Building Healthy Eating Habits for Kids

When it comes to healthy eating habits and food preferences of kids differ in some ways. Some are picky eaters while others may become adventuresome gourmands. But no matter what kind of habits they have, you can help your kids develop and shape his food preferences and attitudes toward food by guiding him toward healthy eating habits.

1. Accompany him during food shopping – show to your child how to choose healthy foods and explain to him the health benefits that you can get from the food. Instead for processed foods, go for fresh vegetables and fruits.

 

2. Let your kids help during cooking – whatever age your children are, invite them to help you during cooking, they may not be able to cook but certainly they can perform simple preparation. In this way your child will be able to know how to cook on their own as they grow up.

3. Promote smart snacking -  even if you served her favorite dishes during meal time but if he just taken his snacks too close to mealtime he will likely not eat it. That is why don’t let her take his snack at least an hour before mealtime, and if he wants make it light by serving a slice of fruits.

4. Avoid bribery – most parents certainly do this trick in order for their kids to eat by saying no to TV, computer or whatever he wants to do unless he eats his meal. But this idea can create an uneasy relationship with food in your child. Instead of pressuring him to eat which he doesn’t feel like, give him choices that are more likely to go down easy.

5. Don’t ban junk food – allowing him to eat such food doesn’t mean good for him but if you try to forbid even a piece of lollipop in your home will more likely to make him feel ignorant. A better way to handle sugary snacks is to let him take a piece of it once a while and if he wants for more, try to steer him toward healthy snacks like nuts.

6. Set a good example – examine yourself first, if you try to ban your kids from drinking soda and eating sugary foods, be a model to them by setting them good example.

Say No To Sweety Foods

Kids really love to eat sweet foods. You cannot say no when they want it, even adults likes to savor processed foods, soda, and other food beverages which found out to contain high fructose corn syrup. A new study from Medical College of Georgia at Georgia health Science University examined the 559 teens between the ages of 14 and 18 and found a link between diets that are high in fructose and increased risk for health problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure, insulin resistance and cardiovascular diseases. The researchers emphasize the importance of a healthy diet and exercise and urge parents to keep an eye on the amount of high fructose corn syrup that is being eaten by kids at home and at school. So the next time your child ask for a soda or junk foods, always consider the effects of the foods that he intake on his body. It’s better to say no them at once than to suffer the effects later.

Why Play Is Important for Your Child?

Play is a normal part of a happy childhood development. It is one of the child’s rights. In fact, studies show that play is actually a way for your child to prepare their brains for the challenge of adulthood which is derived whether through games, music or puzzles. Play reinforces the bonding and interaction between the parent and child. Play will give your child the following benefits:

1.      it lets him to assert his independence

2.      allows him to explore his capabilities at his own pace

3.      develops their imagination

4.      encourages socialization with peers

5.      promotes good health

6.      lengthen their attention span

7.      it makes them relax and release any form of stress or anxiety

8.      strengthens the bond between parents

9.      it helps them have fun on their own

Simple Ways To Prepare Your Child For School

Though we are conquered with the latest gadgets and fast evolving technology, it is still good to know that traditional ways of imparting knowledge to your child are still effective. There are several ways that parents should know to unlock the academic potential of their child without spending too much. Below are some of the basic steps to optimize the development of your child in order him to prepare for school.

1.      Read to your child everyday and expose him to books. Reading a book together with your child not only helps practice reading comprehension, it also helps foster a bond between the parent and the child. It is recommended that you set aside at least 20 minutes a day reading to your child. There are benefits that your child can get from reading: It promotes longer attention span. Develops listening skills. Stimulate the imagination. Build vocabulary. Develops a love for books as well as love for reading.

2. Talk with your child as much as you can. Talking to your child not only develops open communication between you and your child, but it also help him express his feelings and interests and boost intelligence.

3. Increase his playtime. Play reinforces the bonding and interaction between parents and child. It develops his imagination, explore his capabilities, encourages socialization and become independent.

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How To Handle Talking Back in Kids

One of the biggest problems of parents about child discipline is on how to handle with a child who is talking back to them. I think parents experienced this kind of problem. Back talk happens in almost any age at the most when the child started to say a word “No”. Well that’s a normal part of child development. But talking back can be triggered by a variety of causes. It happen when a child is trying to exert control over his own life such as what he wears, eats or does. Or it could be his way of testing his boundaries or simply be resentment from being hungry or tired. This behavior must be address effectively and immediately by parents and take necessary measures to stop it. As parents, it is our job to teach our kids how to express their wishes and opinions in a respectful and constructive manner.

Tips:

1.      Get calm and stay calm. Set a good example of behavior to your child. How you respond to your child’s angry reply can set the tone for your interactions but when you show calmness in yourself and in control of yourself then your child will behave as you are.

2.      Don’t get into a war of words. If you want to control talking back in your child, do not feed the back talk beast. Because if you exchange words with your child then they are inadvertently saying that this is an acceptable way to handle conflict. Do not respond until you can speak in a calm and controlled manner.

3.      Remind yourself that this is a natural part of development. Talking back is something all kids do as they grow independently and assertively. It’s frustrating to know as this behavior maybe, but just remind yourself that your child is not talking back because you did something wrong or because they do not respect you.

4.      Keep track when back talk happens. Try to keep track or observe the time when your child talks back so that you can take necessary steps to change or eliminate those that triggers his behavior. Like for instance, is he irritable after school or after any activities or does he talks back when he doesn’t get enough sleep?

5.      Give and ask for respect. It’s a good thing that children are given the freedom to express their opinions about something and that parents should know how to listen to it. But be sure to emphasize that you will not listen to what they say unless they have to speak to you in a calm and respectful manner. That is why it is important for parents to balance understanding with a requirement for respect.

6.      Show your child that you are listening. Once both of you have calm down, give your child your full attention. Let him express his opinions in a respectful manner and you will have to listen, it does not mean that you agree all what he said but it will teach him that you respect his opinion.

7.            Look at what your child is watching. Watch out for TV shows they are watching. Many shows today depict children talking back to adults and often display sarcasm and sassy attitude.

       

Though it's really a frustrating and upsetting behavior, but you just have to keep in mind that your positive response will keep this behavior in control. The calmer you are, the more your child will learn to use positive ways to express his opinions too.

Personality Traits of a Middle Child

According to research that birth order has something to do with the personality of a person. Each birth order has its distinct characteristics and personalities. The most crucial birth order is the middle child. Being the middle child is usually not very easy. It comes with some shame. They typically take on one of two personality types. The first type of personality is that of a loner. They are used to the first born and last born getting the attention, and so they become a bit of a loner. They are often shy because they have learned to let those who desperately seek the spotlight have it. They often become impatient quickly simply because they expect to be the last one to get what they want or need. The other type of personality would be the opposite of the above. They may be very outgoing because they have to get attention or they may be extra friendly because they are used to being surrounded by people. Usually a middle child will have almost opposite personality to that of their siblings. Of course not all middle child but according to research that birth order can affect personality type.

Most middle children have the following personality traits: They are fairly flexible. They have grown up needing to be flexible. They tend to be sensitive. Most middle children have a lot of practice at being thoughtful. They are usually in some sort of struggle with their siblings, which helps them learn the skills of diplomacy. They are often rebellious.

The middle child tends to be overlooked by the parents. No matter how hard parents try, they usually end up giving less attention to the middle child. The middle child usually has to share the attention. This means that they often act out in order to get noticed. They tend to be attention seeking. This goes back to the same reasons as before. They are used to being the one who is overlooked somehow, so they often seek attention, often in negative ways.They are usually competitive. Being a middle child typically requires fighting for the spotlight, etc. They typically have to share things like vehicles, wear handed down clothes, etc. This often results in the fostering of a competitive nature.

They are also often peacemakers. Middle children are typically peacemakers by nature. They have to be because they have someone on either side of them.Middle children need lots of reassurance that they are important the first and last child. Some ways to avoid the negative aspects of a middle child personality is just insuring they are confident and secure in your love for them.