Now is the best time to teach our children healthy habits.
Healthy children are an integral part of a healthy family – we’ve all felt the effects of a child being unwell. The effort that we put in now as parents will have a significant bearing on the health of our children as they grow, helping them to care for the next generation. There really isn’t a better time to teach someone the basics of looking after their health than when they’re starting out in life.
As parents, we made the decision early on to look after our kids’ health as carefully as we could. That decision was cemented for us on the fateful day we gave our daughter some sugary cereal we won after a fortunate raffle draw at a school fete. The change in her behaviour that morning was so significant that we swore never to repeat our mistake of providing an unhealthy breakfast. It was a good lesson to learn early on.
One of the most productive ways we have found to provide good nutritious food is through bulk cooking. This is a great way to make sure that there is usually some good easy food in the fridge. It has also helped our kids build some confidence in the kitchen to the point where, at age 10 & 7, they make their own school lunches every day, can cook their own breakfast (porridge or eggs & veggies), and cook dinner for us all once a week.
The school lunch box has been a very commercialised part of a child’s day. Unfortunately, the focus has been more on convenience than health. I hate to break it to you, but muesli bars contain a terrible nutrition to sugar ratio. Fruit is a much healthier option, but you really can’t go past vegetables. Yes, I know, children hate vegetables etc. If that is a regular conversation in your house, I would encourage you to firstly try different veggies, and different cooking methods. Gone are the days where we all boil vegetables to within an inch of their life, serving something with the texture of whipped cream and the flavour of dirty boots. These days we can get a bit more creative with options like frying, steaming, sautéing, roasting or even having them raw. Everyone is going to have a veggie they don’t like but giving kids options allows them some control. If you still have a child who says no to all the options and won’t eat anything, it might be time to reach out and get some help from someone such as an occupational therapist or psychologist.
Children’s health, like adult’s health, functions the best when we can line up all the little things. Yes food is very important, as are exercise and movement, hydration, rest and relaxation time, quality sleep and stress management. If you’re looking for some guidance as to how to improve the health of your child, then it might be worth making an appointment with our Chiros (myself or Dr Steve) or our Naturopath Taylah to see what would be a good next step for you.
To your best health!
Dr Michael Osborne
Hobbies: I enjoy hiking, biking and kayaking with my family.
Favourite Movie: The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
Ultimate Holiday Destination: Europe – yes, the whole lot
Come and experience what chiropractic can do to improve your health.