I work in a restaurant as a waitress. I see what people are eating all the time. One night a couple came in with their son, he was around 10 or 11 years old. The parents brought him out for a birthday dinner.
Ok, it’s the kids birthday, so there’s nothing wrong with a treat right? This is what he had for dinner-mozzarella sticks with sour cream, caramel fudge cake and 3 chocolate milks. The boy was already overweight so I had to wonder what he ate on a regular basis.
This has nothing to do with what the boy looked like, it has to do with his health. Juvenile diabetes is on the rise and being over weight is a large contributing factor. Children learn a lot of things from their parents including how to eat. Getting kids to eat healthy stuff can be a struggle just as it is for adults.
When I was growing up my mom made dinner every day. It was usually meat (protein), potato, noodle or rice (starch) and a veggie. She didn’t count calories, fat grams or anything like that. It was just a well rounded meal. She baked but kept an eye on the sweets we ate and soda was a treat not a staple.
Did I go thru the McDonalds and pizza phase during school. You betcha! Eventually I came back to what I learned when I was a kid at home. I still don’t count calories or fat grams but I am aware of what I eat and keep it balanced. Do I still occasionally eat pizza? Heck yeah! But, it’s a treat not a staple.
To answer you before you ask, no I don’t have kids. I do know a lot of adults. When I talk to them about how they ate when they were kids it usually matches how they eat now. Now I’m not talking about being a tyrant about food. That will only create resistance. Eating healthy should be natural- a that’s just the way it is kinda thing.
Did I always appreciate what my mom put on the table? Of course not I was a kid. But I’m glad my mom did what she did. It taught me something that I truly appreciate now that I’m all grown up.
Filed under: Children's Health | Tagged: children, food, health, kid's, nutrition, overweight, weight loss
