Heart Healthy Family – Sit down and eat together.
I know making meals a priority can be challenging with busy schedules, but that doesn’t make it any less important. Research consistently shows families that eat together eat healthier meals and better dietary outcomes. A family meal is strictly limited to the entire family being together. What’s important is that whoever is home or together takes the time to sit down and enjoy mealtime together. This means if one parent is at work the other can sit down for meal time with the kids.
A study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association found children who ate family meals are:
Heart Healthy Family – Be a good role model.
Your children will follow your example. If you eat fruits and vegetables, they will likely eat fruits and vegetables. If you have soda for breakfast, they will likely have soda for breakfast. Children learn from the example you set.
Parents are role models for their children and have the greatest influence over their children’s lives. Children watch their parents to learn the appropriate behavior to imitate. This goes from basic manners to attitudes towards food. (FYI – Watch what you say about a food in front of your kids! Just because you may not care for broccoli, doesn’t mean they won’t learn to love it.)
