5 Food Rules:
1) Be a model to your kids!
As children grow, they look up to the actions and behavior of their parents. Therefore, be an effective role to healthy eating by:
• Sitting down everyday with your kids for breakfast, as it is the major source of energy to fuel our bodies. A healthy breakfast can consist of a U.S. smoked turkey breast, half loaf of pita Arabic bread, a cucumber and a cup of milk.
• Keep healthy snacks around. Kids are constantly hungry and continuously grab food they see around, so always keep cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, carrots, almonds, dried fruit and yoghurt around.
2) Variation of food:
Vary the selection of food presented to your kids as they will be comfortable in consuming new food items, and will have the desire to eat those foods.
• You need to provide them with a variety of bright colorful food such as grilled U.S. chicken breast, green vegetables, orange boiled carrots, white rice, and purée potato.
• Try to introduce a new item each week. For example: one week introduce carrots with U.S. boneless and skinless thin strips of chicken breast to their dishes, while the next week, incorporate peas with U.S. turkey breast and rice.
3) Divide the responsibility:
• The responsibility is divided between you and your kids. Your role is to serve them healthy nutritious food but their role is decide how much to eat.
• Parents are the ones to offer quality food, whereas the kid’s role is to quantify the amounts needed based on their appetite.
4) Have fun!
• Play games with your kids: such as “guess the food” and rate from 1 (most) to 5(least) liked food item.
• Engage your kids with the “Egg Hunt” game, where you can hide U.S. fresh eggs inside the bush, behind the tree or around the flowers.
5) Enjoyable activities for kids:
• Encourage physical activity by helping your kids find their favorite sports or games that most appeals to them. Remember to participate and play along as your children will more likely join in.
