Teaching Kids to Eat Healthy

There are so many important things to discuss with our kids these days—tobacco, drugs and sex come to mind. But what about healthy eating? Two-thirds of America’s adults are either overweight or obese, and 16% of children (9 million) are overweight, so this ought to be on our list.

We Can! is a new government campaign that encourages us to teach children to eat a variety of fruits and vegetables each day; choose small portions; eat fewer high fat foods; drink water or fat-free or low-fat milk rather than sodas; be physically active for at least an hour a day most days of the week; and limit TV and video-game time to no more than two hours a day.

If children can be taught to make healthier choices while they are still in grade school, they will likely continue those habits as they get older. Research published in June 2005’s Pediatrics seems to support this. The study found that children who, with their parents, received nutrition classes tended to eat better than their peers.

In the study, sponsored by the National Heart, Blood and Lung Institute, food selections were classified as “whoa” or “go” foods, depending on their saturated fat and cholesterol content. After three years, the children in the group that received the nutrition advice ate more of the healthier “go” foods and fewer “whoa foods” than the other group. But even the healthy eaters wouldn’t give up pizza (a “whoa” selection) or eat more fruit (a “go” choice). They were more likely to choose low fat desserts, however.

The We Can! campaign hopes to extend this trend, building on the new dietary guidelines released in January 2005, and the new food pyramid that followed. So, parents, let’s add healthy eating to our list of topics to discuss with our kids. The earlier we start, the better.