As parents, there can be a lot of anxieties in wondering if we are doing the right things. Yes, some of the basics of raising a healthy child or the importance of having our children maintain a healthy lifestyle can be harder than we think sometimes. As obvious as they seem, from making sure they eat healthy fresh fruit and fresh vegetables, not indulging in too much sugar and so forth, but the basics in raising a healthy child aren’t always about following the rules. We need to make sure that we are setting the right example as parents. So, there are many things that us parents are guilty of, and are passing on to our children, but what things can we do now to make sure the balance is reset, so that our children grow up healthy, and more importantly, happy?
The Importance Of Routine
We can implement a routine from the second they are born into this world, sticking to a routine is much harder. Of course, as our children grow up, they will develop more of their own minds than anything, making these routines very difficult to stick to. And, while it is a very arduous task, we need to place these boundaries in as soon as possible so that our children know exactly what is acceptable and what isn’t. And even if children don’t have certain routines, this can mean a big impact on their lives overall. Not going to sleep at the same time every night can have an impact on their sleep cycle as well as their mood. We all know how bad we feel when we haven’t slept properly, so think about it in terms of your child, and are they constantly cranky? There could be various factors, including diet, affecting this, but the importance of a routine does a lot to establish boundaries and structure, and this doesn’t just work for children, it can work wonders for us adults too!
Self-Care
It’s surprising that the amount of issues that children suffer from can be cured with a few simple self-care routines. A lot of us parents go for the cheapest products, and these end up causing our children rashes or severe irritation, so this is the first thing to address. Finding gentle baby shampoo or nappy rash cream that doesn’t cause irritation can be quite a task, but once you find the right products, you will see that it makes them less irritable, and that makes life easier for you. The big culprit in looking after our children’s hygiene is their teeth, and some think that as their teeth aren’t that prominent, that you don’t need to clean them. Even if you can just see the bump in their gums, now would be the best time to start an oral hygiene routine. And it gets to a point when they are a bit older that they don’t want to brush their teeth, so this is usually because it’s a new thing. So if you can get in early enough and start to brush those teeth, or even better, encourage them to hold the brush and to clean their teeth, this is another routine that will make life easier for you down the line.
The Dreaded Digital Devices
Unfortunately, it seems that children learn how to use smartphones and tablets before learning to write, and this sets them up for poor routines later in life, not least of all, disrupted sleep. And this is because of the blue light from excessive use of any digital items, even television, interrupts the sleep hormone melatonin. And, while this may mean your children will sleep the same amount of time they normally do, the quality will be greatly affected. And a lack of good quality sleep will have a drastic impact on issues like their weight, as well as performance in school. The solution is to limit their device usage and ban it from their bedrooms. Children are more likely to stay up late with their tablets, and how are you to monitor their usage of the device? It’s better that you remove televisions, video games, all smartphones from their rooms. This will help to encourage better sleep habits, but limit devices to a certain amount of time, and only be used at certain times of the day. By using them so close to bedtime, this is where the melatonin will be disrupted the most.
The Meal Time Problems
Getting children to eat healthily is one of life’s big difficulties. If you’ve got children who are stubborn and refuse to eat any type of food that looks remotely healthy, there are a few options, but it all depends on how savvy your child is! It’s not an easy task, but by disguising vegetables with more flavor, it will encourage them to eat it more. So, it may be worth raiding the spice cupboard for new and interesting ways to flavor something as healthy (and disgusting) as broccoli. Maybe marinate the vegetables in stock, or take the Japanese approach and make broths full of noodles and vegetables and goodness. And for young children, the look of something will be one of the defining factors of whether they want to eat it or not. So, you might want to think about making vegetables more appealing by putting a few different colors on a skewer or try them in an omelet with as much goodness in there as possible. Also, the texture is another thing to think about, so, maybe consider grilling or barbecuing these vegetables. But this can take some of the nutrients out of the food, but once you got them to eat this food, you can start to find other ways to cook them that won’t remove the nutrients.
The overall health of a child is something that can be discussed for years on end, and we haven’t even touched upon the importance of exercise. But in the challenges, we face raising our children and making sure they are healthy overall requires these key points. The mealtime dilemma we’ll face every day, smartphones and digital devices are commonplace now, and by implementing effective routines and encouraging them to look after themselves, this will help you to raise a healthy and well-rounded child.
About Jammie Morey
Speak Your Mind