Tips (some) in Kids Healthy Eating

As adults, most of us are trying to cut down the amount of fat that we eat. Health Canada recommends that no more than 30% of our calories intake should come from fat. But what about our children?

Babies require a higher-fat diet in order to grow and develop. Children, too, often need more of the concentrated energy and calories that fat provides, especially if they are not "big eaters". So nutritious foodsthat happenn to be higher in fat- like the ever popular peanut butter and cheese- can make a valuable contribution to a child's diet.

At the same time, it's important to introduce children to the variety of nutritious foods that make up a healthy diet at any age. Family meals that emphasize whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, leaner meat, meat alternatives, and lower fat dairy products will help kids acquire healthy eating habits that will last a life time. And the steps you take to reduce your own dietary fat- like frying food less often, using butter and salad dressing sparingly, or chosing plain popcorn rather than chips for a snack- will benefit your children too.

Approaching the end of their growth, thanks to your good example, lower fat food choices will just seem like normal eating!