Sunday Story…Kids & Food

Last Saturday we had a very enriching discussion on nutrition and food. One of the places we didn’t get to touch on very deeply was the subject of kids and food. In other words, how do we get our kids to enjoy eating real food, and making food choices that will affirm their health?

Remember the three words…Eat Real Food. The first thing we need to do is make sure the example we are setting is in alignment with those words. Nothing will destroy this process faster than not walking your talk. If you expect your children to eat broccoli and carrots but you refuse to let anything vegetable pass your lips they will figure it out pretty darn quick. So start there…Eat Real Food yourself. And real food is simple…if you could have grown it, caught it, picked it, dug it, or killed it is probably OK to eat. If there is a food label on it, if there are more than three ingredients (especially if one of them is not found in nature) it, then it probably isn’t real food.

#2…Get the kiddos involved in the entire process from farm to table if possible. This is an excellent learning process for everyone, including you. It would be optimum to have a little garden in your back yard and get them involved in the planting and growing process. Or taking a trip to a U-pick farm so they can see where food really comes from. Any of the local Farmer’s markets are great choices as well. There are almost always samples to be had and you can talk to the growers or their representatives while you are there. Once the food hits the kitchen the kids can help in the decision making process about how to prepare the food and then get hands on in that process as well. I am not advocating giving your pre-schooler a Chef’s knife but a small paring knife can often be used safely. Many of us started in the kitchen standing on a stool next to Mom or Grandma chopping carrots or cleaning strawberries. If you don’t know how to cook something, get a recipe and learn together. Children love to see you learn new things; it gives them the example of lifelong learning we want to instill in them.

#3…Stock the house with Real Food. Slowly remove the food that is less than real. Begin providing different choices, vegetables or fruit as a snack instead of the fruit roll up (which may look OK but may not be as healthy as it could be.) Let your child see you making those Real Food choices and unless they are of a certain age they will want to emulate you.

#4 (and hardest)…Try to minimize their exposure to food marketing. I have never seen a commercial for broccoli or carrots but they are sure a lot of them trying to convince me to buy some adulterated edible non-food products under the guise of health. This is going to be difficult. And, honestly, most of our society today thinks it’s OK for kids to eat tons of sugar and other CRAP (Calorie Rich And Pathetic) food. It isn’t OK and it is why we are seeing an explosion in diabetes and obesity in our children. And once they start down that road we are putting them on a path that may be impossible to get off.

So…Eat Real Food. Get the kids involved in the process of finding, buying and preparing Real Food. Eat Real Food together. It is fun and your entire family will be healthier!

Namaste

John Mariotti

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