on unhealthy food throughout the day resulting in obesity.
Restrict screen time. Sitting in front of the television, staring at a computer or playing monotonous video games are passive activities and can lead to a nun healthy body weight. Take note of the amount of time your kid spends in front of an electronic gadget and cut back by 30 minutes every day until your desiredtime for gaming, television or computer use is reached.
Cultivate the habit of healthy snacking. Kids love snacks but keep the portion sizes small. Make them choose between grains,fruits or low-fat dairy foods.
Minimize high-fat food consumption. Reduce the intake of fatty foods that can lead to weight gain. Choose leaner meats, such as ground turkey breast instead of ground turkey or ground round or sirloin instead of ground chunk. Also choose low-fat milk instead of whole milk to reduce hidden fats in dairy foods.
Keep a tab on sugar-sweetened beverages. Soft drinks, fruit drinks and mock tails contain added sugars and lead to extra calories.Choose homemade lemonade or iced tea instead, which contain only half the sugar as prepared drinks. Prepare flavored waters (orange, raspberry, lemon-lime and cherry) which contain zero calories.
Choose wisely while eating out. When dining out, select simple food such as plain hamburgers or veggie sandwiches for your children. Also read through the new options on the children’s menu such as roasted papads to keep their calories in check. When you order take out or home delivery, serve the meal to your child along with a glass of low-fat milk or side salad.