Nutrition: What Every Parent Needs to Know

Last week Fit Bottomed Mamas was all about kickstarting fitness in the New Year. This week, the focus turns to the kiddos in our first Active Kids Week!

Meal time can be a stressful time for parents of youngsters. I remember how stressed I was when my daughter first started solids, and she’s not exactly what I consider to be a picky eater. Sure, she’ll turn up her nose here and there, but she’s mostly happy with whatever I offer. I can only imagine the stress when a child refuses to eat what he’s given.

A recent Clif Kid survey reported that while nearly half (49 percent) of parents said they eat healthier since having kids, only 15 percent would describe their kids as “healthy eaters.” Parents find it particularly challenging to feed their kids healthy snacks. If you need nutritional reassurance when it comes to your kiddos, the 2nd edition of Nutrition: What Every Parents Needs to Know from the fine folks at the American Academy of Pediatrics will not only reassure you, but it’ll also steer you in the right direction if you feel lost in the kitchen. Two parts of the introduction in particular made me nod my head in agreement.

1. “Children will not become ill or suffer permanently if they are picky eaters or refuse a meal or two, but parents sometimes act as though such children might shrivel up and die.” It goes on to say that parents’ conceding to the kids’ choices are what produces the toddlers who only eat white foods. Not to blame parents, but to prevent it? Offer wholesome choices and stand aside. A hungry child will eat.

2. The second thing I loved, which is right up the Fit Bottomed alley: “Nutrition is a long-range issue, and one day or week does not make or break good health.” Basically, you can relax. It’s like our “all good things in moderation” philosophy. Healthy foods most of the time will cancel out a skipped or barely eaten meal here or a treat there.

The book isn’t just about picky eaters and the toddler years, though. It covers nutrition and eating from infancy all the way through adolescence. Chapters on nutrition basics, allergies, eating disorders and “the gross stuff,” like spitting up and diarrhea make sure all the bases are covered. With tips and tricks for introducing healthy foods to toddlers to how to cope with outside influences on your kids’ diets, the book will arm parents with the nutritional know-how they need to navigate raising kids as healthily as possible.

Be sure to check back later today for an excerpt from the book! Did you read any nutrition books to reassure you in your mealtime decisions for your kids? —Erin