If you do choose to put your child on a “diet” it’s important to not use that word when describing their nutrition. The word “diet” has so many negatives associated with it and we don’t want our children to grow up thinking that dieting is healthy. Instead focus on nutrition and healthy eating. Never try a fad diet on your child or yourself.

Get involved in your child’s life so you are more aware of what they are eating both at home and when they are at school or with friends. Due to increased media attention school cafeterias have made major changes to what they will serve students for lunch. They have added more healthy options but your child still has a choice of what they will eat. By educating them at home to choose the right types of food you’ll set them off on the right foot when they have to make the decision on their own at school. A better option is to make a healthy lunch to send with your child to school.

We all live active lives and it can be difficult to always prepare healthy meals at home. With after school activities and sports there may not always be time to eat at home before your child is off participating in some form of activity. It can become convenient to stop at a fast food restaurant to feed your child. Although convenient these types of meals are high in fat, sugar and have typically been over processed. The meal may fill them up but the type of food you get at a fast food joint will affect their mood, energy level and will even make them hungrier later on.

It can be just as inexpensive and easy to make healthy meals at home. Plan meals in advance and prepare as much as you can beforehand. By planning the week’s meals on a Sunday you’ll know which days your short on time and which days you can prepare the whole meal in the evening. On days you’re short on time choose meals that can be made days before and reheated. Planning ahead also allows you to purchase only what you need for the week ahead. You’ll save time and money on your grocery bills.

Before changing your child’s diet speak with your doctor to see what they recommend in terms of calorie intake, vitamins and nutrients required. Your children are still growing so you need to make sure they are getting everything they need to grow and develop.

Food habits are formed as early as age 2 so start developing healthy habits as soon as possible. Avoid giving young children high sugar, high fat food so they are less likely to crave them later on. The longer you allow bad food habits the harder it is to change them. Plus we have the added disadvantage of competing with all the commercials advertising unhealthy food in a fun way. Make your own food fun by making healthy snacks with your kids. Get them involved so they know what they are eating but are also enjoying the experience of making it.

There are some tricks out there to getting your kids to eat healthier. These are good tools but you don’t want to rely on them too much because you’ll create fussy eaters later in life. To get your child to eat more fruit make fresh fruit smoothies with berries, bananas, milk and yogurt. You can even substitute the yogurt for frozen yogurt to make the consistency more like a milk shake. For vegetables, puree vegetables together and add the puree to pasta sauce. You kids will be getting all the nutrients they need from broccoli, cauliflower and other disliked vegetables without even knowing it.

Changing your child’s diet may be difficult especially if they are older but doing it now will benefit them so much now and later in life. Not only will their health improve but you’ll help build their confidence as well. There may be some battles but remember you are the parent and if they don’t eat what you give them, they don’t eat. Eventually they will give in as long as you don’t give in first.