The fall not only seems to bring the cold weather, but it also seems to bring on the never-ending list of special occasions where treats take front and center! Halloween, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Easter with lots of birthdays sprinkled in there too means a never-ending amount of sweets, treats, and snack foods.
Considered either as forbidden foods or fun foods; sweets, treats, snack foods, fried foods, and soda pop taste delicious but offer little in the form of nutrients that support growth and development.
In our home, our treat policy is to have a plan. While not contributing significantly to supporting our children’s growth and development, our child needs to learn to manage treats so they don’t feel deprived or restricted.
Research shows that restriction leads to overconsumption of these foods. We know that a child who is deprived of treats will show an increase in behaviours often begging, whining and even sneaking food. Another concern is when forbidden foods make up most of what your child eats it then decreases the opportunity for your child to learn to like new foods and expand their food variety.
Forbidden foods also get their bad reputation from diet culture and food policies passed down through generations that fat and sugar are bad and need to be restricted.
As a parent, your personal relationship with sweets and treats in addition to the boundaries you set for your child has a significant impact on how a child will develop their relationship with fun foods. Micromanaging, demonizing or labeling these foods as bad, unhealthy or junk can lead to a distorted relationship. When a child rarely sees these foods and they are considered “bad” they won’t develop the skills to manage them in a healthy way.
This will translate into adulthood when they have unlimited access on their own and can lead to obsessing or overindulging on these types of foods. You can avoid forbidden foods as long as possible with your child never knowing they exist, but they will find out at some point when they have friends in school, and since they are widely available around every corner or corner store. The more opportunities to have access to these foods, the more these foods lose their excitement.
Consider this: how can you teach your child the skills to manage these foods if they are never exposed to them or they are consistently restricted by well-meaning parents?
I often help the families I work with to develop a treat policy that works best for them and their children. The theory comes from the work of Ellyn Satter, a pediatric dietitian and family therapist and her work on the Division of Responsibility. The following points are important considerations. (Source: https://www.ellynsatterinstitute.org/family-meals-focus/39-using-forbidden-food/)
The 5 Key Points to Consider in a Treat Policy:
- Structure. Meal and snack times need to be on a predictable schedule typically every 2-3 hours for kids under 5 and 3-4 hours for kids over 5. A predictable and consistent set of boundaries around all food helps your child to trust you to do your role in providing food including forbidden foods without restricting them completely. This then supporting your child to eat the amount of food their body needs from the food offered.
- Provide the occasional opportunity for unlimited access to forbidden foods without distractions. This would include sitting at the table for a snack with a whole bowl of chips or a whole plate of cookies paired with a portion of nutritious food like milk or fruit and allowing your child to eat until they are full. They may eat a lot and have to manage the natural consequence of a sore tummy, but it is the learning opportunity that is key. The excitement will wear off over time.
- Offer 1 portion of dessert (with no seconds) with the meal. A child can then decide if they want to eat it at the beginning, in the middle or at the end. This is one I know many families struggle. I too grew up with the idea that dessert was the reward for eating your dinner. This puts dessert higher up on a pedestal. What kids hear is I have to eat my broccoli first to be able to get ice cream, then my broccoli must not be as good as the ice cream. When you neutralize it and relax your expectations you will find your child happily eat some ice cream and then go back to eating their meal and finish sometimes with the dessert item still having leftovers. This takes time and persistence so the excitement wears off and your child becomes more relaxed around it. BUT you need to be relaxed around it too. After all, you are your child’s biggest role model.
- Offer fried foods or fatty foods as part of meals at home occasionally. This may look like burgers with a salad and fries or a grilled cheese sandwich with raw veggies and potato chips. Exposure to these foods at home with access to seconds and thirds with healthy options available too helps to neutralize the appeal of these foods. Think the friend who can’t control how much pizza they eat, the more often your child sees it, it loses the excitement when it isn’t a restricted food.
- Encourage mindfulness when eating. Supporting your child to slow down and explore the food and appreciate the taste, texture, and experience of eating helps to savor the food and they often become satisfied with less. Eating when distracted promotes overeating which takes away from the ability to listen to our body’s hunger and fullness cues.
Kuanguka kwa majira ya baridi kali sio tu kunaonekana kuleta hali ya hewa baridi, lakini pia kunaonekana kuleta orodha isiyo na mwisho ya hafla maalum ambapo vitamu huchukua mbele na katikati! Halloween, Krismasi, Siku ya wapendanao, Pasaka na siku nyingi za kuzaliwa zilizopakwa maji huko pia humaanisha kiasi kisicho na mwisho cha peremende, mapishi, na vyakula vya kupumzika. "Kama vile ""vyakula vilivyokatazwa"" au ""vyakula vya kufurahisha,"" vyakula vya kupendeza, vitamu, vyakula vya kupikia, vyakula vilivyokaangwa, na soda pop vina ladha nzuri lakini hutoa kidogo katika fomu ya virutubisho vinavyounga mkono ukuaji na maendeleo." Katika nyumba yetu, sera yetu ya kupeana zawadi ni kuwa na mpango. Wakati si kuchangia kwa kiasi kikubwa kusaidia ukuaji na maendeleo ya watoto wetu, mtoto wetu anahitaji kujifunza kusimamia anashughulikia hivyo wao si kujisikia kukosa au vikwazo. Utafiti unaonyesha kwamba vizuizi huongoza kwenye ulaji wa kupita kiasi wa vyakula hivyo. "Tunajua kwamba mtoto ambaye anapewa vitu vya kupendeza ataonyesha mwenendo wa kuongezeka mara nyingi kuomba, kulia na hata kujificha chakula. """ "Kila mtoto anapokula chakula kilicho haramu, inaonekana kwamba chakula hicho kinapunguza nafasi ya mtoto kujifunza kupenda vyakula vipya na kuongeza aina yake ya chakula. """ Vyakula vilivyokatazwa pia hupata sifa mbaya kutokana na utamaduni wa lishe na sera za chakula zilizopitishwa kwa vizazi kwamba mafuta na sukari ni mbaya na zinahitaji kupunguzwa. Kama mzazi, uhusiano wako binafsi na peremende na mapambo, pamoja na mipaka ambayo umeweka kwa mtoto wako, una athari kubwa kwa jinsi mtoto atakavyoendeleza uhusiano wake na vyakula vya kufurahisha. "Kusema kwamba ""mali hii ni mbaya, si ya afya au si ya afya"" kunaweza kusababisha uhusiano usiofaa." Wakati mtoto mara chache anaona vyakula hivi na wao ni kuchukuliwa "mbaya" wao si kuendeleza ujuzi wa kusimamia yao katika njia ya afya. Hii itajitokeza katika utu mzima wakati wao kuwa na upatikanaji usio na kikomo kwa wenyewe na inaweza kusababisha obsessing au overindulging juu ya aina hizi za chakula. Unaweza kuepuka vyakula vilivyokatazwa kwa muda mrefu iwezekanavyo na mtoto wako asijue kuwa zipo, lakini watajua wakati fulani wakati wana marafiki shuleni, na kwa kuwa zinapatikana sana karibu na kila kona au duka la kona. Kadiri chakula kinavyozidi kuwa na fursa ya kuupata, ndivyo chakula hicho kinavyopoteza msisimko wake. Fikiria hili: Unawezaje kumfundisha mtoto wako ujuzi wa kusimamia vyakula hivi ikiwa hawajawahi kufunuliwa au wanapigwa marufuku mara kwa mara na wazazi wenye nia nzuri? Mara nyingi mimi husaidia familia ninazofanya kazi nazo kutengeneza sera ya matibabu ambayo inafanya kazi vizuri zaidi kwa wao na watoto wao. "Kama ilivyoelezwa hapo juu, Ellin Sattler, mtaalamu wa chakula cha watoto na mtaalamu wa matibabu ya familia, anaamini kwamba ""mzigo wa chakula ni muhimu.""" Mambo yafuatayo ni muhimu kuzingatia. "Kama ilivyoelezwa katika makala ya ""Mafunzo ya Utafiti wa Kiuchumi"" (http: www.fine-food.org) na ""Mafunzo ya Utafiti wa Kiuchumi"" (http: www.fine-food.org), kuna mambo matano muhimu ya kuzingatia katika sera ya matibabu: - Muundo." Wakati wa chakula na vitafunio lazima uwe kwenye ratiba inayoweza kutabiriwa, kwa kawaida kila masaa 2-3 kwa watoto chini ya miaka 5 na masaa 3-4 kwa watoto zaidi ya miaka 5. Mipaka ya kawaida na ya kawaida ya chakula husaidia mtoto wako kuamini kwamba utafanya jukumu lako katika kutoa chakula, ikiwa ni pamoja na vyakula vilivyokatazwa, bila kuizuia kabisa. Hii inasaidia mtoto wako kula kiasi cha chakula ambacho mwili wake unahitaji kutoka kwa chakula kilichotolewa. - Kutoa fursa ya mara kwa mara ya kupata vyakula vilivyopigwa marufuku bila kuingiliwa. Hii inahusisha kukaa mezani kwa vitafunio na bakuli nzima ya chips au sahani nzima ya biskuti pamoja na sehemu ya chakula chenye lishe kama maziwa au matunda na kuruhusu mtoto wako kula hadi amejaa. Wanaweza kula sana na wanalazimika kukabiliana na matokeo ya asili ya tumbo linaloumiza, lakini ni fursa ya kujifunza ambayo ni muhimu. Fadhaiko hilo litapungua baada ya muda. - Toa sehemu moja ya dessert (bila sekunde) pamoja na mlo. Mtoto anaweza kuamua kama anataka kula chakula hicho mwanzoni, katikati, au mwisho. Hii ni moja najua familia nyingi mapambano. Mimi pia nililelewa nikiwa na wazo la kwamba dessert ilikuwa thawabu ya kula chakula chako cha jioni. Hilo huweka dessert juu zaidi kwenye nguzo. "Kama watoto wanavyosikia, ""Ni lazima kwanza niwale broccoli yangu ili niweze kupata aiskrimu,"" basi broccoli yangu lazima isiwe nzuri kama aiskrimu." Wakati wewe neutralize na kupunguza matarajio yako, utapata mtoto wako furaha kula baadhi ya aiskrimu na kisha kwenda nyuma ya kula chakula yao na kumaliza wakati mwingine na dessert bado kuwa mabaki. Hii inachukua muda na uvumilivu ili msisimko uondoke na mtoto wako awe na utulivu zaidi karibu nayo. LIKIMA wewe huhitaji kuwa na utulivu kuzunguka hilo pia. Baada ya yote, wewe ndiye kielelezo kikuu cha mtoto wako. - Pata chakula chenye mafuta au vyakula vilivyokaangwa wakati mwingine nyumbani. Hii inaweza kuonekana kama burgers na saladi na fries au grilled jibini sandwichi na mboga mbichi na chips viazi. Kuishi nyumbani na vyakula vya pili na vya tatu na chaguzi za afya zinazopatikana pia husaidia kuondoa rufaa ya vyakula hivi. Fikiria rafiki ambaye hawezi kudhibiti kiasi cha pizza wanakula, mara nyingi zaidi mtoto wako anaona, inapoteza msisimko wakati si chakula kizuizi. - Kuhimiza ufahamu wakati wa kula. Msaada wa mtoto wako kupunguza na kuchunguza chakula na kufahamu ladha, muundo, na uzoefu wa kula husaidia kufurahia chakula na mara nyingi wanaridhika na kidogo. Kula wakati unafadhaika huendeleza kula kupita kiasi ambayo huondoa uwezo wa kusikiliza ishara za njaa na ukamilifu wa mwili wetu.