Helping our Children Have A Healthy Diet

Healthy Ways of Feeding Children

In my private medical practice, I work with adults to achieve weight loss through the HCG Diet and Semaglutide weight loss programs.  Many of my patients are parents and ask for advice on best feeding their children.  Having two little boys of my own, I have worked hard on creating methods to get nutrient-dense food into their diets.

Although I would never prescribe Intermittent Fasting for children, they often do it independently. I see this on the weekends with my 11- and 14-year-olds; they get busy playing in the morning, and it is often 11 am or noon when they finally ask for food.  Many kids naturally benefit from an overnight fasting period without rigid time constraints.

Tips for Creating Healthy Choices for Your Children

Children in developed nations surely will not starve when food is available in the house.  Maybe the food is not on the kid’s “favorite” list, but if hunger strikes, they will go for something in the house.  If a child has surplus fat stores, then he/she also has a lot of stored fuel (fat) on their body that can be used for fuel. We have to be careful with our language, and we never want our kids to feel a sense of body shame. It is a delicate balance.

I recommend having a home stocked with healthy choices for your child to eat. If your child is old enough, they can even prepare many foods independently.  I like to keep carrot sticks, cherry tomatoes, celery sticks, and cucumber slices on the low shelf in my fridge for my kids to graze on freely.  I highly recommend getting into the habit of offering your children whole foods and minimizing foods that come in packages or are processed.  I also think having the kids help with food preparation and clean up is nice.

I suggest reading labels to start. I would strongly urge all parents to avoid sugary cereals. Over time, starting the day with a bowl of carbs and sugar will set the stage for insulin resistance. Insulin resistance and pre-diabetes are becoming more common in children.  This is 100% due to a diet high in processed foods and more screen time and inactivity.

The best drink for children is water, water, water!!!  It is hard to believe that 1/3^rd of the sugar kids consume is in the form of soft drinks, fruit juice, and sports drinks. Save these for an exceptional occasion.  I let my kids have soda if offered at a birthday party where everyone else is having it and occasionally on an airplane. Otherwise, they drink water when they are thirsty.

Fruit can be an excellent snack for children, and I recommend keeping low-sugar fruits in the house.  Low-sugar fruits include peaches, blueberries, strawberries, nectarines, apples, and oranges. I keep high-sugar fruits such as bananas, grapes, pineapple, and mango for special times.

It is challenging to see how many things you can eat throughout the day that do not come in a package.  I love getting my kids involved in making sauces, dressings, and even special treats.

Foods to Keep in Your Home That Are Kid-Friendly

Here are some things we keep in our home that I tend to offer my kids. These foods also comprise their lunches most days.

• Carrot sticks
• Celery Sticks
• Cherry Tomatoes
• Sweet peppers
• Cucumber slices
• Jicama sticks
• Raw nuts
• Raw broccoli with a home-made dip
• Ezekiel sprouted breads
• Organic, eggs
• Edamame (organic, non-GMO)
• Organic, low-sugar yogurt
• Soup
• Almond butter
• Organic Cottage cheese
• Air-popped popcorn
• Low sugar fruits
• Seaweed sheets

Help your children stay balanced now in a culture that urges us to overconsume continuously!  Packages of snacks, cookies, candies, and cake are appropriate for a special occasion, but surely not every day!

Categories: Eating Well, Food Information, General Wellness, Live Healthy, Uncategorized