9 Ways to Foster a Healthy Relationship with Food and Nutrition"

 9 Tips to Develop a Healthy Attitude Towards Food and Nutrition 

Parents play a key role in shaping their children's eating habits and attitudes towards food. How parents  consciously and unconsciously approach food can have a significant impact on their children's perceptions of food, which may continue into adulthood. Recent studies have highlighted the impact that differences in parents' eating habits can have on their children's relationship with food. Parents and caregivers can promote healthy eating habits in their children by being aware of their  relationship with food and practicing mindful eating habits. 

Young children imitate and learn from their parents' behaviors, including eating behaviors. A study just published in the journal Appetite found that parents have four  eating styles: typical, greedy, emotional, and avoidant. Typical eaters, with no extreme eating styles, were the most common at 41.4 percent. A greedy eating style, in which parents are very interested in food and  respond to food around them rather than their  own hunger or fullness signals, was present in 37.3 percent of parents. Less common eating styles were emotional eating and avoidant eating, at 15.7 percent and 5.6 percent, respectively. Passionate eaters tend to eat to adapt with feelings, but they do not infer as much delight from nourishment as ravenous eaters. Avoidant individuals are exceptionally picky approximately nourishment and appreciate eating less. 

All children are influenced by their parents' eating habits, but children of parents with overly enthusiastic and avoidant eating habits are more likely to develop these  behaviors. Parents with overly enthusiastic or emotional eating habits are more likely to use food to comfort or soothe their children. However, when parents with overly enthusiastic and emotional eating habits provide a  balanced and varied diet, their children seem to be protected from developing such eating habits. 

A other recent study published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior found that families who eat mindfully have improved eating habits. Children of  mindful eating parents are more likely to respond to their own inner hunger cues and are less likely to develop emotional or avoidant eating. 

An individual's eating habits are as complex as their parents'. A family's relationship with food is influenced by food availability, health concerns, cultural beliefs, life experiences, and more. Parents who are aware of their own attitudes toward food and  how they can influence their children are more likely to instill a more typical eating style in their children. Here are some mindful eating strategies  families can implement right now to positively impact eating habits in your home: 

1. Make sure you enjoy at least one meal together as a family each day. 

Remember that even just having an adult present at a meal can make a big impact, and it doesn't mean the whole family or household needs to be present. 

2. Involve your kids in meal planning and food preparation, including grocery shopping and cooking.

 Kids benefit from being hands-on  with food and developing those skills at an early age. 

 3. Try new foods together as a family. 

Be creative and open-minded when it comes to increasing the variety of foods accepted  in your home. 

4. It's okay to talk about the nutritional value of foods, but avoid talking to your kids about calories or dietary restrictions.

 5. Avoid using food as a reward, punishment, or solution to emotional problems. 

Help children recognize their emotions and find solutions that don't involve food. 

6. Don't be too strict about food or categorize foods as good or bad. 

 7. Enjoy suppers and snacks absent from gadgets and screens to dodge diversions that get in the way of careful eating.

8. Encourage children to eat when they are hungry and  to listen to their internal feelings of satisfaction and fullness.

 External food cues such as food advertising, eating from food packages and "empty plate clubs" can weaken self-regulation and lead to overeating. 

 9. If you feel that your relationship with food is affecting your family's eating habits, you should seek out additional resources or professional advice.

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