One of the biggest challenges for many moms is feeding their babies wholesome food and developing healthy eating habits. Often, parents’ best intentions are shattered over sweets and pasta in an effort to feed their children at least something.
Meanwhile, organizing healthy meals for a child is an extremely important responsibility of every parent, because eating habits are established precisely in childhood. In my humble opinion, this is much more important than, for example, his numeracy and reading skills at the age of three.
The most interesting thing is that eating habits begin to form even when the baby receives exclusively breast milk. Therefore, it makes sense for nursing mothers to think about their nutrition from this point of view.
When I was feeding my son, we lived in America. I listened to the advice of the local pediatrician, who recommended that I eat as many vegetables and fruits as possible (which categorically contradicted the Russian steamed chicken breast) so that the child gets used to them from the very beginning and does not get an allergic reaction when he tries an orange for the first time at 3 years old. … By the way, if I’m not mistaken, in Russia, pediatricians recommend introducing children to citrus fruits no earlier than 3 years old, and in Spain, for example, almost all fruit purees for children from 6 months old contain an orange. In short, every mother chooses her own path and philosophy.
Fortunately, my son did not suffer from food allergies, and I tried to feed him different vegetables and fruits from early childhood. For example, he adored avocado, which he had eaten since 6 months; one of the first fruits he tasted was mango. From one to two years of age, he ate a freshly cooked soup of 5–6 different vegetables every day.
Now my son is three and a half years old and, of course, I am not 100% happy with his diet. He had time to try cookies and lollipops, and now it is the object of his desires. But I do not give up, but I continue to insist on healthy products and, on any occasion, arrange black PR for sweets and flour products.
Here are some simple tips to help your kids develop healthy eating habits.
1. Begin to monitor your diet during pregnancy
Often expectant mothers ask what to eat during pregnancy. I already wrote about this, but in a nutshell – more natural fresh plant food. This is essential for the growth and development of the fetus. But research has also shown that the foods a pregnant woman eats have an impact on her baby’s preferences after breastfeeding stops.
2. Try to choose healthy foods during breastfeeding.
Breast milk not only strengthens the baby’s immune system and reduces the risk of food allergies, but also gives you an additional opportunity to shape your baby’s eating habits. Eating whole, plant-based foods will make breast milk super nutritious and help instill a healthy taste in your baby.
3. When accustoming your child to solid food, first of all offer vegetable puree
Many parents begin to switch their babies to solid foods at about 4-6 months of age. There are tons of theories about where to start complementary foods, and many prefer porridge. However, this can have disastrous consequences for the development of taste preferences. Most white cereals are sweet and mild, and introducing them into your baby’s diet by the age of four months can create a taste for sugary foods that are usually very low in nutrients. Instead, once your baby is six months old, offer mashed potatoes as the first solid food.
4. Don’t give your child store-bought juices, soda, and sweets.
By offering your child something sweet, you can discourage him from eating more bland foods. When the baby’s gastrointestinal tract is strong enough, you can offer him fruit puree, but let this be only a small part of his diet. Children should drink water. Even though I gave my child highly diluted organic apple juice with no added sugar, he developed an attachment to him, and I spent three days listening to his tantrums and persuasions to wean my son from this habit. I won’t make that mistake with my second offspring.
5. Begin introducing cereals to your child by offering fatu atoa
Avoid white flour and processed grains. Opt for quinoa, brown or black rice, buckwheat, and amaranth. They are rich in minerals and nutrients. My son is a fan of quinoa with buckwheat, which makes me very happy. He can eat it every day. And if we bake something, which is rare, then we use buckwheat flour instead of wheat flour.
All these councils worked up to 2–2,5 years. When the son began to communicate with the outside world more or less independently and realized that there are such pleasures as cookies, rolls and candies, it became more difficult to influence him. Now I am fighting an endless battle, telling every day that superheroes drink green smoothies; that you need to eat broccoli to become strong and smart like a dad; that real ice cream is a frozen berry smoothie with some superfood like chia. Well, and most importantly, I don’t get tired of giving him the right example ?
And experts give the following recommendations:
- Continue offering healthy foods to your child, even if the first time he refused them
The best way to train your child to eat healthy is to offer healthy foods consistently and consistently. Don’t be discouraged if he continues to refuse: sometimes it takes time and several tries.
- Mask vegetables and herbs in children’s favorite meals or desserts
Some dietitians and parents do not like the idea of ”hiding” vegetables in children’s meals. But it’s a great way to add texture and flavor to food and fill it with nutrients. You can bake zucchini muffins, make cauliflower pasta, and even make cauliflower chocolate cake. Add vegetables to meals the kids already love. For example, other root vegetables can be added to mashed potatoes: sweet potatoes, parsnips, celery root. And if your child eats meat and loves cutlets, make them half zucchini. And there is no need to announce a new ingredient in advance.
- Make a smoothie
If your child loves berries and fruits, you can make a smoothie with herbs, avocados, or vegetables. They will not change the taste much, but there will be a lot of benefits.
- Prepare healthy counterparts of your favorite snacks and sweets on your own
You can make chips from potatoes or any root vegetables, make chocolate, marmalade, ice cream. I will be releasing a recipe app very soon, which will include several delicious desserts for kids.
- Faʻatau ma kuka ma lau fanau
This way works perfect for me. Firstly, I myself like to buy food, especially in the markets, and even more so, to cook. I cook almost every day and, of course, my son takes an active part. We are happy to try the results of our efforts together.