If you have little ones who would rather reach for a chicken nugget than a carrot stick, you need these hot tips for encouraging healthy eating AND the Healthy Lifestyle Festival SG in your life...
Parents, we know you’re with us when we say we’re tired of our kids demanding fries and chicken nuggets. All. Of. The. Time. But when we’re busy dealing with tantrums, sleepless nights and potty training, it can be all too easy to slip into less-than-healthy snack mode. It’s a slippery slope well travelled by many a parent, but enough is enough! In order to foster healthy eating habits for life, the buck stops with us and it’s up to us grownup folk to stand our ground on the fast food battle. Parents, let’s do this. From here on in it’s all about good food choices, nutritionally packed picks and a healthier and stronger future – for us all!
And who better to help us encourage healthy eating at home than the Health Promotion Board itself? These guys know all there is to know about good nutrition, a healthy lifestyle and the benefits the whole fambam will reap with a balanced diet and positive outlook. So, to get things kick-started this October and November, why not jump on the wellbeing, fitness and healthy eating train while also having a blast trying out fam-friendly activities and games? Cool, huh? Yep: you need the Healthy Lifestyle Festival SG on your radar, stat! But in the meantime, there are still easy changes you can make to have everyone improving eating habits and living a better life:
Get the kids involved in food prep
The more the kids feel like they’re part of the whole process, the more they’ll want to continue making healthier food choices. Take them to the grocery store and let them pick out the most colourful fruit and veggies they can find – shiny yellow bell peppers, bright pink dragonfruit – make a game out of it! If they’re old enough, give them small kitchen tasks like peeling carrots or zucchinis, or weighing out ingredients with measuring cups and spoons.
Talk to them!
While it may appear that kids rarely, if ever, listen to grownups, that is actually not the case.Honest! Those little ears are soaking up more than we give them credit for, so explain why some foods are good for them and why some are best avoided or eaten in moderation. Make it fun, create stories about food and give them age-appropriate info that they’ll take on board (even if they seem to not be listening!).
Stop the snacks
Kids do NOT need feeding around the clock, and they absolutely do not need to be bombarded with treats and snacks – especially when they are not nutritious options. Snacks have a lot to answer to when it comes to poor appetites at mealtime, and snacking too often encourages bad food habits. If your kid is genuinely peckish, offer them nutritious options like nuts, sliced fruit (not the roll-up kind!), or a simple-but-delish peanut butter sandwich on wholemeal bread.
Set a good example
Guess who kids get their eating habits from? That’s right – you! If you want your kids to make healthier food choices, then you need to lead by example. Children pick up behaviours based on what they observe, so if you’re scarfing down a burger and you’re forcing them to eat a veggie frittata, you’re in for a fight. Set the healthy eating tone by adding more colour to your own plate and load up on the greens, yellows, reds and purples.
Learn more about healthy eating habits yourself
Times and attitudes have changed heaps since we were young, so if your own healthy eating habits could do with a bit of a push, and you want to know more on the subject, then head on over to the Healthy Lifestyle Festival SG. Kids will learn more about healthy eating through interactive, hands-on games – all while having fun in four exciting worlds including NutriQuest Empire, Wacky Wonderland, Mysterious Forest and Robo Garage. Sounds fun, huh? Throw in a side menu of bouncy castles, free cooking demos, a Dinosaur Chase game and plenty more, and you’ve got yourself an outrageously fun event that you’ll all love. See you there, people!
Go on one big, healthy adventure this October and November! Bring the fam to the Healthy Lifestyle Festival SG and have a blast trying out fam-friendly activities and games! Find out more at www.healthylifestyle.sg
Posted by HoneyKids Asia on Wednesday, 24 October 2018
Event details:
Roadshow: Waterway Point
26-28 Oct, 11am – 830pm
Grand Finale: Singapore Sports Hub
10-11 Nov, 11am – 8pm
www.healthylifestylefestival.sg
This post is sponsored by the Health Promotion Board