Even before children are born parents want nothing more for them to grow up to be happy and healthy. As babies, keeping them on a healthy path tends to be easy. They eat and drink what we give them. They don’t know about sweets yet or what other children their age are eating or doing.
But then one day they refuse food they once ate with gusto. They no longer seem interested in eating and keeping them at the table feels like a monumental task. And the food they want most? Cookies, chips, you name it!
Oh no, we worry, we have that picky eater we said before children we’d never have!
This is a time parents start staying things they never thought they’d say like “take two more bites before you leave the table” or “if you eat your veggies you can have dessert.” This seems harmless and it gets kids fed. But here’s the thing: Over time, words like these can turn children away from healthy eating. And always encouraging them to eat more discourages them from listening to their bodies natural cues of hunger and fullness.
In other words, many of the things adults say to kids to get them to eat healthy today can negatively impact their relationship with food later. Eating healthy starts to feel like a chore and eating past fullness a regular occurrence.
I know because I’m a registered dietitian who for years counseled clients with an unhealthy relationship with food. I could always trace my clients’ struggles to what they learned about food as children. And I vowed to help parents — including myself — get it right early on.
That’s why I’ve outlined the 10 Things Never to Say to Your Child About Food in a short and to the point e-book. It’s yours for FREE when you sign up below.
You are about to learn a new way to keep your family healthy — one that really works and keeps the whole family happy too.