Strategies To Stop Eating Sugar

Are you like a lot of parents and dread what goes into your child’s mouth as soon as you leave the house in the capable hands of their carer? You can picture the child’s head slowing shaking no when asked if they would like an apple, their little pointy finger sharply indicating towards the shelf housing the LCM bars and nutella jars.

Leaving the house with this in mind can surely create the stress and anxiety that you definitely don’t want or need, especially when you are going out to get a bit of a break from the day-to-day grind of changing nappies or ferrying the kids around to sports or activities.

Here are some tips that may help you leave the house feeling that little bit more satisfied that their sugar cravings are kept at bay and the cavities far away!

Food placement

Our inner-laziness always prompts us to eat whatever is closest or at eye level which is why shelf placement is so important when trying to encourage your babysitter (and kids) to make better choices. With this in mind, try to put all of the ‘sometimes’ foods towards the back of the pantry or fridge, or on the higher or lower shelves. If more effort is required to find these foods, the less likely they are going to try. The middle or eye-level shelf is where most of us grab from so ensure all of the ‘acceptable’ foods are placed here so as to not create temptation or spark the feud. If they can’t see it, it doesn’t exist, right?

Good sugars

There are many foods that our kids eat that have hidden or good sugars in their ingredient list. These include bananas, apples, honey and yoghurt. Instead of making the not so good choices available, encourage them towards the ‘good’ sugars to help stave off cravings. You will be surprised how much they actually like these foods when not given any other options. A fun exercise leave a spread of all of the ‘good sugared’ foods on the bench before you leave and let them create their own masterpiece!

Educate and Illustrate

Education is the key to all things that require knowledge. If an adult or a child is not sure of the pros or cons of certain snacks, they are unsure as to why they should or shouldn’t eat it. Why not purchase some reference books and leave them around the house for the babysitter or even the kids to read? Or come straight out with it and tell them why they shouldn’t eat that teeth breaking candy cane over the freshly cut watermelon. Visual reinforcement is also a powerful reminder, perhaps create some colouring pages of fruits and vegetables for the kids or have healthy magnets largely displayed on the fridge.

Distraction

At times, kids eat simply because they are bored or because the carer is too busy watching the sport on the 5 o’clock news. To avoid this, ensure that they are always busy by equipping them with enough resources to keep them occupied. This doesn’t mean plugging in the PlayStation or the DVD player; leave a footy lying around, create a big box of craft supplies, even leave out a recipe for making play dough; anything to keep their minds, and hands busy and out of the pantry.

If all else fails”¦Overhaul!

We could all do with eating a healthier diet so get to it and clean out the fridge and cupboards, discarding anything that you don’t want the kids (or yourselves) to eat.

For more information on helping your family eat a more balanced and nutritious diet, visit the Healthy Kids website, www.healthykids.nsw.gov.au.

The site features healthy eating information for parents and carers as well as handy hints for eating healthy on a budget and active living for families.