How Parental Behavior Can Promote Healthy Eating Habits in Children

2021-05-30
7 pages
1793 words
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University/College: 
Vanderbilt University
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Course work
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The purpose of this article is to show parents how they can improve their childrens nutritional health by changing the way they parent. It will give them tips as to what they can do to ensure that their children are meeting the dietary guidelines set out by the World Health Organization. The article will also show that by limiting screen time and increasing opportunities for physical activity, they can change what and how much their children eat. Childhood obesity is a growing problem in many parts of the world. Giving parents an understanding as to how their own behavior influences the eating habits of their children can help to decrease this problem. The article will tell parents that by modeling healthy behaviors, sharing in activities that promote physical movement rather than screen time, and presenting children with easily available access to healthy foods and physical activities, they can help their children eat the right kinds of foods in the amounts necessary for them as they grow. This essence of this article is to give them some information as to the actions they can take to promote healthy eating habits in their children.

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The audience for this article is parents of children ranging from the ages of two through to the end of adolescence. This would make the average age of the target audience somewhere between early 20s and mid-40s. Since this article targets parents of all educational levels, the writing should be relaxed and natural rather than formal. The cultural perspective of those reading this article is parents who are interested in the subject of child nutritional health. While they may have done some research in this area, they are not experts and therefore need things spelled out as clearly and concisely as possible.

My audiences attitude about the subject is that they know that childhood obesity is a problem, they are aware their children are in danger of becoming or are already obese, and they want to find ways to help their children become healthy. This article should give them some information as to the actions they can take to promote healthy eating habits in their children. The context in which they would read this article is on a mobile phone or desktop computer, since it is likely to appear on a blog.

A recent study attempts to explore the relationship between parental behavior and healthy eating habits among children. The study shows that childhood obesity is a growing challenge in many countries. Approximately 31.5% of children in most countries are overweight. This problem can result in health difficulties that have long term effects on a childs life. At times, they can even lead to death if not addressed with care. The study shows that parents can adjust how they treat their children to increase the health chances of their children.

Food Choices and Eating Habits

According to Pyper, et.al (2016), it is important that children eat their fruits and vegetables as specified by national health guidelines. The study uses Canadas food guide as a reference. In the study, the authors suggest that the amount of fruits and vegetables a child consumes depend on his or her age. The amounts vary from four fruits per day for children to seven servings per day for adolescents. Also, to ensure their children and adolescents are eating healthy meals, parents should familiarize themselves and understand the guidelines provided by the health institutions.

However, Pyper, et.al. (2016) finds that being aware of the guidelines is just the first step. Moreover, the ways in which parents behave in relation to eating habits impacts the diet choices children make. Fortunately, the study discovered several things parents can do to help their children make the right health choices.

Things to do

Dont eat in front of the TV. The authors say that eating in front of the TV often results in children choosing to eat more snack foods and more sugary drinks than they do if they eat away from the television.

Make fruits and vegetables easily available. The authors say that when it is easier to obtain [fruits and vegetables], our results indicate that children are more likely to eat them (Pyper et.al., 2016, p. 580). When fruits and vegetables are peeled, and washed and ready to eat, children are more likely to choose them as snacks. If they are sitting in the fridge but unprepared they are not as likely to be chosen.

Eat healthy meals together as a family. For one thing, Pyper, et.al. (2016) say, when families eat together it can help children to eat healthier than they do when left to their own devices (p. 568). Also, the authors say that children tend to copy the example of their parents. This means that if a child sees a parent making unhealthy food choices, they are likely to follow that example. If, on the other hand a parent makes healthy choices, the child will make healthier choices as well. Family meals are the times during which a parent can best set the example of healthy food choices.

Physical Activity

Evidently, it is not only healthy eating choices that lead to good health and weight loss. Physical activity is also important (Pyper, et.al. 2016). There are also guidelines for physical activity that state the kind of physical activities children should engage in. However, just like for healthy eating, the study used Canadian Physical Guidelines to draw their conclusions. Hence, the authors also found that there are certain things parents can do to encourage physical activities among children.

Things to do

Give children opportunities for physical activity. These can include enrolling them in extra-curricular sports or physical activity programs, or just encouraging children to play outside.

Engage in physical activity with children. Pyper, et.al. (2016) say that It is possible that parentchild co-activity in early childhood strengthens child self-efficacy and fosters positive attitudes towards physical activity (p. 579). This means that when parents join in physical activity with their children, it increases the childs self-confidence and makes them more likely to engage in physical activity on their own. Also, this is another place where leading by example can be helpful in promoting good health choices.

Create rules which dictate a certain amount of physical activity. Enforcing rules which encourage a child to go outside and play instead of staying sedentary will help the child maintain good health.

Screen Time

There are many ways in which children spend their time in front of the screen today Pyper, et.al. (2016). Therefore, it is important for parents to behave in a manner that limits their children too much screen time. This measure has been put in place to reduce the likelihood of children choosing unhealthy foods. Using the Canadian Sedentary Behavior Guidelines, the authors find that sedentary activity depends on the childs age. To illustrate how parents can reduce their childrens screen time, the authors suggest the following tactics.

Tactics

Create rules which limit a childs access to screen time. The authors suggest using the sedentary guidelines to formulate rules which say that a child only has a certain amount of screen time per day.

Limit the availability of screens in the house. Pyper, et.al says that for every additional screen available in a house, a childs average screen time increases by 23 minutes (p. 571). Therefore, only having a limited number of screens or devices available can help reduce a childs screen time.

Limit the amount of co-watching you do as a family. The study shows that the more co-watching of television or entertainment a family does, the more time a child spends in front of a screen rather than engaging in less sedentary activities. Also, this is yet another example of how a parent can lead by example. If a parent limits his or her own screen time, a child is likely to do so as well.

Putting It All Together

Pyper, et.al. (2016) put together the above information in a summary of five ways which should aid children make good health choices. The study shows that a parents decisions and lifestyle greatly influence the eating habits and activity levels of his or her child. Hence, some recommendations from the study can be useful.

Recommendations

Lead by Example. If you want your child to be healthy and make healthy choices, you need to model these behaviours yourself. Since your child will do as you do, you need to eat healthy and engage in physical activity, as well as limiting your own screen time.

Increase opportunities for physical activity while limiting access to sedentary activities. Make it possible for your child to attend extra-curricular physical activity programs, and let them play with friends and family physically while giving them only limited access to screens such as TV or computers.

Have rules in place which dictate the amount of screen time is available. Determine what amount of sedentary activity is healthy for your child, and make sure that the rules you have in place within your family meet those guidelines. Also, perhaps having a rule that says something like a child must engage in so much physical activity for every hour of screen time might be effective.

Make good food choices as easily available as unhealthy choices. If you want your child to eat more fruits and vegetables, make sure that they can access those fruits and vegies as easily as they can the cookies and candy. Make sure they are pre-washed and peeled, ready to grab and eat.

Have the entire family participate. This can include eating healthy meals together as a family, eating those meals away from the television, and playing physical games together. Not only does this lead by example, but it provide a support network for a child who will need to make healthy choices even though the media, their friends and even their school may provide easily available unhealthy opportunities.

The above article provides a keen and well revised analysis of the food choices, physical activity, and screen time strategies parents should uphold to ensure their children have healthy eating habits. The article also provides a summary of the recommendations parents should consider when evaluating their behavior and lifestyle choices. This article should therefore be a useful tool for all parents who recognize the adverse effects of obesity.

References

Pyper, E., Harrington, D., and Manson, H. (2016). The Impact of Different Types of Parental Support Behaviors on Child Physical Activity, Healthy Eating, and Screen Time: A Cross-Sectional Study. BMC Public Health 16: P. 568. DOI: 10.1186/s12889-016-3245-0. Retrieved 2016, Jan 17.

Canadas Food Guide http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/food-guide-aliment/index-eng.phpCanadian Physical Guidelines for Children [http://www.csep.ca/CMFiles/Guidelines/CSEP_PAGuidelines_0-65plus_en.pdf].

Canadian Sedentary Behavior Guidelines www.csep.ca/cmfiles/guidelines/csep_guidelines_handbook.pdfOriginal Article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12889-016-3245-0

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