how do i explain healthy eating to my 5yr old

mariangel03 · June 2011

my daughter told me yesterday that she doesnt want to be "fat" shes 5 and healthy. i tried to explain to her its not about bein skinny or fat, its about knowing the difference between being healthy or not healthy. she didnt get it she just kept saying she wants to be skinny.

i dont know if i did wrong in telling her how 'I' want to be skinny....i just dont want her to develop an eating disorder at such a young age. how can i explain to her how to have a healthy relationship with food?

MalDunc2012 · June 2011

This is such a great question. Bump for later

dls06 · June 2011

I would lead by example. Make healthy choices for the both of you and there will be no need to bring it up again unless she asks.If she does just reinforce "its healthy eating". She probably forgot all about it by now. You need to realize its not a diet its a Healthy lifestyle and she will not know any different.

kitinboots · June 2011

I don't have any kids or experience with kids but I have wondered about this.
I always figured encouragement in some sport or exercise would help. I remember the girls I went to school with that played on a team or represented the school competitively seemed to have a healthy attitude.

omnisis · June 2011

Just explain that the way to stay lean and healthy is to eat a nutritious diet with lots of fruits, veggies, nuts, etc. Emphasize that it's about putting the best ingredients into your body and eating the foods that nature intended and, like others said, just lead by example.

kimmerroze · June 2011

the biggest thing is to lead by example, and ONLY have healthy food around and unhealthy things need to be stressed as a TREAT or a celebration and they cant be done all the time.

That is where people fail. they try to tell them what is healthy, when you simply need to make it a habit...

If all she eats until she turns 18 and moves out is healthy food, then most likely that is what she is going to buy out on her own. if you guys as a family exercise and play outside, then it will become the norm.

Build healthy habits and the problem will solve itself.

jennafish7 · June 2011

perhaps change your own lingo about how to talk about it. No more using "I want to be skinny", but start using: "I want to be healthy" or "I want to be fit" and why..."becuase it feels good" or "I want to be able to keep up with you" or "I want to be around for a long time"
She'll pick up on that.

watermelonstarfish · June 2011

Feeding them what they should be eating is the biggest influence you can have on them.

Sauchie · June 2011

I let elmo explain it to my daughter and nephews...

1440Fierce · June 2011

I explain to the kids that food makes us strong. I emphasize strength and being able to run fast and keep up with friends. I say things like, 'this is what a superhero eats', and it's been working. I also monitor what I keep laying around the house, ie, fashion magazines, even my fitness mags as the covers are usually ladeled with "Lose Weight".

Also, maybe start monitoring what they watch, as certain channels (youth channels, etc) have commercials with kids who have a mainly one/a certian body type. Music channels, too.

When I work out, I explain that I'm trying to get stronger, so I can run faster and swim for longer periods of time, etc. I also avoid checking myself out in front of the mirror, lol

Hope this helps! Good luck!

bachooka · June 2011

It gets more difficult as you lose more weight. People are always asking me now how I lost the weight and my tots are picking up on that. They hear a lot about calories and such because my hubby is becoming a bit of a pain and I respond to that by saying, "too many calories, I'm done for the day!" My problem is more the kids asking how many calories are in there food. I don't think there is an issue with them being curious about it but I don't want them to be obsessed. So when they say they don't think they can eat something (treat wise) I say all the playing they did was exercise and it balanced it out.

I just leave them lots of healthy options and hope to lead by example. Monkey see monkey do is the case with most kids, so if you concentrate on being healthy and not being thin, that is what your daughter will emulate.

kristelpoole · June 2011

I don't have kids but I've talked about this with other parents and try to stay mindful of it around my 13 y/o stepsister. Something that seemed to really help is growing and cooking your own food. My mom started a small herb garden so she and my sis can go out and pick the herbs they want to use in their meal. By helping to cook, she gets an understanding of what vegetables are how they are prepared (butter, oil, etc) and it opens the conversation to talk about where REAL food comes from - farms and gardens, not the grocery store.

Good luck.

AlsDonkBoxSquat · June 2011

Yeah, I'd change your terminology, sounds like she's hearing you say fat and skinny. Use the words healthy, always healthy. Mommy eats like this and exercises like this to be healthy . . . really that's what it comes down to. you want to live a healthy lifestyle and lead by example.

mystiedragonfly · June 2011

Children copy what they see their parents do because they want approval and to know they please their parent. Up till they start going to school, the ONLY world children have are their parents. So yes, somewhere along the line, you have instilled in her the importance of being skinny more than healthy. Either through your own off handed comments about yourself that you were not aware she heard, or through television shows she is in the room to see you watch. If she sees the only way you like yourself is if you are skinny... she will in turn realize the only way to like herself is... if she is skinny.

At this age, if you only feed her healthy foods like fruits, veggies, and portion controlled meals, as she gets older her own body will only crave those foods. Teach her that things like ice cream are treats to be enjoyed, but rarely.

hiddensecant · June 2011

It's probably time to stop using that word when it comes to your own goals and start saying "healthy" instead.

It really is that simple .. though I'm not sure how easy it's going to be, hehe.

From one mom to another .. good luck!

EDIT: Ok, a repeat of a few others .. I swear they weren't there before I started to write this answer!

techymum · June 2011

Pretty much in agreement with all the previous posts.

My daughters, 23 and 20, were raised with me never saying I wanted to lose weight. (Although I needed to.) I would talk about wanting to get more fit. They also knew a neighbor who had an eating disorder at the age of 11, so we all were conscious of the health risks associated with that. (Even though my girls were only 6 and 9 at the time.)

Good luck :-)

aflane · June 2011

This is how I explained it to my niece.

You need gasoline to make a car go, right? And if the gasoline has dirt or water in it (bad gasoline), it makes the engine not work as well and break down. Healthy food is like the good gasoline for our bodies. We want our bodies to work the best, without breaking down. Bad gasoline = junk food. Good gasoline = healthy fruits, veggies and protein.

bloodbank · June 2011

My daughter isn't even 2 yet, so my thoughts might be kind of useless - but while I've never had bad self-image issues, my husband & I are very concerned about how she will see herself.

Since the get-go, I've been EXTREMELY careful about how I word body-related things to her. She has only ever eaten a whole foods diet, so food talk comes up rarely - for example, if we're grocery shopping and she dives into the candy section while I'm looking through the nuts I simply say "Oh yucky, that food isn't healthy for us... but these are!" and direct her towards the nuts (and so on).

For working out and my body, though, I always make sure to use very positive words - "Mommy is exercising so I can be STRONG!" or "so I can run FAST!"... she'll now pat the treadmill and say "Mommy exercise fast!" or climb on the Bowflex and say "Mommy strong!" - taking looks off the table and replacing it with health is key in how our kids will view their bodies as they grow, I think.

If I were in your shoes, I'd try to replace all the weight-descriptive terms with more generalized positive ones & to her statement that she wants to be skinny, something along the lines of "No honey, I think you want to be strong & fast (or whatever terms fit for you)... being too skinny isn't healthy!" and make an effort to give random praise to her for how she is - "you're so healthy!" and "you're so strong!"

Brandie6004 · June 2011

Hey

The other day, while giving my 4 yr old a bath, she told me her belly was fat from eating so much. I just told her her belly was really full from eating such a yummy dinner (she doesn't even baby fat anymore), so far that's about all she's said.

But we talk about how there are some foods that our bodies love and that help us grow tall and make our muscles so strong for climbing! (or whatever it is that your little one likes) ...and help give us engery to run so fast (or whatever your little one likes to do)! When I do let her have a cookie (or two) for a snack she'll sometimes ask for more. I let her know that one or two cookies sometimes is ok, it's a yummy treat, but that if you eat to many cookies you make your body sad because cookies don't help your body grow tall, or help make muscles strong or help you run fast.

The few times we talk about excersing I just let her know what it makes her body super happy and that it helps her muscles stay strong. I've told her that best muscle is her heart and that excerise is super good for her heart too.

That's really all I've said to my little one right now. Other wise, now that I'm trying to be healthier, she has me to show her and it's just smiply the way things are.

Not so long ago, I asked for tips to help w my 13 yr old's body image, someone suggested that I compliment (sp?) myself and "think out loud". I try really really hard not to talk about "how fat I am..." around her but it never crossed my mind to be positive about myself! Hopefully she'll learn how to see what is beautiful about herself.

That's really all I got... sorry it's not much, but hopfully it helps some!

IMYarnCraz33 · June 2011

I wish there was a way to "follow" this thread. It's really good.

I agree, we need to change our words. (I'm talking to myself also).
Kids are like sponges, they absorb everything they hear & see.

daisyelaine · June 2011

Definitely agreeing with what others are saying, but it's sometimes hard to get in that headspace for yourself. It will come though!!

We have a children's book that I LOVE ( as does my son) by Dr. William Sears called "Eat Healthy, Feel Great". It starts talking about how when you were a baby, you only needed special milk, but as you get older you need to have more different foods. Then breaks foods into 3 groups- Green light food ( which you can eat all the time and it helps your body GO!!), Yellow light food ( which you can have sometimes, but too much will make your body slow down) and Red light food ( which you shouldn't eat, and makes your body want to stop moving). Then it goes into discussing things like sugars, processed fats and food dyes, and also explains what various nutrients and minerals do for your body and where you can find them. Includes stressing the importance of water. There's also some recipes at the back and it comes with a small poster to hang up as well-- we have it in our kitchen beside the fridge! The illustrations are wonderful, and it's a bit of a long read, but you can totally just do sections and still get it. Matthew OFTEN has requested it for his bedtime story.. and prefers not to have hotdogs at school because "they're a red light food!". I was so proud...

Here's the amazon link...
http://www.amazon.ca/Healthy-Feel-Great-William-Sears/dp/0316787086/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top/185-7009112-1246404

Edit: I looked at the link after I posted it, and it might be hard to get it that way. My sister actually found our copy at a fancy pants baby store in Edmonton....

how do i explain healthy eating to my 5yr old

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