Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Fruit and Vegetables 4 Your Kid's - A Smart and Healthy Decision

By Dane Masters

In today's fast paced world, even children are eating a lot of packaged, quick foods that are not healthy for them. Most kids would rather go through a drive-thru to get a tasty, fat-loaded burger that is high in calories, but low in vitamins and minerals. Most kid do not want broccoli, they want chicken nuggets and milk shakes.

How can adults help children understand what a balanced diet is and more importantly, how do adults help children eat a balanced diet?

Most kids know what they like to eat. Give your children the option of choosing between foods that are good for them. Apples or oranges, grapefruit or bananas, each child has a preference and the first step in helping your child eat better foods is to give them options and the ability to make their own decisions about what they eat.

Meal Planning Should Include You and Your Kids

Keep your children involved in making decisions about what they eat by trying new ways to prepare their food. Children's recipe books not only make cooking food, they incorporate ways to have your children help with the cookies. By helping with the food preparation, kids are more likely to eat their fruits and vegetables because they took the time to make the meal or snack.

Another option to help children eat fruits and vegetables is to get them in the kitchen with you to find new exciting ways to prepare the food. A fruit salad is an easy way to get kids to eat fruit and it can be a fun way to prepare fruit together. You can cut the fruit into shapes or sprinkle cinnamon or use non-fat whipped cream to help entice children to eat fruit. You can do the same thing with vegetables.

Fruits and Vegetables - A Healthy Choice

Variety is the spice of life. Children can learn this about everything if you start with something basic like fruits and vegetables. With your child's help, a little time and effort, the whole family can enjoy a healthier eating lifestyle in no time. - 16650

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