The quality of a toddler or child’s diet today can be horrifying, with processed and high sugar foods extremely prevalent. With a genuine interest and concern with today’s child obesity problem, my girls are providing me with hands-on experience… And challenges.
We are faced with time restraints and convenience of prepackaged and junk foods that are branded to be healthy until closer inspection, all to the detriment of our kids. Things have changed since I was a child. My mother prepared no ‘quick’ meals, with the help of microwaves, nor did she pop out for take away. It was a daily process of being planned and providing the best that you could afford. Fitting toddlers meals into ones the whole family can enjoy is the key to making life simpler. Meals low in trans fats and low in sugar should form the basis of recipes.
Making the time to prepare food for toddlers and a shopping list of healthy staples for the kitchen is all part of being a parent. Leave the ‘treats’ for parties and grandma’s house and remind your children to be respectful of their bodies by eating healthy foods.
When preparing toddler food, including ingredients that are close to their natural form as possible is a good rule of thumb. Some prefer to prepare separate meals for their children but I always felt this wasn’t a sustainable habit I wanted to form. Finding recipes that the whole family can eat is the secret to long term success, including meals that easily adapt to being toddler friendly or finger foods.
It is within the child’s first couple of years that determine if they are going to be ‘fussy eaters’. This should be seen as a window of opportunity for you to expose your child to every possible different type of fruit and vegetable and have them accustomed to them. Once total independence comes along, experiencing new foods is hard to achieve. Even more so when they have been exposed to what is out there in ‘fat and sugar land’.
Babies are born with a natural tendency to favour sweet flavours – this assists in the acceptance of breast milk. For this reason, it makes sense to focus on expanding the savoury palate while reducing the reliance on added sweetness at each meal.
*This post was bought to you by Heinz, although all views and opinions are my own.
5 Low Sugar Recipes Toddlers Will Love
It is not a hard script to follow, keep it simple and close to nature as you can. Make eating fruit and vegetable fun for your kids. Grow a vegetable patch in your backyard, and let them assist you with the preparing and cooking of meals. Let them take ownership and be proud of what they have created, and then the ‘fruits of your labour’ will follow.
Do you remember what you used to eat when you were young? Do you think it shaped your eating patterns for later in life?
IMAGINE WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO HAVE CONFIDENCE IN THE KITCHEN
TO LOVINGLY PREPARE NUTRITIOUS MEALS FOR YOUR FAMILY?
+ Learn how to easily adopt healthy meal planning into your lifestyle
+ Know how to shop with healthy meal planners, shopping lists and a plan!
+ Overcome fear of cooking and understand what obstacles are holding you back + more!
