Mealtime is a time for families to gather together, share and have fun!

In today’s fast-paced society, families often abandon eating together. Research shows that children that eat with their families are more likely to try new foods, make healthier choices and even do better in school! Mealtimes are an opportunity for parents to strengthen their family, model good eating habits and keep track of their children’s lives.

Here are some tips to create mealtime routines for your family:

• Try to plan one meal a day in which everyone can be together. If both parents are not available, have at least one parent eat with the children. If the weekdays are too hectic, make a special effort on the weekend.
• Try to focus on your children and not discuss adult issues. Start a tradition by having each child share the best thing that happened to them that day. Enjoy your amazing family.
• Turn off the TV! Television viewing during dinner stifles conversation. Research shows that families that watch television during dinner eat more fatty foods and less fruits and vegetables.
• Let the children join in cooking. Children as young as two-years old love to help! They can help prepare dinner (eg; sprinkle cheese, chop bananas for fruit salad etc), set the table or even do the dishes (if you don’t mind the mess).
• At mealtimes model good manners, healthy eating and a willingness to try new foods. Children will mimic your attitudes toward food.  If you don’t eat your vegetables, why should they? Be open to new ways of cooking too.
• Keep meals simple and be realistic about the amount of food that you give your child.

Parent Tips

Jane and Mikel - parents of four children
The children take turns bringing a lighted candle to the dinner table. We then sing a blessing. If the children are a bit fussy about coming to the table, I sprinkle some magic fairy dust and polish their seats. This tends to work because of their ages. At our house we have a compulsory salad at the start of our meal, and the children know that it is the most important part and that it must be eaten before getting anything else. We have always been consistent with this and rarely have an issue with non-eating. If they are teething or overtired, then they just do their best.

These great tips and more are from the highly acclaimed book The Triumphant Child - A practical guide to raising 2, 3 and year olds.

Finding creative ways to encourage fruits and vegetables in your child’s diet can be fun for the entire family.

10 Ways to get children to eat more fruit and veggies

1. Keep a bowl of fresh fruits on the counter. Refrigerate cut up fruits and vegetables in small bags for easy snacks on the run.
2. Serve fruits and vegetables at every meal. Add grated or cut vegetables into entrees, side dishes, and soups. Top off cereal with fruits or add frozen fruits to smoothies.
3. Set a good example. Snack on fruit and order low-sodium, low-fat salads, soups, or vegetable sides when at restaurants.
4. Pack the refrigerator, freezer and cupboard with pre-cut, frozen and canned vegetables so that it is easier for you to prepare meals and snacks that include vegetables.
5. Challenge family members to reach their daily fruits and vegetable goal. Reward the winner with a prize of his or her choice.
6. Ask that fruits and vegetables be offered at school functions, after school programs, and in vending machines.
7. Let children choose which fruits and vegetables to serve and how to incorporate them into their favorite meals.
8. Make fruits and vegetables fun. Try dressing up sandwiches with faces and smiles made from fruits and vegetables.
9. Keep trying. For some foods, it may take multiple times before a child acquires a taste for it.
10. Encourage friends or relatives to offer vegetables and fruits to your children.

Other things to try

Kids are turned off to trying new foods if the smell, flavor, or color is not appealing to them. It may be more appealing to a child if the fruits or vegetables are served raw.

Try feeding different textures of fruits and vegetables to your child. Some children prefer smooth food, where as others like lumpy, and some children like crisp foods, but others like soft.

Offer new fruits and vegetables in combination with old favorites to show your child a variety of smells, textures, and colors. Various vegetables can be added to any whole grain pasta dish or pizza, and fruit is a great topping for low-fat or fat free yogurt.

Food safety

Keep an eye on small children when they are eating. Small children may eat in a hurry, stuff too much food in their mouths, or chew their food inadequately which may cause a child to choke.

Prevent injuries by prohibiting children from running or playing while chewing food. Feed small children only when they are sitting down and are in a relaxed atmosphere. Train toddlers to chew their food thoroughly before swallowing.

For some great fruit and veggie recipes your children will love - www.fruitsandveggiesmatter.gov

These great tips and more are from the highly acclaimed book The Triumphant Child - A practical guide to raising 2, 3 and year olds.

Are meal times turning into a battle? These tips will help you understand and encourage your picky eater.

The eating habits of preschool children are often frustrating and mysterious. At times they seem to survive on less food than a bird requires, and at others they appear to be an eating machine, consuming everything in sight. They claim something is wrong with the food, such as one thing on their plate is touching another! Young children often resist new foods, not because they are being difficult but because of their sensitivity to textures, smells and tastes.

Here are some tips to help you help your picky eater

• Many young children appear to live off air. If you actually watch what your child eats throughout an entire day you might be surprised. Often young children are “grazers”. They eat little bits of this and that throughout the day.  As they are SO active, it’s probably a good way for them to eat at this age. If they graze throughout the day they are constantly re-fuelling their active bodies.
• Keep a written or mental journal of what your child is eating during the day. Now you’ll really be able to get an idea of how much food is eaten and when the eating is happening.
• The trick with children who graze is to make sure you have plenty of healthy grazing food available. A friend of mine keeps a vegetable and fruit plate sitting out for most of the day for her children. They take what they want, when they feel they need it.
• Avoid giving your young child lots of processed snacks. They’ll just fill up on empty calories and will have trouble getting all the nutritional needs met during the day.
• Serve lunch and dinner on a plate that has a nice variety of food on it. The main meal can be incorporated as well but just pop on a few raw chopped vegetables with a yummy healthy dip. Have your child mix the dip with you and place the veggies on the plate in a fun pattern or make a funny face out of them. The point is to make the healthy food fun!
• Some children do not like the taste of cooked vegetables. Serve a variety of  raw vegetables and see which ones your child likes. If all else fails you can try to puree some vegetables and include them in spaghetti sauces and casseroles. You can make muffins with vegetables in them. My children adore the apple and carrot muffins I make.
• Try growing a few vegetables in your own garden. I have seen many “non-vegetable eaters” consume loads of the “dreaded green stuff” when they have grown and picked it themselves.
• Don’t draw meal times out and make it a struggle. You want your child to feel positive about healthy foods.
•  A child needs to be exposed to a food at least ten times before they become used to taste and texture of it. So be patient and keep offering small servings of new foods in as many ways as you can.
• Try to respect your child’s food dislikes and don’t insist that they be a member of “the clean plate club!”
• Serving small portions will help. Since children burn up a lot of calories quickly and they have smaller stomachs.
• And remember, children can be very demanding about wanting certain foods, especially sweets. Reserve these for treat time only and don’t become a hostage to food demands. For a “sweet treat” give fruits (peaches, strawberries, apples, grapes etc.) and non-fat dairy products like yogurt. These are nutritious complements to a healthy diet and often turn “picky eaters” into real gourmets!

These great tips and more are from the highly acclaimed book The Triumphant Child - A practical guide to raising 2, 3 and year olds.