Optimum Nutrition for Children

All of us what to give our children the best. Children need healthy food to grow and learn. One of the most important components of nutrition for your child is parental responsibility in the feeding relationship.

In the feeding relationship, the parent is responsible for providing healthy foods to their children. Planning healthy meals and having them in the house is the parents job. Plan meals ahead of time. When you go to the store, buy only the foods you want your children to have. If you avoid buying soda, candy and chips then your children won't have them available to eat. Be sure to plan for snacks, too. Have foods available that children can choose from to eat for snacks. And, plan times for meals and snacks.

The child's job in the feeding relationship is to decide if they eat and how much they will eat. Appetites vary from day to day with adults and with children. So, if a child eats less one day it is not a problem. Get your child involved in planning meals and cooking to improve their interest in food.

Children who work with healthy food are more likely to eat it. Get your child more interested in vegetables by enrolling him or her in a youth or family garden project this summer. Income eligible children work in the gardens from seed to harvest, and learn about how food grows and nutrition through games and activities. Contact your county office to see if there is a youth garden project in your community.