The #1 most important health goal you can make in 2025 is to prioritize sitting down to eat with your kids.
That's it.
Seem to simple to be helpful?
It's been my experience in counseling patients over the past 15 years that almost everyone who DOESN'T eat family meals will struggle with the following problems:
kids who are picky eaters
kids who won't eat meals
kids who eat too much
kids who don't eat enough
parents who don't feel good about their eating choices
My first recommendation is ALWAYS to sit down and eat MEALS together.
As soon as families start eating meals together, their kids start eating better.
Parents start feeding themselves better too.
Of course, there's a few additional rules required to make this successful (quid pro quo's thank you genie from Aladdin).
RULE #1: CHANGE HOW YOU SNACK
This doesn't mean you can't have snacks: you just need to treat snacks like a meal. Have a set time for snacks, gather the food you want for snack and sit down to eat it at the kitchen table (or in a set spot on the floor if you have no table).
Don't let your child graze.
Stop giving snacks as a way to entertain your child in the car, at stores, at church, in the stroller, or at times when they need to wait.
RULE #2: BE CONSISTENT
Try to eat at around the same times every day.
Kids need to eat every 2-4 hours.
Eat breakfast when you wake up and eat a meal or snack at the table (or in a set spot on the floor if you don't have a table) again about every 3 hours until bedtime.
RULE #3: NO SCREENS
no phones while eating
no TV while eating
no tablets while eating
no toys, books or other distractions
kid won't sit long enough to eat? They probably aren't hungry. Try again in 2-3 hours.
don't try to distract your child into eating
avoiding screens also prevents adults from overeating
RULE #4: DON'T PRESSURE ANYONE TO EAT
Offer food
If your child chooses not to eat, don't make them eat
If your child eats a lot, it's okay, maybe they are growing. They'll probably eat less later.
You'll be offering a meal or snack again in 3 hours, they can eat at the next meal or snack if they aren't going to eat right now!
That's it.
Did you notice how I didn't say anything about WHAT to eat?
How you eat is even more important than what you eat. That is partially because it's very difficult to eat well if you aren't planning and cooking meals.
Get the meal habit down.
Stop grazing all day.
Then you can add in healthier foods.
I'll show you what that looks like next week.
thanks for reading!!
Comments