The right food for kids

Being a busy mum means there’s never a dull moment, so eating the right food is really important for me – and especially for my growing kids. After all, they need the right nutritional ingredients to maximise their learning potential and keep their energy up for playground activities.

I try to get my older children involved in the preparation of food, as I find they are more likely to eat what they have helped to create. I have a few other tricks up my sleeve too – if veggies are rejected, I try to disguise them in meat dishes like bolognese sauce, tacos, Shepherd’s Pie, meatballs etc. Seems to work a treat.I also encourage my children to try a variety of foods – after all variety (and chilli) is the spice of life. I also try to offer new foods alongside familiar ones. However, despite that I seem to have a very fussy nine year-old who often stubbornly sticks to her regular diet. So I serve sliced salad vegetables alongside a sandwich, as she’s more likely to eat it. I also supplement her with a kids’ fish oil as she refuses to eat seafood.

I also think offering appropriate serving sizes is important, as too much food can be overwhelming for the younger troops. For this reason I cut up fruit and vegetables into small manageable pieces.And finally, we usually have a designated junk food day on the weekend. I think if you give kids a treat every now and then, they’re less likely to crave it all the time than if you don’t allow them to eat it at all.

The best way to guide your kids into healthy food – is to lead by example.