As a woman of the house, I’m sure every homemaker shares the same horrific nightmare that has tormented the female race for centuries, ‘What to Cook???’ To make the nightmare worse and fatal comes the next-to-impossible task of making your family, especially the children, EAT HEALTHY. I would like to make a real cliché suggestion here, but mind you, it works, making your food preparation experience fun can actually encourage your family to enjoy their meal – even the fussiest eater.
1. Try practicing good nutrition: This age-old mantra is by far the best way to stay healthy. This will almost never allow heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers to ever attack your loved ones. Eating nutritious food boosts your immunity, strengthens your muscles, and ultimately helps you live a longer and healthier life. It is a common belief that healthy foods are bland, boring, and tasteless. However, it’s just a myth.
2. Start nutrition at an early age: As the saying goes, Old Habits Die Hard, hence get your children into the habit of eating and enjoying healthy foods at a young age. Take them shopping at the grocery store, Let them choose all the colourful fruits and veggies they feel attracted to that are on display. Talk to them about the wonders these foods can do for their hair and skin.
3. Make healthy eating FUN: Try and concoct little games or Flashcards that display healthy foods and healthy ingredients for some really enjoyable recipes. Keep dropping information during conversations about what these healthy foods mean for them: carrots are good for your eyes, milk/calcium are good for your bones, etc.
4. Make your meals pleasing to your eyes: Displaying food in attractive and desirable ways can also encourage your children to eat healthily. Allow your children to help in the cooking if they are old enough to do so. Use different and fancy utensils to improvise your presentation. For example, you can use moulds for interesting shapes, or toothpicks for each bite.
In the words of the famous – Morgan Spurlock “Sorry, there’s no magic bullet. You gotta eat healthy and live healthy to be healthy and look healthy. End of story.”
IDPS(International Delhi Public School) , Kushmi, Gorakhpur
