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Picky Eaters
by Christine Sachse
as printed in the Winter 2007 issue of Island Child
We all know that it is important to get a variety of healthy foods into our child’s diet, but what happens when that child is a picky eater? Unless your child is ill or not growing or developing normally, then a relaxed approach to food is the best way to go. Here are some tips on introducing new foods to your picky eater.
Less about ‘healthy’, more about fun
Introduce a new food in a neutral manner. Talk about the food’s color, shape, size, aroma and texture - but not about whether it tastes good or if it is healthy. Take your children to a farm or market to see what is in season. Get excited!
Start small
Begin by placing a small portion of the new food on your child’s plate next to familiar foods. And remember, new foods will seem more appealing at meals if your child has not just finished a snack or a glass of milk.
Involve your child
At the grocery store, let your child help select new fruits, vegetables and whole grain items for the whole family to try. At home, involve your child in food preparation.
Be a good example
Children often mimic their parents, friends or older siblings. The more frequently you eat a particular food, the more likely your child will be to eventually try it.
Routines are helpful
Serve meals and snacks at about the same times every day. Young children feel more comfortable with predictable routines.
Bedtime routines help children go to sleep when it is time to sleep, and feeding routines help children eat when it is time to eat.
Limit distractions
Help them concentrate on eating by turning off the tv during meals and not answering the phone.
Do not use food for rewards or punishment
When your child gets hurt we often turn to kisses and ice cream. When they are being good we turn to lollipops and a pat on the back. This sends the message that these foods are rewards and we associate them with love and comfort.
Respect your child’s personal tastes
No child will like everything so resist making meal time a battle of the wills!
Bonus Tip
While many of us have tried sneaking vegetables into muffins, sauces and stews, it may also be helpful to ‘unmix’ your foods and let your children choose which ingredients they are going to eat. And always remember, children often need at least ten exposures to a new food before they accept it, so be persistent. The reward of a healthy and vibrant child will be more than worth it!
The Meal Deal: Off to a Solid Start
by Lianne Castelino and Andrea Howick
as printed in the Winter 2007 issue of Island Child
It’s here. Circled on the calendar for months. The milestone you have read volumes about. Your pediatrician confirms – It’s time. D-day. (Panic attack time!) Your baby is ready to eat REAL FOOD. (GULP)
The questions swim in your head – where in the world do I start, what do I buy, how much, when, how often, organic, commercial, purees, name brands – overwhelming to say the least. Introducing your baby to solid foods is the first major milestone in an infants’ life, and more than any other milestone, it is one that will have an impact for the REST of your baby’s life.
Before that very first morsel enters your baby’s mouth, there are a few basic things you should keep in mind.
1. Empower yourself by reading or viewing quality resources from recommended and trusted sources before you start.
2. Spend time learning to recognize your baby’s hunger cues. Crying is NOT always an indicator of hunger.
3. Establish a feeding routine. This should include a high chair, bib, and a calm, relaxed environment.
4. Listen, observe and respect your baby’s communication signals when it comes to hunger and also when he or she is
full.
5. Understand that what you feed your baby will greatly impact his or her diet, future food likes and dislikes and will help set the foundation for their relationship with food for many years to come.
The current global epidemic of obesity, in particular childhood obesity, is alarming. Two out of three Americans are either overweight or obese. Canada is not far behind. As a result, it is more important than ever to make a conscious choice to educate yourself about all the healthy options out there to foster a love of fresh, natural, nutritious foods in your baby – right from their first bite. Starting solids represents a whole new world of adventure and discovery for baby and parent filled with equal helpings of excitement and frustration! Be patient. Get ready to learn. Keep an open mind. You might be amazed by how introducing your little one to solids could greatly alter your eating habits – hopefully for the better. Transitioning from couple food to family food is a learning curve that if carefully navigated – is filled with benefits for everyone. Menu-planning, grocery shopping, regular meals will become second nature, eventually! Be aware of the potential hurdles along the way such as allergenic foods, choking hazards, and the dangers of too much sugar and spice to name a few.
And remember, new tastes, textures, colours, and shapes all take time to digest. Take pleasure in introducing them and chances are your baby will feel the same about trying them.
Quick and Healthy Meals at Home
By Annemarie Tempelman,
as printed in the Fall 2007 issue of Island Child
Cooking healthy meals for a family can be one of the most relentless tasks busy moms face. If you’ve got babies they’ll suddenly have a diaper blow out right as you’re in the middle of a particularly tricky bit of meal-time prep. Toddlers and preschoolers have equally inbuilt sense of bad timing, “needing” something right when you need five minutes to focus.
So how to you remain committed to feeding your family healthy meals, and sitting down together to enjoy them – which is a great opportunity for the whole family to talk about their days and enjoy each other in a stress-free setting – when you’re longing to whip up a packet of instant mac ‘n cheese and put on the TV?
Cutting off potential roadblocks at the pass really helps with mealtime prep. Nurse your baby and change her diaper right before you’re about to get busy in the kitchen. Then you can put her on a playmate near by or keep her close in a baby carrier or sling – which works well unless you’re involved in tasks that involve sizzling oil or your baby’s old enough to grab for carving knife you’re wielding.
As for toddlers and preschoolers, why not get them to “help”? Set up a shelf or cupboard in the kitchen for them with plastic containers, wooden spoons, an apron…whatever takes their fancy. And if you’re limiting TV time, what not get into the routine of saving some of their daily allowance for when you’re cooking?
Recipes that multi-task are also a great idea. Double your spaghetti recipe and freeze it to be pulled out on a night you don’t have time to cook. If you have a friend that has a failsafe chicken casserole you’ve always hankered after then why not swap family-friendly recipes with friends? Cooking up big batches of meals on weekends is another great way to have something to pull out of the freezer when you have no time or inclination to cook. And having breakfast for dinner is always an option. Whipping up a batch of pancakes or scrambled eggs and toast from time to time can be positioned as a special treat, rather than an easy way out.
And let’s face it. There will be times you’re just not going to have the time or energy or ingredients on hand to whip up dinner. The equivalent of TV dinners have come a long way in the last little while and there are healthier, more exotic options than ever. Just look in the freezer at your local grocer for foods that are free from trans-fats, organic and made with unprocessed foods.
Annemarie Tempelman-Kluit is the author of Healthy Mum, Happy Baby: How to Feed Yourself When You’re Breastfeeding Your Baby. She has recently launched yoyomama.ca, which keeps mums on-the-go in the know with helpful, hip info delivered directly to their inboxes daily.
From Apples to Applesauce
By Corilee Waters
as printed in the Fall 2007 issue of Island Child
When I was at the office, I kept a bowl of apples for a quick snack – usually Galas, Red Delicious or Braeburns. Now that I’m home with a baby I find myself making applesauce. I never realized how easy it was to make applesauce, until I was given an apple wedger. Press the wedger down on an apple or two, toss in a saucepan with a bit of water, bring to a boil and simmer until soft, then puree and enjoy. No need to peel or chop. Leaving the peel on adds color, aroma and flavor, and also means twice the fibre and flavonoids (beneficial antioxidants).
Applesauce takes on the color of the skin, with red colored apples giving a delightful pink color. Spartan apples, a hybrid of the McIntosh, and developed in BC, make pink applesauce, whereas Jonagolds, a hybrid of Golden Delicious, make golden applesauce.
One medium apple yields about ¾ cup of applesauce, depending on the size of the apple and how much water you use. Having fresh applesauce is wonderful for other dishes. It adds moistness and can replace half of the fat in baking, and is delicious swirled with vanilla yogurt. Do experiment and add fresh ginger or cinnamon to the apples while cooking.
Would suggest using at least 4 apples to make applesauce at a time. Once the air is filled with the spicy aroma of homemade applesauce, it will go quickly and it would be nice to leave some for the baby !
Note: Fresh apples and applesauce are a very healthy, quick and delicious snack, but not so with clear apple juice, which during processing, most of the beneficial nutrients are removed, and the amount of fructose increases which is poorly digested, and if consumed in large amounts may contribute to diarrhea.
Corilee Watters, Dietitian and Mother
Childhood Weight Issues
By Victoria Pawlowski
as printed in the Spring 2007 issue of Island Child
It’s perfectly natural for kids to be different sizes and shapes, and it is expected that children will alternate growing ‘up’ with filling ‘out’. But for an increasing number of children, weight, food, and health issues are growing out of control. Overweight children are more likely to develop health problems that prevent healthy growth and development. Doctors are now seeing more children with high blood pressure, high blood sugar and high cholesterol. And the research shows that overweight children usually grow into overweight adults and overweight adults have a higher incidence of preventable disease such as diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease.
Diets just do not work for adults – and are definitely not recommended for children. The research is clear that dieting leads inevitably to more weight gain, nutritional deficiencies and disordered eating behaviours. So what are we to do with our overweight and obese children?
The School of Medicine at the University of California in San Francisco has been working on this issue for almost 30 years and has developed a program (currently used at BC Childrens Hospital) that has helped thousands of children, teens and families with weight problems. SHAPEDOWN is a family based weight management program that recognizes that weight disturbances in children and teens are multi-causal and not just a matter of balancing calories ‘in’ and calories ‘out’. Regular exercise and a ‘light’ food plan are prescribed, however the program also addresses areas of family dynamics that often lie underneath the weight issues.
Prior to starting a program, each family completes a computerized bio-psycho-social assessment (Y.E.S), which helps to clarify issues that might be impacting weight, body image and health.
SHAPEDOWN focuses on strengths in the family system to support the learning of developmental skills that will support a healthy lifestyle. One of several exercises designed to enhance the parent-child lines of communication is the “love letter,” in which the children are encouraged to express feelings about themselves in a letter to their parents. Another unique bonding exercise involves tracing a child’s body outline on paper. The parent and child then jointly fill the space with a list of 30 positive things about the child’s body. They write about how it looks, what it can do, how it feels - things like ‘a kind heart, strong arms, a good friend,’ and so on. It is wonderful for the child’s self-esteem and it gives the parents a new perspective on their child’s inner self, not just what is visible on the outside.
The program is facilitated by professional dietitians and therapists with advanced clinical training in childhood and adolescent obesity. SHAPEDOWN is now offered as individual family or group sessions in the Nanaimo area and will be expanding to other communities in 2008.
More Juice Please
by Eileen Bennewith, Registered Dietician and Community Nutritionist
as printed in the August/September 2006 issue of Island Child
Do you know how much juice your child is drinking? Most people think that juice is a harmless beverage. Since it is made from vegetables or fruit, many think it is a part of a healthy diet. Most parents are happy when they find something nutritious that their children actually enjoy. What parents do not realize is that in the hands of a small child, too much juice can be harmful.
Most children would rather drink than eat. Bottle-fed toddlers like to suck for comfort while playing and often will be seen with a bottle or sipper cup of juice clamped between their teeth. The first sentence some children speak is “more juice please”. Small children have small appetites. In order to grow and develop normally, they must eat a variety of foods. When children drink large amounts of juice (even unsweetened juice), they get too much natural sugar. This sugar sends a message to the brain saying, “I am full”. A child who drinks two or more 8 ounce (250ml) bottles or cups of juice per day will not want to eat any food. Over time, this poor food intake may lead to illness and poor growth and development. Many mothers complain that their child never wants to eat. Often the solution is as simple as cutting out the juice.
Water is the best beverage for quenching thirst. Children also need 2 to 3 cups of milk per day. If juice is offered at all, it should not be given to babies under six months and it should be limited to 4 ounces (120ml) per day. Only 100% fruit juice should be given. It is better to give cut up fruit at meals and snacks than to give fruit juice. Fruit punches, fruit crystal drinks, fruit beverages, cocktails and fruit blends are not juice. They are mainly sugar and water with artificial colour and artificial flavouring. These beverages should not be given to children. Many parents think the “blends” are a mixture of types of juices. In fact, they are fruit flavoured sugar water. Always read the label before offering these drinks to children. If it says sugar on the list, it is not 100% juice.
Another problem often associated with drinking bottles of juice, is tooth decay. Children who are allowed to sip juice all day constantly bathe their teeth in sugar. Diluted juice is worse because it takes the child even longer to finish. This means that their teeth are exposed to sugar for even longer. If your toddler still takes a bottle or uses a sipper cup, fill it with water. During the hot days of summer, it is important to make sure children have enough fluid to keep well hydrated. Sweetened drinks only make them thirstier and can affect their appetite and decay their teeth. Get in the habit of keeping jugs of cold water in the refrigerator. Offer water often and drink water yourself to set a good example. The best way to tell that you or your child is drinking enough water is by checking the colour of the urine. It should be almost colourless and clear. If it is dark or strong smelling, you are not drinking enough.
Occasionally, a small glass of 100% fruit juice can be a part of a healthy diet, but for quenching thirst in the summer heat, nothing beats a tall glass of cold water.
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