Family Time

FOOD-DISCIPLINE: “May I please have...”
Patrice Jones, contributing editor

Childhood obesity continues to be a detrimental factor nationwide. The statistics are staggering and disheartening. It’s tragic to think about the possibility of our children dying before us; however, as statistics show, that’s exactly what’s beginning to happen. Do you really want to outlive your child? Of course you don’t!

As the grocery store shelves and frozen food sections continue to be bombarded with over-processed foods, it has become imperative that parents and guardians become educated, mindful disciplinarians of their children’s diets. Somewhere along the line, we have forgotten that discipline goes beyond reprimanding our children for bad grades or inappropriate behavior. We must be active disciplinarians of our young peoples’ healthy living habits, or lack thereof. Here are a few tips to put healthy-living discipline back into your household:

  1. Fridge-Fitness:
    Do your kids enter and exit the kitchen as they please? Do you allow them to go into the fridge and snack food pantry at their leisure? When I was a kid, that was an absolute no-no; especially, while mom or dad were cooking! Encourage your children to ask permission to go into the fridge or grab snacks. A lot of times, kids snack and eat out of boredom. Put healthy snacks in the fridge and pantries and have them ask: “May I have...?”
  2. Video Game-Era:
    Video games have become a staple in the average American household. They have rapidly become the ‘fruit and vegetable’ of the family meal. Outdoor playtime has been replaced with technology; keeping our kids bodies idle and their minds warped by digitized, sometimes violent, images. Instead of allowing your kids to play countless hours of video games, designate a specific time where they are allowed to play safe, non-violent, educational video games. Encourage them to ask; “May I play...?”
  3. Fast-Food-Police:
    How often do you take your kids to the drive-thru — before school for breakfast? After school for dinner? Both? If you have older children that either take public transportation or carpool to school, how often do they stop at the drive-thru?

It is very important we establish healthy-household rules and guidelines. Healthy habits learned inside the home, will most likely be practiced outside of the home. It’s true we cannot control everything our children do after they’ve exited the ‘home-front’, however, if we take the time to lead by example and prepare healthy-wholesome home-cooked meals, they will be less likely to feel the need to stop at a fast-food restaurant. The healthy eating habits nurtured at home will spearhead their decisions to pass up a greasy burger and sugar-loaded beverage.